Officials with the Women, Food and Agriculture Network (WFAN) say applications are now being accepted for on-farm mentorship experiences for aspiring women farmers (women who want to farm but are not yet farming) in Iowa and Nebraska. Ten aspiring women farmers in Iowa and four in Nebraska will be placed on the mentors’ farms for a minimum of 8 weeks’ work experience during the growing season.

A small stipend is provided to mentees to help offset travel costs, and an effort will be made to match you with a farmer in your geographic area, but a mentee should be prepared to live on or near the host farm for the duration of her mentorship. The 2013 group of farmer mentors has gone through an intensive day-and-a-half learning experience to increase their knowledge of teaching skills, evaluation, communication, and liability mitigation.

An application form is available online at wfan.org., under the “News and Resources” heading, click on “WFAN Beginning Farmer Grant Project.” Then look for the “Opportunities for Aspiring Women Farmers” tab, and scroll down the page. The deadline to apply is March 15, but mentee spots will remain open until filled.