Applying emerging core competencies to extension training courses for local food system practitioners

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2023.122.007

Keywords:

Food Systems, Competency Framework, Professional Development, Curricula Providers, Professional Training

Abstract

In 2019, a national group of local food system educators and practitioners identified over 140 foundational core competencies critical to local food system development work and began to identify existing educational resources related to these competencies. This process resulted in a new aggregated resource: the Local Food System Practitioner and Educational Resource Database. Included in this database is a core competency matrix that distinguishes three levels of learning for each competency so that practitioners can identify learning opportunities most closely tailored to their educational needs. It also serves as a framework and competency matrix for educators to use to help assess and communicate the learn­ing out­comes of their curricula. This framework is the overall concept for understanding the compe­ten­cies, and the matrix is the tool developed to assess and evaluate the level at which an educa­tional resource teaches a competency. In this article we apply the newly create core competency matrix to two existing local food system develop­ment courses. We share lessons learned from applying the matrix and insights gained from com­paring two introductory level courses. We con­clude with recommendations for improving the resource database and matrix to a more user-friendly model for educators and local food system practitioners.

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Author Biographies

Hannah Dankbar, North Carolina State Extension (NCSU)

Program Manager, Local Food Program

Courtney Long, Iowa State University

Program Manager, Farm Food and Enterprise Development, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach

Dara Bloom, North Carolina State University

PhD; Associate Professor & Extension Special­ist, Department of Agricultural Human Sciences, College of Agriculture and Life Science (CALS)

Kaley Hohenshell, Iowa State University

Program Coordinator, Farm Food and Enterprise Development, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach

Emma Brinkmeyer, North Carolina State University

PhD; Program Assistant, Department of Agricultural Human Sciences, College of Agriculture and Life Science (CALS)

Bre Miller, Iowa State University

Education Specialist, Farm Food and Enterprise Development, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach

Additional Files

Published

2023-03-07

How to Cite

Dankbar, H., Long, C., Bloom, D., Hohenshell, K., Brinkmeyer, E., & Miller, B. (2023). Applying emerging core competencies to extension training courses for local food system practitioners. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, 12(2), 287–303. https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2023.122.007

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