ITHACA, N.Y. — Are you looking to improve your technical or business skills to benefit your farming operation? The first block of the Cornell Small Farms Program’s online courses begin live webinars this week, and we can’t wait to get started!
Our suite of online courses is offered on a user-friendly platform, which grants registrants permanent access to their course content. Also, courses have tiered pricing based on household size and income to make access to the courses more affordable and equitable for everyone.
Registration is now open for all courses, with live content starting next week for our first block of courses.
âQuickBooks for Farmersâ
Mondays: September 20 – October 25, 2021
Are you a beginning farmer? Or are you a current farmer with the desire to switch to an online accounting system? Then our quick guide to Quickbooks is for you. Learn the software’s basic features, such as sales tax, inventory, invoicing, adjustments, and year-end procedures.
Tuesdays: September 21 – October 12, 2021
There is only one guarantee in agriculture or other land-based businesses: “When we improve land health we realize improvements in production, profitability, and social well-being.” Learn how to read the land as you walk across it, and how to conduct various biological practices, with this new 4-week intensive.
âStarting at Square Oneâ
Thursdays: September 23 – October 28, 2021
So you’re thinking about starting a farm, but feeling overwhelmed by all the decisions? This course was designed to assist new and aspiring farmers in taking the first steps in thinking through farm start-up (whether you already have land access or not).
Our program offers more than two dozen online courses. These courses cover a range of topics any farmer needs to succeed, such as beekeeping, holistic financial planning, soil health, vegetable farming, and so much more. Experienced farmers and extension educators guide students through course content, including weekly live webinars, videos, and resources.
New additions to our online course suite this year include âAccess to Capitalâ for anyone seeking funding for a farm enterprise, and âCut Flower Productionâ which offers an introduction to the business of flower farming. Last year we had also added a 4-week intensive in how âReading the Landâ can help you monitor its health, a course on âBeef Cattle Management,â and a primer on âSocial Media & Online Marketingâ for your farm business.
The bulk of the course happens on your own time, with discussions, readings, and assignments in Teachable, our online course platform. To add to the experience, webinars will be woven into the interface of the course for a dedicated time slot each year to allow you to meet on a weekly basis to learn from presenters and ask questions in real-time. If you miss one, they are always recorded and posted for later viewing.
You can browse all of our course offerings on our website. You can learn more about our courses, including answers to common questions, on our course FAQ.
–Cornell Small Farms