A leader of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences (CAFES) testified today in favor of funding for transitioning a longtime agriculture training program to the university, saying the program will provide a much-needed boost to the state’s rural workforce.
Animal and Food Science Professor Steve Kelm, chair of the UWRF Animal and Food Science Department, testified in support of a bill at the state Capitol in Madison before the Committee on Colleges and Universities that would provide $372,980 during the next two years to help offset costs for starting the Farm and Industry Short Course (FISC) at UW-River Falls.
FISC was started at UW-Madison in 1885 and was taught there until two years ago, when it was discontinued. With the backing of the agriculture industry, UW-River Falls agreed to host the program beginning this fall that provides training to Wisconsin’s agriculture workforce.
Wisconsin is experiencing a workforce shortage in the agriculture industry, Kelm told the committee, and today’s farms and agriculture businesses need workers trained in modern technologies taught by faculty familiar with those changes.
“UW‐River Falls is well positioned in the UW System to offer the type of world‐class, hands-on, faculty‐supported learning experience that the next generation of farm and ag business owners and operators want and need,” Kelm said. “We are extremely grateful that this legislation has been introduced to provide critical funding to support our operational and instructional costs.”
Wednesday’s hearing marks another step in the process regarding the bipartisan legislation to provide UW-River Falls with FISC-related funding. The bill must still be approved by the Assembly and Senate before UW-River Falls would receive those dollars.
Source: uwrf.edu
Photo Credit: istock-fotokostic
Categories: Wisconsin, Education