NCR-SARE Announces 2022 Research and Education Awards

February 1, 2023
Augustine Obour with Kansas State University (right) received an NCR-SARE Research and Education grant to investigate different cover crop management strategies to improve crop production and profitability in dryland cropping systems.

NCR-SARE is pleased to announce the projects selected for funding for the 2022 Research and Education competitive grant program. Seventeen (17) projects were awarded a total of more than $3.8 million through this NCR-SARE grant program for researchers and educators involved in projects that explore and promote environmentally sound, economically viable, and socially responsible food and/or fiber systems. 

The following awarded projects are in order by state and then by last name:

  • Matthew O’Neal with Iowa State University in Ames, IA, was awarded $248,659 for the project, “Prairie Strips for Enhanced Honey Production: Can Conservation Improve Apiculture?”
  • Jill Kostel with The Wetlands Initiative in Chicago, IL, was awarded $143,480 for the project, “Collaborative Outreach and Demonstration of Farm-based Tile-Treatment Wetlands for Water Quality Improvement.”
  • Kathryn Orvis with Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN, was awarded $245,116 for the project, “Urban Farming Entrepreneurship Program: Providing Minority Youth Entrepreneurship Training to Increase Employment and Food Access.”
  • Jaymelynn Farney with Kansas State University in Parsons, KS, was awarded $ $249,932 for the project, “Evaluating Virtual Fences for Cattle in Regards to Water Resources, Forage Management, Invasive Weed Control, and Wildlife Systems.”
  • Krista Isaacs with Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI, was awarded $249,932 for the project, “Evaluating an Under-utilized Species for Climate Resilient Forage and Cover Crop Options in North Central Region Cropping Systems.”
  • Meghan Milbrath with Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI, was awarded $114,625 for the project, “Taking the Sting out of Honey Bee Medicine: Training and Tools for Veterinarians to Increase Access to Care for Beekeepers.”
  • Nicolas Jelinski with the University of Minnesota in Saint Paul, MN, was awarded $249,852 for the project, “Exploration of Shredded Cardboard as a Mulch and Compost Resource to Improve Soil Health and Water Management by Urban Growers in the Twin Cities.”
  • Robert Koch with the University of Minnesota in Saint Paul, MN, was awarded $239,682 for the project, “Biological Control for Sustainable Management of Soybean Gall Midge, a New Pest of Soybean in the North Central Region.”
  • Courtney Kowalczak with Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College in Cloquet, MN, was awarded $250,000 for the project, “Bimaaji’idiwin Gitigaaning Producer Training Program and Manoomin Hull Research.”
  • Lindsay Pease with the University of Minnesota in Crookston, MN, was awarded $249,839 for the project, “Planting Green in the Frozen North.”
  • Kyungsoo Yoo with the University of Minnesota in Saint Paul, MN, was awarded $249,939 for the project, “Optimizing Agricultural Use of Diverse Soil Landscapes: Small Organic Vegetable Farms in the Driftless Area.”
  • Ryan Tenney with Sankara Farm in Kansas City, MO, was awarded $249,352 for the project, “Black Emancipatory Agriculture Asset Map (BEAAM) and Returning Generation Black Farmer Mentorship Program.”
  • Amy Gerdes with Community Crops in Lincoln, NE, was awarded $72,446 for the project, “Marketing and Business Skills for Beginning, Refugee, and Immigrant Farmers in Lincoln, Nebraska.”
  • Rhoda Burrows with South Dakota State University in Rapid City, SD, was awarded $249,935 for the project, “Comparing Soil Tarping and Solarization for Early Season Weed Control in Vegetable Crop Systems - a Research and Demonstration Study.”
  • Luis Peña-Lévano with the University of Wisconsin in River Falls, WI, was awarded $249,945 for the project, “Financial Feasibility and Environmental Implications of Adopting Automatic Milking Systems by Dairy Farms in Wisconsin and Minnesota.”
  • Gregg Sanford with the University of Wisconsin in Madison, WI, was awarded $249,738 for the project, “The Soil Organic Carbon network (SOCnet): Farmers building soil assets to help mitigate and adapt to climate change in the North Central US.”
  • Kate Wersan with the Savanna Institute in Madison, WI, was awarded $249,597 for the project, “Novice-to-Producer Agroforestry Education: Linking Demonstration Farms to Online Learning, Apprenticeships, and Communities of Practice.”

You can view NCR-SARE’s 2022 funded projects along with their descriptions (scroll to bottom of page).

NCR-SARE’s Administrative Council (AC) members decide which projects will receive SARE funds. A collection of farm and non-farm citizens, the AC includes a diverse mix of regional agricultural stakeholders. Council members hail from regional farms and ranches, the Cooperative Extension Service, universities, federal agencies, and nonprofit organizations.

Related Locations: North Central