Returning to the farm?
There's a class for that!

by Sarah Woodhurst, posted Dec. 22, 2009

Of the many agricultural courses offered at MU, it is hard to pick one that could be more significant than “Returning to the Farm” for students planning to do just that. The goal of the class is not only to put students back on the farm, but to help them make better decisions.

Kevin Moore, professor of the “Returning to the Farm 3285” course, shows great enthusiasm when talking about the class. He says it gives students a chance to dream about goals on the farm and make a plan for it on the computer.

“It’s been tremendously successful,” Moore said. “It’s a great class. People have so much fun.  It’s very relevant, as you would imagine and it helps students prepare for the rest of their life.”

The class began in the mid 80s during the height of a financial farm crisis.  Norlin Hein in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources developed the class. At that time, it was strictly an MU Extension program and was not offered for college credit.

Last spring, there was not enough enrollment for the class, however, there are still students registering for the class for the upcoming spring semester in 2010.

“A lot of it's about timing in the farm cycle and generations,” Moore said. “Some students even like to use me as an excuse to get information readily from family. The single biggest thing is communication, which provides the opportunity for families to have discussions about financial issues.”

“Returning to the Farm” is open to any agriculture major and can be taken as a one-, two- or three-credit-hour class. One credit hour is for attending and participating in weekly class sessions, another is for attending and participating in the workshop, and the last is awarded for completing a written farm plan.

The workshop is open to students in the class and their parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles or any family member that plays a role in the farming operation. Moore teaches students and families about labor relations, estate and succession planning.

“We cover topics like expanding the farm, labor management, labor processes,” Moore said. “We also focus on the SWOT analysis, which stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.  In the three-credit class, students design a business plan, which is a fluid document that you continue to work on over time after evaluating it at year end.”

A large amount of material and topics are covered in the workshop, so other agricultural economics professors help teach the course, as well.

Agricultural Economics Professor Jan Dauve has been involved in the workshop and enjoys watching students and their families learn more about their personality types and how to effectively cooperate together on the farm.

“This is an excellent program and I wish that we had more programs that were comprehensive and not restricted to traditional classroom settings,” Dauve said.

Throughout the years, professors have taught a number of students and families about the benefits of student and parent communication.

“I think it helps reinforce and make more concrete, for the family members in particular, the implications of the student returning to the farm as a business colleague rather than as a child,” said Michael Sykuta, a professor in the agricultural economics department.

The program has also guided students as they make the decision to return to the farm or seek careers elsewhere.

“The one student who stands out is the one who came by my office later in the week after the weekend session and said ‘I know I am going to get a job now’,” Dauve said. “‘It is clear that I would basically be a hired hand and until I have accumulated some financial or physical capital, I won’t be a partner.’ He went on to say how the program made that clear.”

Not only has “Returning to the Farm” helped students become more efficient on the farm and in family communications, but it has also helped the relationships of the ones involved on the farm.

“I do remember being told of a couple (from before I first taught in the course) — two students who were engaged — that decided marriage was not a good idea for them if the young man was intent on going back to work the family farm,” Sykuta said. “Based on what the fiancé learned about the farm business and family dynamics, she decided that wasn't the life she wanted.  That may be one of the best kinds of outcomes this course can provide.”

The “Returning to the Farm” course is offered the spring of every year if student enrollment is high enough, and although this class has been around for about 20 years, the curriculum has evolved, just like farming.

“The course has added material to reflect some of the changing issues in agriculture,” Sykuta said. “While many basic issues are covered, the course really adapts to the current and expected future issues family farm businesses are likely to face.”

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