Training in Risk Management Tools:

1
Training in Risk Management Tools

• Providing Crop Insurance and Financial Education
  to Under-Served Producers
• Albert E. Essel
• Virginia State University

2
Collaborators

• Laurence Crane
• Albert Essel
• Kevin Klair
• Dale Nordquist

3
Collaborating Institutions

• Virginia State University
• Center for Farm Financial Services, University of
  Minnesota
• National Crop Insurance Services

4
Goals of Training Program

• To help limited resource farmers effectively
  manage their farm businesses by
• Providing farm business management tools to
  educators of limited resource farmers
• Providing training to use tools effectively

5
Objectives

• 1. To conduct Financial Management and Crop
  Insurance training for educators and agricultural
  professionals who serve underserved producers.
• 2. To organize a leadership team to support
  educators who serve underserved producers in risk
  management

6
Objectives

• To increase producer awareness and knowledge of
  risk management tools
• To provide training and technical assistance for
  producers to improve their ability to use tools
  to manage risks.

7
Target Audience

• Producers
• African Americans
• Hispanics
• Native Americans
• Women
• Limited Resource
• Other Underserved

• Educators
• 1890 Universities
• 1994 Colleges
• Hispanic Serving
• 1862 Universities
• Comm. Based Orgs.
• Agric. Professionals

8
States Territories with Participants Trained

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• California
• Florida
• Georgia
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Mississippi

• Montana
• Missouri
• North Carolina
• Oklahoma
• Pennsylvania
• Puerto Rico
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia
• Virgin Islands
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin

9
Program Content

• Financial Planning
• Business Planning
• Crop Insurance

10
Program Delivery

• Nationwide Promotion of program to target
  populations (Educators)
• Registration Fee
• Travel Scholarships for Participants
• Provide laptop computers to participants

11
Delivery Methods

• Workshops
• Computer-based Hands-on Training
• Case Studies

12
Program Delivery - 2003

• Conducted a 2.5 day workshop in
• Petersburg, VA
• Baton Rouge, LA
• Albuquerque, NM

13
Program Delivery - 2004

• One 2.5 day workshop in Atlanta, GA
• Two 2.5 day Advanced workshops in Petersburg, VA
• Leadership Meeting in Petersburg, VA

14
Program Delivery 2005

• Focus on Producers
• Farm Management Association in VA
• Producer Meeting in Pine Bluff, AR
• Producer Meeting in Tuskegee, AL

15
The Tools

• FINPACK
• FINPACK Business Plan
• Crop Insurance manual and training from industry
  representatives

16
FINPACK Crop Insurance Training
BASIC TRAINING ATLANTA, GA APRIL 2004
17
FINPACK Crop Insurance Training
ADVANCED TRAINING PETERSBURG, VA MARCH MAY
2004
18
Mobile Computer Lab Producer Training
19
VSU Mobile Computer LabBusiness Planning
Recordkeeping
12 networked-computer stations plus an
instructors station
20
Program Results

• Outstanding evaluations
• Lots of enthusiasm to use the tools and materials
  to help limited resource producers

21
Challenges

• Despite the enthusiasm, follow up surveys
  indicate each participant used FINPACK with 1.85
  farmers and crop insurance with 13.7 farmers in
  2004

22
Questions

• What are the obstacles to working with limited
  resource farmers on improved business management?
  
• How can educators more effectively help limited
  resource farmers with business management?
• How can we support educators better?