Part-time Agriculture Program Assistant - Brooke County Extension Service

About the Opportunity

The Brooke County Agriculture Program Assistant is an employee of the WVU and works for WVU Extension in Wellsburg, WV. The employee is supervised by and reports directly to the County Program Coordinator who will also be responsible for evaluation of the employee utilizing WVU Extension Policy and Procedure. The assistant is responsible for working with the Extension Agent to plan and execute agricultural educational programs for the citizens and residents of Brooke County.

What You'll Do

Under the supervision, direction, guidance and evaluation of the supervising agent, the WVU Extension Agriculture Program Assistant will assume the following responsibilities

Agriculture program (under the direction of the Brooke County Extension Agents):

• Serve as liaison to the leadership of local agriculture related organizations i.e. Farm Bureau, Beekeepers Association, school related programming, assist as needed with 4-H clubs, etc.
• Develop educational programming related to agriculture for youth and adults which may be delivered in schools, camps, community-based venues, etc.
• Organize and develop mass media materials needed to enhance agricultural programs i.e. regular newsletters, news articles, educational brochures, Facebook, website, etc.
• Assist in the facilitation of periodic evaluations of programs and activities to identify areas of need.
• Be a resource for community regarding insects, trees, soil, and other agriculture related issues
• Expected to work with agents to facilitate programming and events at the Brooke County Fair.
• Assist the 4-H Extension Agent with the creation and management of youth livestock clubs, including meetings, programming, tagging, etc.
• Other duties related to agriculture based on grant availability and other funding opportunities
• Develop and conduct training for 4-H'ers who want to show at county and state fairs.

Horticulture program (under the direction of and in conjunction with the Brooke County Extension Agent):

• Conduct an annual pesticide recertification training
• Aid homeowners in identifying horticultural pests i.e. individual requests, staging a pest identification public awareness program
• Assist with community gardens and other community-based gardening programs.
• Assist with Master Gardener programming.
• Assist with Farmers Markets and Youth Pop Up Markets as needed.

General Extension Work:

• Serve as a team member of the county extension program by participating in extension service committee meetings, office staff meetings, filing proper reports, and offering creative suggestions for program improvement.
• Stay in compliance with all University vetting processes, policies and best management practices as they relate to the recruitment, management, and training of volunteers and leaders who support Extension programming.
• Assure compliance with civil rights and affirmative action policies including reaching out to underserved and underrepresented audiences.
• Foster effective communications and develop strong partnerships with Extension faculty/staff, county officials, and local schools.
• In collaboration with the supervisor, serve as a part of the team to provide leadership and support to engage stakeholders through various community groups and organizations.
• Expected to participate in job-related trainings, certifications, and professional development as directed by supervising agent.

NOTE: The duties listed are not intended to be all-inclusive. Duties assigned any individual employee are at the discretion of the appointing authority.