School of the New American Farmstead

The School of the New American Farmstead offers leading-edge courses & Professional Certificates in regenerative farming and artisanal food production to support professionals and lifelong learners of all ages.

Check out the 2020 Class Schedule!

Students successfully completing these courses are awarded continuing education units (CEUs), included in the course tuition as listed. Students desiring undergraduate academic credit pay per credit tuition fees and must fulfill additional academic requirements. If you have any questions about when a course is being offered, how to register, or the process for receiving undergraduate credit, please contact us at newamericanfarmstead@sterlingcollege.edu. Courses will continue to be listed as they become available. Sign up for email notifications below if you would like to be updated.

NOTICE: Due to COVID-19, we have postponed all in person courses until June 2021 at the earliest. Online courses will be listed as available below:

Title	Course ID	Credits	Start Term	Faculty
Surviving the Future: Conversations for Our Time			Coming Soon	Shaun Chamberlin

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Receive updates on courses, professional certificates,
special offers, scholarships and more!

Check out our new certificate programs!

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medallion that reads "artisan cheesemaking professional"

medallion that reads "sustainable food craft professional"

medallion that read "organic wine and spirits production professional"

medallion that reads "educational farm and garden management professional"

About the School of the New American Farmstead

We provide a variety of classes, study tours, and professional certificates that will inspire you, equip you with marketable skills, and provide you with new perspectives on regenerative farming and artisanal food production.

Our hands-on courses will require you to roll up your sleeves and dig in. The School of the New American Farmstead’s experiential approach will engage all of your senses and offer insights into techniques perfected by some of the world’s most skilled ecological farmers and craft-food producers.

Give your passion for food and farming the time and space it deserves. Explore professional opportunities and lifestyle choices that will feed your body, mind, and soul. Learn to replenish the land, relish its bounty, and revive time-tested culinary and agricultural arts–in Vermont’s majestic Northeast Kingdom, Brunnenburg Castle & Agricultural Museum in the Italian Alps, the dairy region of the Upper Loire Valley of France, and Point Reyes, California.

The School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College is waiting for you to join our international network of students, alumni, and instructors. See our upcoming course offerings and new professional certificate programs below.

photo of many students surrounding a copper kettle filled with milk and extracting cheese from it

SNAF cheesemaking

SNAF Class

Students work on the Sterling College Farm

Students picking sugar snap peas in the Sterling Garden

Bread from SNAF Class

NOFA VT Farmer Olympics

photo by Sharon Palmer

Mushroom Class

Alex heats the metal to make it workable

Instructor Lucian Avery works with a student one-on-one

photo by Sharon Palmer

Chelsea Green Publishing Logo The School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College is generously underwritten by Chelsea Green Publishing, the preeminent publisher of books on the politics and practice of sustainable living. Chelsea Green and the School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College share a deep commitment to Sterling’s mission of empowering lifelong students to boldly advance ecological thinking and action in their communities.

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Frequently Asked Questions

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Our first day out at a crag this semester. Students focused on good fundamental skills, such as belaying, knots, and clear communication. Prospect Rock in Johnson, VT.

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Emily’s Story | Wendell Berry Farming Program. Emily Wade never thought she would get a college degree. The Louisville native had given academia a try, attending Jefferson Community and Technical College for a bunch of credits, University of Louisville for more. An accomplished horsewoman, she was studying equine business, then switched to communications. But in the end, money became an issue, as did her diminishing interest in traditional college education. Then she found the Wendell Berry Farming Program . . .

This video was made possible by a generous donation from David Behrend ’60.

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EMERGENCY TO EMERGENCE PODCAST // Gwyneth Harris, Sterling College’s Garden Manager joins Emergency to Emergence hosts, Nakasi and Dakota, for a rich conversation on the intricacies and advantages of small scale farming. Though farming is often misconstrued as a simple vocation, Gwyneth portrays the elegant complexities of an agro-ecological farming system, particularly one that balances education, experimentation, production, and nourishment. Sterling’s educational farm offers opportunities to learn core skills for cultivation, put animal, plant, and soil science into practice, and to integrate food sovereignty, social justice, and systems thinking. The farm management choices Gwyneth and her colleagues make have ripple effects on the land, the people in our community, and the plants, animals, insects, fungi, and microbes with whom we share this space. Those choices also influence the lessons that students draw from the Sterling Farm and carry forward onto their future farms that will nourish their communities in the years to come. This conversation also illuminates the enduring contributions of smallholder farmers and positions community-scale food and fiber production as a viable and valuable alternative to industrial agriculture and production systems of extraction. By listening to Gwyneth, you’ll get a better sense of why so many of our students come to Sterling to study Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems -- and of the intentionality that they find when they work alongside our farm managers.

