Specialty and Emerging Crops Program Manager

Job Summary:

About Extension:

UW-Madison's Division of Extension serves the people and communities of Wisconsin by addressing local, statewide and national issues, improving lives through research-based education, fostering partnerships and action, and facilitating positive impacts. The Agriculture Institute is one of six Institutes in the Division.

About the Agriculture Institute's Crops and Soils Program:

The Agriculture Institute's Crops and Soils Program works hand-in-hand with row crop, forage, fruit and vegetable producers to implement best practices for every aspect of the growing phase. The Crops and Soils program provides timely resources and information to help Wisconsin crop producers and their agricultural consultants manage crops efficiently and profitably.

About this Position:

The Specialty and Emerging Crop Program Manager is an exciting, new position meant to provide leadership and programming to Wisconsin's fruit, vegetable, and emerging crop growers within Extension's Crops and Soils Program. The Program Manager will work with Extension faculty and staff and the state's agricultural producers to understand the fruit, vegetable, and emerging crop production-related challenges on Wisconsin farms in order to create connections, identify needs, and develop and maintain robust, high-quality outreach education programs.
The Program Manager will also build connections between the Agriculture Institute's Crops and Soils Program and Horticulture Program in order to additionally serve consumer fruit and vegetable audiences.

The Specialty and Emerging Crop Program Manager will:

- Provide leadership for teams of faculty and staff that conduct fruit, vegetable and emerging crops-related programming in order to maintain strategic direction, build partnerships, and seek a diverse funding portfolio to support the work.
- Mentor, support and supervise educators and outreach specialists in the Agriculture Institute that are engaged in programming related to fruit, vegetable and emerging crops production.
- Collaborate with Extension colleagues, industry, and other stakeholders to identify needs and develop and maintain robust, high-quality outreach education programs that provide solutions to critical issues facing commercial fruit and vegetable producers in Wisconsin.
- Build connections between faculty and staff in the Extension Crops and Soils Program and Horticulture Program in order to serve the needs of consumer fruit and vegetable producers.
- Develop and maintain expertise and deliver programming related to vegetable production systems.
- Build trust-based relationships with stakeholders.

The ideal candidate will have experience with developing and evaluating educational programming and a track record of building positive relationships.

The Division of Extension has a deep and profound commitment to diversity, inclusion, and equity, believing that these values are foundational elements to eliminate disparities and expanding access for all. As Extension, we acknowledge the need for strategic and coordinated actions that help us form a more equitable, anti-racist, non-biased, and inclusive organization. (https://blogs.extension.wisc.edu/oaic/call-to-action/) As such, all Extension employees are expected to foster and promote the values of diversity and inclusion.

Responsibilities:

Provides guidance for program planning, implementation, and evaluation, and/or supervises outreach staff. Monitors budget and appropriate funding for programming. Promotes stable and productive relationships between the university and community. Strives to expand and ensure access to programs, facilities, and educational services to diverse audiences.

• 25% Supervises the implementation of outreach-program-focused strategic planning initiatives and objectives
• 10% Develops and implements operating policies and procedures to promote the outreach program in alignment with the strategic plan
• 5% Monitors the unit or program budget and approves program expenditures
• 15% Reviews recommendations for and provides input on the design and development of new outreach programs or services
• 10% Determines outreach program needs and the personnel resource allocation plan
• 15% May exercise supervisory authority, including hiring, transferring, suspending, promoting, managing conduct and performance, discharging, assigning, rewarding, disciplining, and/or approving hours worked of at least 2.0 FTE or equivalent employees
• 10% Delivers outreach program content and materials to community members
• 10% Researches, develops, and facilitates outreach program content and materials

Institutional Statement on Diversity:

Diversity is a source of strength, c