Andy Blunk

2507 Ed Jones Rd. Charlottesville, VA 22902

434-242-1918

andrewlairdblunk@gmail.com

EDUCATION

Urban Agriculture, Fellowship    July 2018

Tricycle Urban Ag, Richmond, VA

Beekeeping, Online Course Certificate    September, 2015

Penn State University, State College, PA

B.S., Environmental Science    May, 2014

Juniata College, Huntingdon, PA

PROFESSIONAL HISTORY

Farm Co-Owner and Manager    April 2019-Present

Eighth ‘N Acre LLC, Charlottesville, VA

Founded and operated small peri-urban diverse vegetable farm outside Charlottesville, VA. focused on farmers markets and restaurant sales
Managed all aspects of business from business creation to day-to day operations; including: business registration, business plan, market plan,  project management, farm task management, farm operations, value added product development, accounting, sales, customer relations
Developed value added products adhering to Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services regulations  for sale at local farmers markets 
Established an online presence to sell value-added agriculture products

New Roots Community Garden Specialist    April 2018- Present

International Rescue Committee, Charlottesville, VA

Developed picture-based agriculture education modules for socially disadvantaged farmers and gardeners, relating to 50+ farming subjects, to be published through New Entry Sustainable Farming initiatives
Participated in New Entry’s National Incubator Farm Training Initiative (NIFTI)
Co-developed in-depth agriculture education modules for use within all New Roots offices
Co-facilitated non-formal education programs and workshops for refugee farmers, monthly, regarding different farm management techniques spanning all subjects related to small scale farming in Virginia
Coordinated and led weekly and monthly meetings for 5 community gardens and farming program, with over 60 refugee clients
Managed group of  5-20 volunteers to work on farm every week
Led periodic farmer meetings and farm walks

Garden Coordinator and Educator    Sept. 2018 – Jan. 2019

City Schoolyard Garden, Charlottesville, VA

Developed garden-based lesson plans for kindergarten through 4th grade science, mathematics, english, and general classes to be used by the organization and public school
Taught weekly garden-based science, english, and math classes to students aged 5-11 
Coordinated and planned with teachers to use garden to support each grade’s learning objectives throughout the year
Every month introduced new foods to the school cafeteria and led volunteers to teach about the new foods to students during lunch times
Managed all aspects of garden including: vegetable gardens, pollinator habitat, fruit trees and bushes, compost, shed and tools

Agriculture and Environment Extension Agent    January, 2015 – October, 2017

Peace Corps, Ethiopia

Advised and taught a team of 10 local beekeepers to improve beekeeping practices, increase colony survival rate, build top-bar hives, and increase knowledge around hive management techniques
Implemented the Farmer Field School extension methodology with 20 model farmers and facilitated weekly meetings, covering topics on : green manures, soil science, row planting, intercropping, integrated pest management
Developed an apple management training curriculum (50 hours) and trained fellow peace corps volunteers, Ethiopian extension agents, and 20 model farmers from the Bole Bacho community.