Our on-farm apprenticeships provide a solid foundation in sustainable agricultural practices.
The Hudson Valley Apprenticeship is a decentralized apprenticeship program that trains future farmers in sustainable farming practices. The program provides education, training and mentoring to a cohort of aspiring vegetable farmers across the Mid-Hudson Valley. Training is largely vocational and hands-on, and is supplemented by 60+ hours of classroom instruction, workshops, and field days through the Mid-Hudson Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training (CRAFT).
All apprentices receive classroom instruction in the following areas:
- Antiracism & equity
- Business & financial management
- Compassionate communications
- Composting
- Cover cropping & crop rotation
- Farm safety and first aid
- Pest & disease management
- Soil science & testing
- Tractor safety & small engines
Through a combination of classroom and in-field instruction, each cohort of apprentices gains experience with the broad array of skills needed for success in managing a regenerative vegetable farm. Apprentices receive mentorship from both Glynwood program staff and their on-farm mentors. These participating farmer-mentors bring a diversity of experiences, enterprises, scales, and identities to the program, creating opportunities for a range of apprentices.
The HVA builds on the success of Glynwood’s residential apprenticeship program, which has provided a solid foundation in regenerative agriculture and additional education in managerial skills to over 70 apprentices since its creation in 2007. In response to a widening gap in educational, entry-level positions as many area farms shifted from offering apprenticeships to hiring employees, Glynwood created the HVA. This evolution of our fifteen-year onsite apprenticeship allowed us to resource a more diverse cohort of farm mentors and train a larger cohort of apprentices each year. Our residential apprenticeship continues as part of the larger HVA program.
To learn more about becoming an apprentice or participating mentor, see the HVA Program Overview. Applications are now open. To submit an application to all participating HVA farm mentors, visit the HVA posting.
Residential Apprenticeship
Glynwood’s vegetable operation and livestock operation both continue to host residential apprentices for 9 months full time from March through December. Glynwood farmers are participating mentors in the Hudson Valley Apprenticeship program.
Livestock apprentices have access to all of the resources and mentorship of Hudson Valley Apprentices. They participate in relevant aspects of the HVA classroom curriculum while also receiving separate, targeted training in pasture-based livestock management on our Animal Welfare Approved farm and other livestock farms in the region.
Beyond the 60 hours of classroom instruction included as part of the HVA program, both livestock and vegetable apprentices receive an additional 30-40 hours of structured training from Glynwood farmers in relevant enterprises and farming practices. To date, over 90% of Glynwood’s apprenticeship alumni remain in food and farming work; 67% of them are actively farming today.
Recruitment for all apprenticeships begins in the fall. Check our job opportunities page to apply to the residential apprenticeship, or visit the HVA posting to submit an application to all participating farm mentors.