Take a listen. Link on bio

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We believe in thinking outside the classroom. For Wendell Berry Farming Program graduate Emily Wade '21, this non-traditional approach to higher education enabled her to earn a degree. We are launching Emily's full story on Tuesday but wanted to give you a sneak peek. #wendellberryfarmingprogram

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The new semester and cohort is underway at our tuition-free Wendell Berry Farming Program. Barn work and sheep pedicures have made the to-do list.

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Wendell Berry Farming Program. The Wendell Berry Farming Program of Sterling College is a two-year program, based in Henry County, KY, through which students earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sustainable Agriculture & Food Systems. Through their work, graduates of the program are expected to embody an ethic of environmental stewardship, and contribute to the revitalization and renewal of rural agrarian communities in Kentucky and beyond.

This video was made possible by a generous donation from David Behrend ’60.

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Students journeyed the Hudson River Watershed to examine the dynamic interrelationships between humans and the Hudson River valley, historically and today. How have humans adapted to and changed this landscape? How have settlement patterns, industry, and communities (natural and human) changed over time? What is the relationship between urban centers (New York City in particular) and the rural hinterland of the Hudson River? What have been predominant cultural images of this region and what has been their impact? What can a bioassessment of the river itself reveal about its role in the regional ecosystem and reflect our land-use practices? We investigated.

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More photos from A Sense of Place: Expedition I, an introduction to Sterling that provides students opportunities to dig into place.

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Every year, students begin the fall semester by participating in A Sense of Place : Expedition I. This course is designed to help students develop a sense of place as they begin their Sterling experience. The course allows participants to develop bonds with other incoming students and explore topics central to life at Sterling such as local ecology and community. The course uses experiential learning to improve interpersonal communication ability, leadership skills, enhance self-efficacy, and develop greater awareness as members of a community.

These students explored Belvidere Mountain (3,360.00 ft or 1,024.13 m). The summit has a fire tower and on a clear day views extend to Jay Peak and beyond.

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The Wendell Berry Farming Program (WBFP) spent time at Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill where WBFP alum, Gabe Francisco is the Draft Animal Manager. Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill is a landmark destination that shares 3,000 acres of discovery in the spirit of the Kentucky Shakers.

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Sweet Rowen Farmstead | Sterling Chronicles. @sweetrowenfarmstead bottles gently pasteurized, cream-top whole milk and makes delicious, GMO free cheeses and yogurt in their farmstead creamery. Founder, Paul Lisai, and Herd Manager, Nathan van Gulden are both Sterling College alumni. Both reflect on their education as providing a holistic approach to sustainable agriculture and an appreciation for the work they do, day in, day out.

This video was made possible by a generous donation from David Behrend ’60.

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Dig In!

Sterling College Put a Bird On It!

Sterling College Gets “Bird-Friendly” Recognition —First college to be recognized for its efforts to integrate birds with maple syrup production— OCTOBER 15, 2015 • CRAFTSBURY COMMON, VT • The…

Study “Small Batch Brewing” at the School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College

March 9, 2016 • Craftsbury Common, VT • “They who drink beer will think beer,” said the writer Washington Irving. The School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College…

Nelson, Jeanette, and Yaya: A Carrot, By Any Other Name…

One of our favorite winter activities here is coming inside from the cold, brewing a cup of tea, and poring over seed catalogs! Not only does growing food for 150…

Professional Studies

School of the New American Farmstead

Artisan Cheesemaking

Sustainable Food Craft

Organic Wine & Spirits Production

Educational Farm & Garden Management

The School of the New American Farmstead offers leading-edge courses & Professional Certificates in regenerative farming and artisanal food production to support professionals and lifelong learners of all ages.

Check out the 2020 Class Schedule!

NOTICE: Due to COVID-19, we have postponed all in person courses until June 2021 at the earliest. Online courses will be listed as available below:

Want to keep up with us?

Receive updates on courses, professional certificates,
special offers, scholarships and more!

Check out our new certificate programs!

About the School of the New American Farmstead