We are growing all the time with new people and more energy, and for those looking for a leadership and learning opportunity we need a group of coordinators for next year's UW Farm work. Listed below are the basic descriptions of the positions that we need people for. Please look over this list of positions, and if one interests you, please send me an email with a short description of why you want to take on the position-and come to the Wednesday April 7th (at 5pm) meeting where we can come to a consensus decision on new people. As per the discussion of last farm meeting we will be limiting these positions to UW students (graduate or undergraduate) but of course volunteering with the different crews is open to all. We are doing this now so there is a quarter of overlap between previous and new coordinators.
Two things must be emphasized: firstly- we are still a young and growing educational farm and there is
nothing set in stone about these positions. There is considerable room for creativity, growth, and change and I especially encourage people who have lots of big ideas to jump into the farm with a leadership position and push us forward. Secondly, we are seeking as a farm to grow in ways that recognize collective effort over
individual achievement, and communal decision making over hierarchy. In this, some might question why we need these positions at all, however in my experience it has mainly been the role of these positions to coordinate and
facilitate volunteers, not direct. That said, if you have suggestions as to how we can be better at working non-hierarchically please send them to me or bring them to the next farm meeting. Please also note that the Fungi Crew's leader (Rachel Arnold: schoenrj@uw.edu) is staying on next year, and unless other
nominations are made, the Student Farm Director next year is Nina Arlein (arlein@uw.edu). Thanks for reading and I am excited for an amazing spring quarter-full of dirt, poop, edible weeds, and tons of good farm grown food.
Final Note: Unless otherwise noted, no experience is needed for these positions, only a willingness to commit to facilitating volunteers and a desire to learn while growing the farm. Position descriptions are also attached as a word document in case the formatting of the email is weird. The time commitments are very rough estimates.
Green Team Coordinator:
Facilitate volunteers to plan the annual crop rotation. Decide what crops (and varieties) get planted where and when. Good way to learn the environmental tolerances of
different crops, which families different crops belong to and companion
planting strategies. Works with the interns, dirty dozen to come up with a weekly schedule of starting and transplanting. Does one seed inventory at the end of the year
and orders the farm's seeds by Jan 15th, as well as making legible and lasting signage in spring outlining the crops being grown in the different beds throughout the year. Charged also with ensuring the keeping of accurate and clear planting logs. This coordinator will call meetings weekly or biweekly in the fall, and organize volunteers to make sure these tasks get done. Agricultural knowledge and experience a plus- e.g. participation in BIOL 240: Urban Farm. Kevin has set up an excellent system and he is happy to pass on his software and knowledge.
Estimated time commitment: 4hrs/wk Nov-Feb, less after
For questions contact Kevin Ford: krford@uw.edu
Compost Crew Coordinator:
Joanne: "As Compost coordinator I have mostly coordinated gathering
materials for the different types of compost we do here down at the farm.
This has included coordinating teams of people to get coffee grounds from
H-bar and food scraps from the Rotunda cafe, organizing manure runs to get
horse manure and coordinating people bringing food scraps from their offices
on campus. If you don't know much about compost, don't let that deter you!
This is a great place to learn about compost and we have a ton of
resources!" In addition, we are currently in the process of trying to expand our
composting infrastructure and we are looking for people interested in designing
and creating a larger and more efficient composting system in the Back 40.
Estimated time commitment=4-8hrs/wk
For questions contact Joanne Pontrello: joanne4@uw.edu
Outreach Coordinator:
The purpose of this crew is to bring new people to the farm, help new
volunteers get involved, making promotional materials, organize our
fund raising parties and to broaden the campus' awareness of and involvement
in our work. This year the outreach crew has met every two weeks, and
organized great tabling events, parties, visiting school groups to the farm
and more. Some directions that the work could be taken are movie showings,
community dinner nights, a "Why Not Here, Why Not Now" campaign to spread
the word of urban agriculture, more farm field trips and anything else you can dream up.
Estimated time commitment=2-4 hrs/wk
For questions contact Michelle Harvey: harveym@uw.edu
Treasurer:
This is a very new position, but we are starting the process of thinking
about how to decide how to allocate UW Farm money. This person would be
expected to work with the farm director and anyone else interested in
creating this structure. Moreover, they would be expected to report to the
farm at All Farm meetings with a budget report and be the go to person
for requests to spend farm money. More importantly, this person would
organize volunteers who could seek out funding opportunities for the farm-be
they in kind donations, grants, student funds (e.g. the Campus
Sustainability Fund) and more.
Estimated time commitment: 1-2 hrs wk
For questions contact Nelly Gozdek: nellyg@uw.edu
Chicken Crew Coordinator
This person will organize the volunteers that care for the chickens. We
currently have 4 laying birds and they require someone at night and in the
morning of every day to let them out, water and feed them, clean their coop
etc. This means that around 3 weeks before a new quarter, a call for
volunteers is sent out, and a chicken caring schedule is made. This person
will be in charge of ordering and obtaining chicken feed. This person is
also on call for the chickens in case of an emergency. We have a lot more
work that could be done in terms of better laying out the coop, better
logging egg production, using chicken tractors and more. Also this person
will attend a City Chickens 101 course at Seattle Tilth on UW Farm money to
get some basics.
Estimated time commitment: 10 hrs/quarter
For questions contact Brady Ryan: bradyr@uw.edu
Website Coordinator:
This person will be in charge of making sure the website is up to date with
upcoming events and information. In addition, this person will be in charge
of collecting media (film, photos) to be put on the website. They will work
with the other crews to make sure that meeting minutes are being posted
online. Website experience a plus but not necessary. If desired, design
work can be undertaken to improve our website.
Estimated time commitment: 2-3 hrs/wk
For questions contact Kelsey Racicot: k.racicot10@gmail.com
Cob Oven Firer:
This person is in charge of firing the cob oven for our monthly pizza bakes
and fundraisers, as well as organizing volunteers to ensure a steady supply
of dry chopped wood. For those with a tilt towards the culinary, this is
also a great way to begin learning the intricacies of cob oven cuisine, and
how to make pizza appropriate for such ovens. This year we have been truly
blessed to have had Sarah Farr helping us and you can learn a lot of this
type of stuff from her and Keith.
Estimated time commitment: 6 hrs/month
For questions contact Sarah Farr: euphorbiasplendens@gmail.com
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