Summer Intern

Join Our Team! Summer Intern 2026  

This is a valuable learning and networking opportunity that offers an intern the chance to join an organization with 25 years of experience producing high quality, nutritious, culturally meaningful produce for our neighbors in Dane County, WI. Interns can expect to gain hands-on skills in vegetable and fruit production, small scale farming techniques, volunteer leadership/guidance and youth education through work at Forward Garden located at 7492 Old Sauk Road in the Town of Middleton, WI; and occasionally at member gardens.

 Specific Duties and Responsibilities: 

• Field work to establish and maintain vegetable plots, including bed preparation, seeding, transplanting, weeding, watering and irrigation setup, mulching, trellising, harvesting, post harvest washing, and produce handling and distribution. 

• Help create a welcoming learning and work environment for volunteers and youth groups 

• Participate in creating and prioritizing a weekly task list for Forward Garden. 

• Help lead groups in gardening activities and farm-related learning activities 

• Help keep tools and equipment organized and working properly. 

• Assist Farm Managers with all aspects of volunteer coordination, including demonstrating and overseeing gardening tasks and ensuring that volunteers are adequately supported. 

• Participate in occasional evening and weekend work opportunities including open sessions, farm tours, planning meetings and outreach events 

• You will be a core member of a team responsible for the operation of the Food Pantry Gardens. 

Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Abilities 

• Intern should have interest, experience and/or education in agriculture, plant science, plant pathology, entomology, environmental science or horticulture-related field. 

• Experience working with volunteers is highly desired 

• Tractor and garden equipment training provided, but familiarity with equipment preferred or willingness to learn 

Additional Requirements 

• Intern must be reliable and capable of working in inclement conditions. Some scheduling flexibility will be necessary due to weather. 

• Interns must have their own means of transportation to Forward Garden. 

Position Details 

• Up to 35 hours/week for 16 weeks between May and September (start and end dates flexible) at $17 per hour. 

• 35 hours per week will be expected in June and July during the height of the season. 

• Vacation requests will be approved by one of the farm managers. You will not be expected to work on federal holidays. 

• Outside employment must not interfere with the responsibilities or scheduling requirements of this role. 

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. 

For best consideration, send resume and cover letter by March 7 to Kaila Topping: kaila@foodpantrygardens.org