So imagine two new employees, Julie and Jane, start their positions as conservation specialists the same week in neighboring conservation districts.

Julie grew up on a family farm, with recent memories of putting up and feeding hay, early cold mornings and helping her grandpa inoculate livestock. She was active in FFA in high school and showed animals at the county fair for many years. Julie’s background has her well-versed in farming culture.

Jane didn’t grow up on or around farms, but in a city. She took a strong interest in environmental science in high school, and then college, and excelled in her studies.

Both are eager for a bright future in their new positions, but Jane may need some background knowledge that Julie’s already held for years.    

Young professionals who could use that type of background knowledge are the core audience for Ag101, an online tool that’s provided by Penn State Extension.

“It just makes such a difference to be able to have that basic level of understanding,” said Jennifer Fetter, director of the Center for Agricultural Conservation Assistance Training at Penn State Extension.

Many young people coming out of college are very enthusiastic about jobs in conservation and may have extensive environmental science backgrounds but zero farm experience, she said.

Farmers can get frustrated with a new specialist’s lack of basic farm knowledge, which can be a huge barrier to doing the work, Fetter said.

“There’s always new staff coming on that needs this training all the time,” Fetter said. “It’s not a static audience by any means.”

Ag101 used to be a series of live webinars and field trips before it was retooled for an online format, she said. The old way of doing it to teach basic ag literacy was a big, expensive undertaking that wasn’t sustainable over a long period of time.

There is a fee for the course, which is currently less than $100 per person, but lower group rates are available.

It’s part reading and part watching videos, said Fetter, who added that sales are often held with discounted rates. 

Here’s a link to the course: Ag101: Introduction to Agriculture. A conservation professional-specific page can be found here: Prepare Conservation Professionals for Farm Visits.     

The course itself is not intended only for Pennsylvania-based professionals.

“We try to talk about it from a mid-Atlantic perspective as much as we can,” said Fetter, adding that’s “because there’s a lot of similarities and overlap there.”

Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) officials saw a need for the course for their staff. NRCS was an early customer that continues to use it.

Doug Wolfgang, executive secretary of the Pennsylvania State Conservation Commission, has also seen the value in Ag101.

“Agriculture conservation is a diverse field made up of many technical and administrative professionals. This workforce provides a range of necessary skills needed to carry out conservation, but not everyone has experience working with farms and farmers at a practical level,” he said. 

“Ag101 has been instrumental in providing Pennsylvania’s conservation partnership with the competency needed to make strong and confident connections with farmers.”