Boots on the Ground: North Carolina’s Veteran Farmer Registered Apprenticeship

North Carolina is home to the 7th highest population of military veterans in the nation. Agricultural jobs offer a viable path for returning service members to transition into society and capitalize on skills that made them successful in the military. However, these opportunities may be missed due to the lack of a targeted long term training program in North Carolina. In order to meet the growing demand for farmers and local foods while increasing veteran participation in the agricultural community, we need to expand access to high quality and accessible farmer training, specifically intensive hands-on training that provides long term experience and mentorship.

As North Carolina’s first registered agricultural apprenticeship program for military veterans, Boots on the Ground: NC Veteran Farmer Apprenticeship aims to increase the pool of trained agricultural workers for management and entrepreneurial positions at farming operations in North Carolina.

Registered with ApprenticeshipNC, the state apprenticeship coordinating body, this apprenticeship includes both hands-on job training and related technical instruction. A registered apprenticeship allows veterans to use their GI bill education benefits for on the job training and the apprenticeship credential will demonstrate to future employers nationwide that apprentices are fully qualified and highlight the skills they have mastered during the program.  Apprentices are paid an hourly wage and will receive a raise halfway through the 12-18 month program if they are meeting time and competency requirements.

We are now recruiting host farms/farmers, Veteran farmer mentors, and apprentices.

Veterans who are already employed on farms may also be eligible for the program!

For more information, please contact: Dr. Angel Cruz, CEFS Academic and Extension Initiatives Manager at 919-513-0954 or aecruz@ncsu.edu.

Additional Program Benefits

In addition to pay increases every 6 months, veteran apprentices will also be able to utilize their post-9/11 GI Bill benefits for on the job training if approved. This benefit will provide a tax-free monthly housing stipend equal to the MHA (monthly housing allowance) of an E-5 with dependents. For the first 6 months of the program, veterans will receive 100% of this stipend, and for the second 6 months, veterans will receive 80% of this stipend. For more information on using the GI Bill for OJT and apprenticeships click here.

We will also tie-in farm tours across North Carolina to show apprentices the diversity of agriculture in NC and showcase the farmer veteran network and farmer veteran-owned farms across North Carolina.