Graduates at Work

Since the Apprenticeship began in 1967, more than 1,500 students have graduated from the program. Many have started their own organic farms and market gardens; others share the skills they've learned through urban gardening projects, youth gardens and farms, school and college farming programs, and apprenticeships on their own farms; a number of Apprenticeship graduates work in international programs in sustainable agriculture; many have helped advance organic farming through marketing and policy efforts.

Here are some examples of how Apprenticeship Program graduates are using their training. See the Alumni Map for many more examples of alumni farms and projects.

Onika Abraham directs Farm School NYC, which trains New York City residents in urban agriculture through a 2-year certificate program and a wide range of individual courses.

Lanette Anderson is the assistant farm manager at Hidden Villa educational farm in Los Altos, California, where she focuses on the cut flower production operation, marketing through a CSA and at farmers' markets, offering floral designs, and teaching on-farm workshops.

Patrick Archie founded and directs the 4-acre Stanford University Educational Farm where he is currently a lecturer, helping to lead hands-on learning experiences and student research opportunities in sustainable small-scale and urban agriculture.

Celia Barss runs Woodland Organics, a 12-acre vegetable, fruit and cut-flower farm in Winterville, Georgia and is the 2014 Land Steward Award recipient from Georgia Organics.

Thom Broz founded Live Earth Farm in Watsonville, California, growing organic produce for a 700-member Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project, regional farmers’ markets, and local restaurants. Thom is also the first organic farmer to serve as president of the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau.

Mark Cain owns Dripping Springs Garden in the Ozark Mountains of northwest Arkansas, where he farms vegetables and flowers for farmers’ markets and other outlets.

Vanessa Campbell and Alex Brown grow a variety of vegetables, fruit and flowers on their Full Sun Farm, a 17-acre operation located in the Big Sandy Mush Valley in Western North Carolina, near Asheville.

Saskia Cornes manages Duke University's Campus Farm in Durham, North Carolina.

Katie Davis is the Farm Director for the Jones Valley Teaching Farm in Birmingham, Alabama.

Emily Freed is the regional production manager for Jacob's Farm/Del Cabo, Inc., one of the largest producers of organic culinary herbs in the world. She also founded and owns Farmer Freed Culinary Salt Blends.

Luke Girdling founded Cyclops Farm in Oceanside, California.

Jen Hashley directs the New Entry Sustainable Farming Project of Tufts University in Beverly, MA, while managing Codman Community Farm with her husband, past apprentice Pete Lowy.

Mike Irving founded and runs Fifth Crow Farm in Pescadero with fellow alumni Teresa Kurtak and John Vars.

Lennie Larkin founded and owns B-Side Farm in Sebastopol. where she grows cut flowers and teaches workshops on flower farming and floral design. She's also the West Coast Director for the Association of Specialty Cut Flower Growers. 

Jered Lawson and Nancy Vail started Pie Ranch, an educational farm located near Pescadero, California that connects students with the source of their food.

Kevin Loth and his wife Charuth manage the 34-acre Shadow Brook Farm near Lincoln, Nebraska, and were instrumental in creating a demand for fresh local, organic produce and hand-crafted cheeses in the Lincoln area.

Matt McCue founded Shooting Star Farm in Fairfield, north of San Francisco. An Iraqi war veteran, Matt is active in the Farmer-Veteran Coalition’s efforts to create farming opportunities for ex-military men and women.

Matthew McDermott manages Seattle Tilth Farm Works, a 34-acre site outside Seattle providing small farm business training and other production and educational programs.

Albie Miles, a professor at the University of Hawai‘i, West Oahu developed the new interdisciplinary Bachelors of Applied Science in Sustainable Community Food Systems, guiding academic and practical sustainable community food education programming at the West Oʻahu’s Organic Campus Garden and community partner MAʻO Organic Farms.

Kim Murchison and Josh Slotnick started Clark Fork Organics in Missoula, Montana, which provides organic produce to area markets, natural food stores, and restaurants. In 1997 Josh co-founded an academic program at the University of Montana called Program In Ecological Agriculture and Society (PEAS), a part of Garden City Harvest. The PEAS farm operates an 80 member CSA and sends 15 to 20 thousand pounds of food annually to the Missoula Food Bank.

Ted Purdy is the Youth Farm Coordinator at FOOD for Lane County in Springfield, Oregon. The Youth Farm in a 3-acre educational farm that combines youth services with hunger relief and small-scale organic farming.

Matthew Raiford (pictured above) runs the 6th-generation family-owned Gilliard Farms in Brunswick, Georgia with his sister Althea. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Matthew also teaches culinary skills, runs The Farmer and the Larder restaurant with Jovan Sage, and founded the Apprenticeship's Farm-to-Fork annual fundraising dinner. 

Cathrine Sneed developed a gardening program at the San Francisco County Jail, and went on to launch the post-release program The Garden Project to serve former offenders. The Garden Project today is nationally recognized and provides on-the-job training in gardening and tree care.

Lucia Stephen developed and coordinates the Grow A Farmer Apprenticeship and Mentorship Programs–the first multi-faceted farmer training initiative of its kind in Eastern Canada, providing curriculum-guided farm apprenticeships, farmer-to-farmer mentorship, and educational/celebratory events, such as the annual Beginner Farmer Symposium.

Karen Washington’s urban agriculture and community food leadership work has been recognized with a James Beard Foundation Leadership Award. She teaches with Farm School NYC and runs Rise & Root Farm with three other former apprentices in Chester, NY.