Purdue Extension leads workforce development project with AgriProspects network

The network is a collaboration between the Extension Foundation and the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy’s Economic and Workforce Development Program Action Team, supported through funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The AgriProspects project led by Hall and her team is supported through a USDA NIFA Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Education and Extension Workforce Development competitive grant.

AgriProspects fosters regional cooperation, identifies workforce ecosystem gaps and offers collaborative, adaptive solutions to local and regional employment challenges. Hall will focus on increasing awareness of and expanding access to Extension resources, which enhance skill levels, facilitate credential attainment and prepare participants for successful entry or reentry into the workforce.

Hall and a team of extension regional coordinators will also work to achieve the following key project objectives:

• Creating a dynamic clearinghouse to organize and share Extension’s adult workforce development (AWD) offerings for the agricultural sector.
• Developing and supporting a sustainable network of Extension educators and industry partners to strengthen the alignment of Extension’s agricultural AWD offerings with real-time industry needs.
• Connecting employers, workforce intermediaries and the agricultural workforce to Extension’s skill development programs that cultivate upskilling, credentialing and participant readiness to successfully join or rejoin the ag workforce.
• Supporting the creation, evolution, expansion and integration of extension AWD programs locally, regionally and nationally through AgriProspects’ mini-grant funding.

Hall leads Purdue Extension’s workforce development efforts. During this grant period, she will prioritize working with the 12 north central states and their respective land-grant institutions.

“Workforce development is a national issue and Purdue Extension has a long history of providing skill-based education and training to Indiana residents to help them advance their careers and volunteer efforts,” Hall said. “We are providing leadership in helping the national effort to catalogue the ongoing efforts in adult agricultural workforce development programming and elevate the opportunities for collaboration across land-grant institutions.” 

Visit the AgriProspects Workforce Development Network on the Extension Foundation’s website to learn more. For questions, contact Hall at tjhall@purdue.edu.  

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public research institution demonstrating excellence at scale. Ranked among top 10 public universities and with two colleges in the top four in the United States, Purdue discovers and disseminates knowledge with a quality and at a scale second to none. More than 105,000 students study at Purdue across modalities and locations, including nearly 50,000 in person on the West Lafayette campus. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s main campus has frozen tuition 13 years in a row. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap — including its first comprehensive urban campus in Indianapolis, the Mitchell E. Daniels, Jr. School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at https://www.purdue.edu/president/strategic-initiatives.