| PROJECT SUMMARY |
| African-American and Native American small farmers struggle to remain in agriculture. Many socially disadvantaged farmers have expressed a desire to investigate alternative agricultural enterprises, especially meat goat production. However, these farmers are ill-equipped with the management knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA) to succeed in this alternative enterprise. The objective of this project is to establish a Summer Institute for minority farmers in which they will be able to acquire these KSA´s. Oklahoma is home to Langston University, which is an 1890 institution and has the nation´s foremost goat research program. Langston University also has an outreach program for minority small farmers with seven small farms specialists stationed at various locations in the state. Langston University will partner with Oklahoma State University and with two non-profit organizations, the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Heifer Project International, to establish the summer institute. The Summer Institute will be an all-day workshop held every other week over the course of the summer. The Summer Institutes will cover various topics of goat management and will provide participants with a manual on goat production. An exam will be given after each workshop and at the end of the Summer Institute. All participants will be given a Certificate of Attendance, but those participants passing the final exam will be presented with a Certificate of Accomplishment. Impact of the Summer Institute will be measured by the number of participants enrolling in the workshops, by the number of participants completing all six workshops, by the number of Certificates of Accomplishments, by the follow-up profitability study conducted by the Outreach specialists. |
| NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS: 135 |
| TOPICS COVERED |
| Product and enterprise diversification |
| Market analysis and outlook |
| Marketing strategies, plans and clubs |
| Financial records, analysis, and bench-marking |
| Understanding of economic risks associated with new production technologies |
| Business and strategic planning |
