Agriculture

The promise of finding an agricultural paradise brought many early pioneers to the Willamette Valley, and because of rich soil, abundant rainfall and moderate temperatures, agriculture remains one of the state's leading industries. Unlike those early farmers, the men and women who go into agriculture today need more than a few rudimentary tools and a strong back. Although agriculture is still physically demanding, it is no longer a cycle of plowing, planting and harvesting, all done by hand. Now, a career in agriculture demands that you be part scientist and part economist; knowledgeable in computer programs, ecology and marketing.

Imagine yourself harvesting the crop you spent a season tending, or tasting your grapes in a world-class wine. Chemeketa can take you there.

Vineyard Management
Winemaking

Associate degree/certificate

Oregon is ideally situated for growing wine grapes and its vineyards are expanding at a rate of about ten percent per year. Oregon now ranks second in the U.S. for the number of wineries and sixth in the nation for production. Chemeketa's service district, which includes Marion, Polk and Yamhill counties, is home to almost 40 percent of Oregon's vineyards, 46 percent of the planted acreage and 47 percent of the state's wine grape production. To meet the increasing demand for skilled workers this growth has created, Chemeketa began its Vineyard Management/ Winemaking program in 1999.

Chemeketa's program provides real-world job training and practice that brings you in contact with professionals in the field. You can earn an Associate of Applied Science degree in either Vineyard Management or Winemaking, which will prepare you for successful employment as vineyard managers and winemakers. The one-year certificates in Vineyard Operations and Winemaking are appropriate for vineyard and winery technicians. Training includes hands-on activities in the basic knowledge and technical skills required for successful employment in the cool-climate wine industry. Students gain practical skills through on-the-job work experience.

Northwest Viticulture Center

Currently under construction and scheduled to open in the spring of 2003, Chemeketa's Northwest Viticulture Center, located in West Salem, will provide a teaching vineyard and an on-site laboratory for students. The center will include five classrooms, a teaching winery, laboratory, wine cellar, temperature control room, and a resource library.

Horticulture

Individual courses

Another expanding area of agriculture is the nursery greenhouse business, and acreage for growing nursery stock has expanded 20 percent since 1995. The nursery business has flourished in Oregon for more than 100 years, and now is the largest agricultural commodity group in the state. Chemeketa recently introduced three new credit classes in Horticulture: Introduction to Horticulture, Ecology in Horticulture, and Plant Propagation, which will give a broad view of the horticulture industry, with an emphasis on greenhouse and nursery production; the basic environmental factors that influence horticulture; and the theory and methodology for reproducing plants by seed and a variety of cloning methods. If these attract sufficient students to demonstrate a need for credit Horticulture courses, the feasibility of establishing a Horticulture degree program will be studied.

Community Agriculture

Non-credit courses

Chemeketa's non-credit Continuing Education program focuses on training and certification in nursery/greenhouse, landscape and pesticide areas. Its three-term series of classes on Greenhouse Practices has been taken by many current nursery/greenhouse owners and their employees. The program's unique pesticide training, held in at least six different licensing areas, prepares students for licensing exams and conducts recertification classes for renewing licenses.

Other courses offered include Pasture Management, Lambing School and Small Gas Engine Repair. The program strives to be responsive to the agricultural community by adjusting course offerings regularly. Suggestions are welcome.

Farm Business Management

The Farm Business Management program teaches full-time farmers and their managers the basic principles of record keeping and helps them improve their financial management skills. It focuses on the development and maintenance of a complete set of computerized farm financial records and the skills necessary to interpret the records and use the information to make sound management decisions. Upon completion of the annual farm records, a year-end financial analysis is provided to eligible farms. This calculates cost of production for each crop or livestock enterprise and provides information for making production, marketing, and other decisions. During class sessions and one-on-one consultations, professional farm management specialists provide instruction and assistance in record keeping, income tax management, obtaining financing, labor regulations and other timely topics. The program is designed for a minimum commitment of three years.

Agricultural Leadership Development

Agricultural Leadership Development is designed to provide the skills necessary to be an effective leader in the workplace. Participants will complete training exercises, either individually or in small groups, followed by large group discussions. Positive workplace behaviors and attitudes are modeled through open communication and mutual respect. Topics covered include building confidence, social skills, decision-making, planning and organizing, coaching and team building, conflict resolution, as well as legal and safety issues. Total instruction time is 40 hours. Training is offered in either English or Spanish and on Chemeketa's Salem, Woodburn, Santiam, Dallas and McMinnville campuses. Training can also be conducted at your workplace and tailored specifically to your workforce needs. .

Getting Started

If you haven' t been to Chemeketa recently, your first step should be a visit to the college. While there you can talk to an advisor and learn what the college can do to help you reach your goal. You can arrange a time to take the college's free placement test, which will help determine whether or not you need to take some basic skills classes in mathematics, reading or writing before enrolling in the program.

You may be able to get credit for college classes while you are still in high school, so check with your high school career and counseling office to see it this is an option for you.

Through Chemeketa's Credit for Prior Learning program, you may be able to earn credit for learning acquired through job, community or volunteer service, non-credit classes or individual study.

If you are interested in eventually having a career in management or owning your own business, you may want to take additional classes at Chemeketa from such business programs as Accounting or Management. For information about what business courses you may want to add to your program, check the Business Technology web site at: www.chemeketa.edu/programs/bt/training.html

For more information about the programs in this brochure, you may call one of the following numbers:

All Agriculture programs — 503.399.5139 or 503.399.5146
Viticulture/Winemaking — 503.399.5066
Farm Business Management — 503.589.7759 or 503.399.5089

Updated October 2006 by the College Advancement Department.