Burlington--Jacob Holzberg-Pill recently was hired as the new University of Vermont Extension 4-H educator for special projects. He will be housed in Extension’s South Burlington office.
Holzberg-Pill will handle special projects, including collaborating withAALV (formerly the Association of Africans Living in Vermont) as part of a new grant, Youth Innovators Empowering Agriculture Across America.
The $6.5 million grant, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, was awarded to University of Maine Cooperative Extension 4-H. As a sub-recipient, Vermont 4-H will receive approximately $1.6 million over a five-year period.
“I am developing a new program with underserved teens, partnering with AALV to embark on a yearlong exploration of Vermont food and agriculture,” Holzberg-Pill says. “Through field trips, we will visit farms and producers and learn about the amazing work of growers.
“We also will follow local ingredients to value-added businesses like bakeries, cheese makers, fermenters and ice cream shops, so the teens can gain a more complete understanding of our food systems. Before and after each of the ingredient-themed field trips, we will look at the local techniques, influences, factors and considerations of each crop and make food with that product.”
The first field trip was October 7 to Champlain Orchards in Shoreham for a tour with owner Bill Suhr, followed by an opportunity to “meet the bees” at Dancing Bee Gardens in Middlebury. To prepare for the field trip, Holzberg-Pill held two workshops with the teens to explore ingredients and flavors. The group baked an apple cake and apple cheddar scones, tasted local fruit and braided honey-filled challah.
Holzberg-Pill is the founder and an instructor for the Outdoor Technology Program at the Northwest Career and Technical Center in St. Albans. This place-based sustainable agriculture and forestry program focuses on regenerative land stewardship and community service.
Previously, he served as co-founder and co-director of Dig In Farm and Educational Center in Shutesbury, Massachusetts, where he designed and facilitated holistic, immersive educational summer programs for high school students.
He also worked as an environmental science teacher at the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public High School in South Hadley, Massachusetts, and was the founding faculty member of the Sustainable Agriculture Program at Kennebec Valley Community College, Fairfield, Maine, among other teaching positions.
The new 4-H educator earned his Bachelor of Arts in Ecology and Community from Brandeis University, a Master of Education (Mentoring and Ecology) from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a Master of Forestry (Ecosystems and Conservation) from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.
Holzberg-Pill can be reached at (802) 656-7646 or jacob.holzberg-pill@uvm.edu.