Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Workforce Veterans topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Apprenticeship, youth and veterans programs aim to grow Spokane's conservation workforce
Summary
Vicky Carter described two workforce programs: NRAP, a two-year natural-resources apprenticeship in partnership with Spokane Community College for 18'24-year-olds, and Vets on the Farm, a decade-old transition program that has assisted more than 500 veterans and recently became a 501(c)(3).
During Spokane County Spotlight, Vicky Carter, director of the Spokane Conservation District, highlighted workforce-development initiatives designed to build local conservation capacity.
Carter described the Natural Resources Apprenticeship Program (NRAP), a multi-year partnership with Spokane Community College that provides 18'24-year-olds two years of natural-resources coursework combined with paid summer internships: "we're putting these kids through two years of a program in natural resource management and then the three summers in between we hire them as interns," she said. The district is finishing its first cohort and intends the program to produce a trained workforce for local conservation jobs.
Carter also detailed Vets on the Farm, a transition program started 10 years ago that pairs veterans with hands-on agricultural and conservation training on donated land and supports entry into agriculture-related careers. "We have already serviced well over 500 veterans," she said, and the program recently secured designation as a 501(c)(3). Carter said many program participants have gone on to work in agriculture or remain connected to the local food system.
Why it matters: Both programs are framed as workforce pipelines addressing local conservation and agricultural labor needs while creating pathways for young adults and veterans to gain credentials and paid experience. Carter said NRAP participants help implement district projects such as tree planting and restoration work, linking training outcomes to on-the-ground conservation gains.
Next steps: Carter said the district will continue NRAP cohorts and expand Vets on the Farm operations through its nonprofit status; program capacity and future cohorts were not specified in detail in the interview.
