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Organic Teachers Academy For educators & land conservation professionals

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Whether you teach in a formal classroom, extension workshops, or one-on-one with farmers, you’ll get the tools you need to teach organic and sustainable agriculture in this in-depth professional development opportunity. Download pre-packaged lectures and other materials that suit your needs and teaching style.

Complete all six courses in three years and earn a micro-credential as a certified Sustainable Agriculture Educator or take individual courses for Professional Development.

2024 – Year 1

  • Organic Soils, Nutrients and Composting
  • Sustainable Agriculture; Practices and Issues

2025 – Year 2

2026 – Year 3

  • Value-Added Foods and Diversified Farms
  • Food Systems: Food Quality

Meet your instructor

Valerie Dantoin
Valerie Dantoin
Organic Agriculture Instructor

Valerie Dantoin has been a working organic farmer since 1990. Her family’s Full Circle Farm was recently named “2024 Organic Farm of the Year” by MarbleSeed, at the Midwest’s premier organic conference. The farm was also honored to received the 2024 Leopold Conservation award. The farm was an organic dairy farm for 20 years before diversifying into grass-fed beef, pastured-pork, and chickens, and a 15-acre CSA vegetable farm. Val has a master’s degree in Agronomy from UW-Madison and has developed and taught over 25 courses at NWTC since 2009.

Course Details

A herd of steer graze in a lush green pasture

Organic Livestock and Managed Grazing

Organic Livestock Practices (Class 51490)

Students learn how organic farmers manage livestock successfully. Principles covered include organic health care, strategies for reproduction, feeding, housing, and young stock. Review rules and organic certification standards.

May 2 - 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Mandatory hour-long, virtual session, to get an overview of topics the courses cover and to understand the course structure in Canvas (learning platform).
May through August
Self-paced work to be completed in Canvas.
Thursday, August 14
In-person lab. Arrive at the Tomandl Farm, Medford, WI, at 10:00 a.m. to complete hands-on activities. Session ends at 3:30 p.m. Lunch is included.

Learn More and Enroll
A wind turbine spins above a field of vegetables

Organic Field Crops

Organic Field Crops (Class 51512)

Whether gardening on a small scale or using commercial greenhouses and fields, plan seedings, control pests, diseases, and weeds, all using best organic practices. Review rules and organic certification standards.

May 2 - 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Mandatory hour-long, virtual session, to get an overview of topics the courses cover and to understand the course structure in Canvas (learning platform).
May through August
Self-paced work to be completed in Canvas.
Wednesday, August 13
In-person lab. Arrive at Red Door Farm, Athens, WI, at 10:00 a.m. to complete hands-on activities. Session ends at 3:30 p.m. Lunch is included. 

Learn More and Enroll

Academy Details

These fully funded college courses are offered to you because of a generous grant from an anonymous donor. You will also receive a stipend of $150 per class upon satisfactory completion of each class.

Capacity: Enrollment is limited to the first 25 people who apply

Questions: For information about curriculum, contact Valerie Dantoin, Sustainable Food and Ag Systems Instructor, at valerie.dantoin@nwtc.edu. For any other questions contact Bonnie Willems at bonnie.willems@nwtc.edu.