Extension Specialist, TN Landowner Education Specialist: Center for Profitable Agriculture - UTIA

The Extension Specialist – TN Landowner Education provides leadership for planning, implementing and evaluating statewide educational programs in value-added agriculture; landowner education; and enterprise analysis, planning, development, management and sustainability. The position is full-time, non-tenure track, 100% Extension position.

• Lead the development, implementation and evaluation of a new Tennessee Extension Landowner Education Program with advisory, teaching and publishing teams
• Develop and maintain a farm landowner guidebook and curriculum (with collaborators)
• Identify and disseminate information on farmland ownership ‘incentives’
• Identify and disseminate information on farmland ownership strategies, opportunities and enterprises
• Collaborate on landowner education programs (face-to-face and online)
• Provide consultations and technical assistance for various identified subject matter topics
• Publish and utilize Extension teaching methods

Required:

• Master’s degree in Agricultural Business, Agricultural Economics, Economics, Finance, Marketing, Business Administration or a closely related field. Applicants graduating prior to the target start date are welcome to apply.
• Knowledge and skills that demonstrate promise in Extension program development, implementation and evaluation.
• Proficiency with computer applications such as Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), Internet (Web, e-mail), etc. Ability to provide leadership to multidisciplinary teams as well as abilities to work and serve as an effective member of program teams.
• Effective communication skills (written and verbal).

Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without need now or in the future for sponsorship for employment visa status.

Preferred:

• Knowledge of agricultural Extension programs and the land-grant mission.
• Knowledge of or experience in agriculture.
• Knowledge of value-added enterprise analysis, development and operation.
• Knowledge and skills of how to develop and conduct Extension educational programs for value-added enterprises.
• Knowledge and skills in grant writing and proposal preparation for external funding.

Submit a complete application packet which includes a

1) Letter of interest,

2) Resume or curriculum vitae, and

3) Official or unofficial transcripts showing degree(s) conferred.

LOCATION: Onsite University of Tennessee, Institute of Agriculture, Extension, Center for Profitable Agriculture at the Ridley 4-H Center in Columbia, Tennessee

EFFECTIVE DATE: Screening of applicants’ credentials will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled. The target start date is October 1, 2025.

SALARY AND BENEFITS:

Salary is commensurate with training and experience. Benefits include group hospitalization and life insurance; State Employees Retirement; Workers’ Compensation; sick and annual leave; numerous University of Tennessee and state benefits programs, including liberal time off for holidays and longevity pay after three years of service; reimbursement for official travel.

For additional information, please contact:

Megan Bruch Leffew, Search Chair

Email: mleffew@utk.edu

Website: https://cpa.tennessee.edu

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has shaped leaders, changemakers, and innovative thinkers since its founding in 1794. The university is home to more than 38,000 students and 10,000 statewide employees—the Volunteers—who uphold the university’s tradition of lighting the way for others through leadership and service.

UT Knoxville offers over 900 programs of study across 14 degree-granting colleges and schools. As Tennessee’s flagship land-grant university, its footprint spans the entire state. The university holds the highest Carnegie classification for research activity and has deep partnerships with industry leaders and the US Department of Energy’s largest multidisciplinary laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

The Knoxville campus serves and recruits for UT Knoxville, including the Institute of Agriculture and the Space Institute, as well as the UT Institute of Public Service.

UT Knoxville considers its employees its number one asset. With values that focus on work-life balance, compensation, and innovation leadership, all Vols are supported to advance professionally. Employees have access to career development and coaching, continued education, and an extensive list of development and training possibilities. The Volunteer employee experience implements structures and practices that attract and retain a diverse community and that support a culture where everyone matters and belongs.

The university holds a strong commitment to its land-grant mission of learning and engagement, with a tradition of service and leadership that carries that Volunteer spirit throughout the state and around the world. It has been ranked nationally as “Best Employer for New Graduates,” “One of America’s Best Large Employers,” and “Best Workplace for Women,” and has been designated as “Best Place for Working Parents” by Forbes Magazine.

Apply today and join the Tennessee Volunteer community!