MFAI>>Work>>Farm & Food Education>>Foundation Year>>Community Living

Community Living

Michael Fields Agricultural Institute- East Troy, WI

Students learn, work and live together. The following guidelines promote a harmonious experience for students of the New Farmer Foundation Year:

Students learn, work and live together.  The following guidelines promote a harmonious experience:

1. Shelter is a human reality that requires on-going care and attention. Leaving a place better than you found it is an act of kindness, which we ask of all who make use of student housing. This approach will move your consciousness from maintaining to improving your surroundings and is a welcoming gift to those who will follow

2. Students communally live together in co-ed housing. Bedrooms are single occupancy and shared bathrooms are gender specific.

3. Food may be cooperatively purchased. Most meals are prepared by students on a rotating basis and served in the student-dining house.

4. Alcohol, by students of legal age only, may be consumed only after work. All drug use is forbidden. Cigarette smoking is prohibited while working and inside all buildings.

5. A phone card is necessary for long distance calling.

6. Communal computers are provided, however bringing a personal computer is encouraged.

7. Sexual harassment is not tolerated. All students will receive and sign the sexual harassment policy.

Garden Student Foundation Year Requirements

• Begin work each day on time.

• All students are required to carry health insurance; the Institute does not provide coverage.

• Work throughout the day in harmony with fellow students and instructors.

• Participate in weekly reading seminars.

• Participate in CRAFT activities throughout season including the orientation workshop at the beginning of the season, farm tours and transitional workshops at the end of the season.

• Keep a journal.  Each journal will include notes from workshops, lectures, reading seminars and details of daily farm work.

• Complete and present an individual project.  Projects consist of a written report and an oral presentation.

• Review the program at the exit interview with Michael Fields’ Executive Director and Garden Student Program Director at the term’s conclusion.

A certificate of completion is issued and a recommendation letter is written for students upon request, once requirements are fulfilled.

Questions?
Please contact Janet Gamble, Director, Food and Farm Education:(262) 642-3303, ext. 127jgamble@michaelfieldsaginst.org

Work Ethic

To work with one’s hands provides an opportunity to understand the health of the soil and the plants’ needs as well as a time to deepen personal growth.  This work ethic is the foundation to all the varied farm systems students will be introduced to.

1. For the safety, convenience and aesthetic enjoyment of everyone, students will clean up after themselves in the gardens, buildings and living quarters.

2. Students need to maintain a mature working relationship with one another, treating everyone with respect and consideration.  We strive to communicate openly and promptly tend to any problems.

3. The program often involves hard, physical work.  All students are expected to cooperatively complete each task.

4. The garden is a sanctuary.  Work comes first before socializing.  Often, students quietly work alone to complete tasks.

The Student Body

Michael Fields Agricultural Institute
As a Foundation Year Garden Student you will be part of a greater student family within the Michael Fields community:

Farm & Food Education Program:

• Garden Student Foundation Year
• Stella Gardens Farm Management Apprenticeship
• Whole Farm Workshop participants
• Guided Educational Tour participants

Research Department:

• Research Assistants, often organized through the Multinational Exchangefor Sustainable Agriculture program and International Volunteers

Public Policy:

• Public Policy Interns based in Madison, WI

Urban Agriculture:

• Teutonia Urban Garden Educator based in Milwaukee, WI

Contact Farm & Food Education department, for further information at farmandfood@michaelfieldsaginst.org or 262-642-3303, ext. 128.

Read More>> New Farmer Foundation Year 2009

Read More>> 2009 Whole Farm Workshops

Read More>> New Farmer Foundation Year Application 2009 [pdf]

Read More>> Stella Gardens Outdoor Classroom at Michael Fields

Read More >>A Typical New Farmer Day or [pdf]

Michael Fields Agricultural Institute is a public, non-profit institute for education and research in sustainable agriculture, which admits students of any race, color and national or ethnic origin.