Connections make the world smaller. Exposure to new things and new ways of doing tasks opens doors. Combing these two is the PDPW Mentor Program, ,which gives four-year university, technical school and Short Course students the opportunity to experience modern dairy production and learn firsthand from progressive dairy farmers. In existence since 1996, Professional Dairy Producers® developed the PDPW Mentor Program to pair qualified students with PDPW dairy farm members who volunteer to give students a boots-on-the-ground, on-farm experiences. This sharing can range from the nuances of recordkeeping, genetic selection and every day cow care and management to manure management and human resources. Just about any topic or area is open for discussion between the dairy farmer and the student shadowing.
A student's experience through the PDPW Mentor Program can be just one day of shadowing a dairy farmer and asking questions, or longer if a student wishes to spend more time learning from his or her farm mentor. No matter the length of the experience, the PDPW Mentor Program exposes students to diverse technologies and management styles, helps grow their network of dairy industry professionals and stimulates career planning with production agriculture as an option.
An extremely valuable component of the PDPW Mentor Program takes place at the 2016 PDPW Business Conference in Madison, Wis., on March 16-17. After students attend a PDPW Mentor Program breakfast, the Business Conference gives students an opportunity to reconnect with their respective mentor and launch their networking opportunity with dairy industry professionals from across the country.
Students wishing to participate in the PDPW Mentor Program are asked to complete the online Mentor Program application form at pdpw.org/mentor_program.php. After the students' applications are considered, each accepted student will be assigned to a mentor that meets the student's objectives and interests.
To be considered in the PDPW Mentor Program, students must submit their application online by the November 1, 2015 application deadline.
To learn more about the PDPW Mentor Program and to apply to be assigned a mentor, visit www.pdpw.org or contact PDPW at 1-800-947-7379.
Dairy farmers wishing to serve as mentors should contact PDPW directly at 1-800-947-7379.
Professional Dairy Producers (PDPW) is the nation's largest dairy producer-led, grassroots organization of its kind, focusing on education, networking and professional development to shares ideas, solutions, resources and experiences that help dairy producers succeed.
10.10.2015
