Jenn Halpin

Jenn is the Director of the Dickinson College Farm. After attending Providence College, she joined the Peace Corps where she developed her interest in sustainable agriculture while living in West Africa and working with farmers. As the farm manager, Jenn provides students with hands-on training in sustainable food production and supports faculty and students with on-going research, class-based collaborations and internships.

Jenn serves as the Vice President of the Board of Directors for PASA. She is an active member of the Buy Fresh, Buy Local Campaign and board president of Farmers on the Square, a producer-only farmers market in Carlisle.

Matt Steiman

Matt has been farming organic vegetables since 1993, working on farms in Colorado, California and Minnesota before settling in the Cumberland Valley. For five seasons, Matt managed Fulton Farm at Wilson College where he learned the ropes of running an educational CSA program, and also developed initial experience with renewable energy systems. Matt and Jenn then ran their own farm on rented ground for two seasons before signing on as the full-time farmers at Dickinson College in 2007. In addition to regular farm duties at the Dickinson Farm, Matt supervises equipment maintenance, irrigation, sheep and cattle, and also works extensively with solar energy projects and biodiesel fuel applications for the College.

Ali Frohman

As Program Coordinator, Ali oversees media, programming, campus outreach, CSA administration and finance for the farm. Ali is excited to be part of our close-knit team, working to raise awareness about the many opportunities we offer Dickinson students, professors, staff and community members. While in college in New York City, Ali managed events for the Center for the Study of Science and Religion at the Earth Institute, Columbia University.

If you have questions about joining our CSA, visiting the farm, holding an event at the farm for your organization or student club, or getting the word out about farm projects, get in touch with Ali at frohmana at dickinson.edu.

Kevin Harper-McCombs

Kevin is the farm’s Packing House Coordinator, plus so much more! His main job is to take the vegetables and fruit as they come in from harvest and oversee their cleaning and packing for distribution to CSA members, the Dining Hall, the Farmers’ Market and Project SHARE. Kevin ensures that our produce gets where it needs to go with efficiency, training students in food safety standards.

Kevin came to the farm after four years with the Dickinson Department of Theatre and Dance, where he was the Scene Shop Manager and was tasked with the construction of theatre production sets.

You can expect to find him in the lower barn “soaked from the knees down” from washing our freshly picked vegetables and fruit. Kevin is also transforming our produce into new product lines, from Red Devil Hot Sauce to pickled cucumbers, pickled beets, salad dressing, and other delectable offerings.

Farm Apprentices

We welcome full-time apprentices to the farm every spring. These apprenticeships last six months, May-October. Candidates are either recent Dickinson graduates or members of the Multicultural Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture Program (MESA). The program allows graduates to work as assistant farm managers and gain experience in seasonal farm planning. MESA applicants generally arrive from Central or South America, and provide a multicultural environment in which to share both agriculture knowledge and personal experiences. Apprentices live in one of the farm’s three yurts, inspired by the traditional Mongolian-style hut.

Because the yurts and shower are powered by solar arrays, farm apprentices are challenged to live within their energy needs and adapt their lifestyles in a more sustainable manner.

Farm Student Workers

The farm employs ten-fifteen Dickinson students during the semester (part-time) and four students over the summer (full-time). Check out our employment page for more info!

 

 

Bella

Bella (pronounced “BAY-ah”) is the farm’s much-loved mascot. She performs the very important duties of chasing away – or eating! – rodents and groundhogs. She loves to follow the student workers around the farm and is always down for a game of fetch, a tug-of-war match, or a ride on our Solar Wheeler.