Cultiv8 Farm Coordinator

Position Information

**Position Title**
- Cultiv8 Farm Coordinator

**Department/Unit**
- Agriculture - Dean's Office

**Location**
- Truro, Nova Scotia, Canada

**Posting Number**
- S016-25

**Employee Group**
- NSGEU Local 77

**Position Type**
- Term

**Duration of Contract (if applicable)**
- Nine (9) months

**Employment Type**
- Full Time

**Full-time Equivalency (FTE)**
- 1.0 FTE

**Salary**
- $22.34 - $28.26 per hour, 35 hours per week. This is a nine (9) month term position, annual salary will be pro-rated to $30,487 - $38,580.

**Classification**
- T5

**Provisional Statement**
- This is a provisional classification. Formal regular review classification procedures may be initiated at any time by the incumbent or supervisor after the incumbent has worked a minimum of six months in the role._

**About Dalhousie University**
- Dalhousie University is Atlantic Canada’s leading research-intensive university and a driver of the region’s intellectual, social and economic development. Located in the heart of Halifax, Nova Scotia, with an Agricultural Campus in Truro/Bible Hill, Dalhousie is a truly national and international university, with more than half of our almost 21,000 students coming from outside of the province. Our 6,000 faculty and staff foster a vibrant, purpose-driven community, that celebrated 200 years of academic excellence in 2018.

**Job Summary**
- The Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University is a small research-intensive campus located in Truro, NS. Offering technical, undergraduate and graduate programs in agriculture, environment and related life and social science disciplines, the Faculty of Agriculture educates future leaders and generates knowledge and innovative solutions for healthy, sustainable societies. Reporting to the Cultiv8 Manager, the Farm Coordinator will independently ensure the small, student-run vegetable and cut-flower production farm, _Sustain by Cultiv8_, is functioning smoothly and delivering the unique experience that it provides students, teachers, and the community.

**Key Responsibilities**
- Train student interns in variety of tasks including seeding, transplanting, tending and harvesting; high-tunnel construction and maintenance; sales; and soil quality development. Maximize learning opportunities while ensuring safety procedures are followed.
- Conduct regular inspection of plants and soil to identify, photograph and research pests and diseases. Determine organic solutions to the issues, seeking out peer-reviewed articles and extension knowledge. Impart knowledge gained to student interns.
- Oversee quality control for garden, subscription boxes and produce. Ensure all produce and boxes sold have clean, fresh appearance. Ensure garden always appears well kept and waste/diseased material is removed promptly.
- Manage all sales including determining when to cease direct sales of specific products to ensure adequate supply for subscription boxes. Identify and implement marketing (e.g. social media) opportunities to increase sales.
- Oversee all harvesting for sales. This includes calculating and identifying produce required for weekly subscription boxes, determining amounts to be harvested for direct sale, preserving unsold produce, and determining food to be donated.
- Assist the Cultiv8 Manager in the delivery of farm tours and event data collection as well as annually in planning the garden and developing a summary report of the season. Recommend new crops, and planting and harvesting timing and methods.

**Note**
- The incumbent will be regularly required to work with machinery, and organic and biological materials, products and amendments (e.g. fertilizers, manure) including occasionally organic certified pesticide/herbicide. The incumbent will be working outdoors daily and thus will be regularly exposed to varying weather conditions and dust.

The incumbent may be required to work flexible and irregular hours including overtime, weekends and holidays as required to complete time sensitive tasks. Scheduling and compensation will be in accordance with the collective agreement.

Due to operational requirements, the successful applicant is required to work in-person on campus.

**Required Qualifications**
- Diploma in plant science plus approximately two years relevant experience (or equivalent combination of training and experience).
- Experience managing a small vegetable horticulture farm or equivalent as well as experience using a range of gardening tools including hand tools, tiller with attachments, and mowers.
- Strong interpersonal, customer service and communication (verbal and written) skills.
- Solid time management and organizational skills.
- Experience with MS Excel, webpages, e-commerce platforms.
- Daily physical effort including regularly lifting up to 25 kg; operating mowers and tillers, including attaching, detaching, and adjusting components; and standing and walking for extended periods.

**Assets**
- Previous supervisory experie