AgTech Champion Communities
Designed for rural North Dakota Communities
12-Month Community Capacity, Workforce and Innovation Program
For an overview of the application prior to submission, click here.
Application Deadline
October 23, 2026
Program Period
November 2026 - October 2027
Project Funding
$10,000 per community
Eligibility
Rural ND Community
(under 20,000 in population)
The Program
Local people, local priorities, one year of support
AgTech Champion Communities is a 12-month, community-driven program designed to help rural North Dakota communities prepare for and participate in the future of agriculture and technology. The program brings together local leaders, producers, agribusinesses, educators, economic developers, Extension, employers, entrepreneurs, youth-serving organizations, regional partners and residents to identify local opportunities and turn them into action.
Over the year your community builds a team, studies its own workforce needs, expands youth and work-based learning, and implements or substantially advances at least one AgTech initiative that it chooses for itself.
Part of the NSF AgTech Engine
Participating communities will not only complete local work; they will also help test, document and improve approaches that can be shared and adapted by other rural communities and regional partners.
Is Your COmmunity a fit?
Any rural North Dakota community with fewer than 20,000 residents can apply. Strong applicants can say yes to most of these:
You want to build workforce capacity and get ready for a changing agricultural economy.
You have a diverse group of leaders willing to work together for the full 12 months
You want to build workforce capacity and get ready for a changing agricultural economy.
Local producers and agribusinesses are interested in AgTech innovation and adoption.
You want to expand AgTech careers, education, youth engagement and work-based learning.
You are ready to test and advance a real local AgTech project and share what you learn.
What you get
Support for the whole year, at no cost to the community
A community coach
A rural development coach who facilitates, connects you to resources and keeps the work moving all 12 months.
A workforce data profile
A custom profile of your local workforce, built by the Center on Rural Innovation or the NDSU Center for Social Research.
Help gathering local input
Tools and facilitation to collect feedback from employers, producers, educators, youth and entrepreneurs, and turn it into priorities.
Planning and facilitation
Guided assessment and priority setting that produce your Community AgTech Opportunity and Action Plan.
Statewide connections
Introductions to partners, innovators, entrepreneurs, technical experts and higher education.
Youth kits and lesson plans
Ready-made AgTech youth kits, lessons and digital content, plus support for CTE, dual credit, internships and job shadows.
$10,000
in project funding per community
Use it to start on local priorities and to develop or implement your AgTech initiative. Funding may come as reimbursement or start-up support, depending on the activity. Your coach will help you decide how to spend it and where to find additional grants and partners.
The Year
Five months to plan, seven to build
Phase 1 forms the team, gathers input and produces the plan. Phase 2 puts the plan to work and records what other communities can reuse.
Phase 1
Discover, connect and plan
November 2026 to March 2027
Goal 1
Build the team
Form a 10–12-member cross-sector core team, do leadership development, map your stakeholders and resources, and plan how you will gather input.
Goal 2
Learn what AgTech can do here
Take part in AgTech and entrepreneurship learning, meet producers and companies, inventory local resources, and find the barriers holding innovation back.
Goal 3
Find out what your workforce needs
Ask employers, producers, educators and students about skill needs, hard-to-fill jobs and training gaps, and look at housing, childcare, broadband and other things that keep people here.
Goal 4
Write the action plan
Gather feedback from at least 50 residents through interviews, surveys, forums or roundtables, then pick one priority initiative and set its goals, partners, timeline and measures.
Phase 2
Activate, implement and sustain
April 2027 to October 2027
Goal 5
Launch your initiative
Assign leadership, put the project funding to work, bring in partners and additional funding, and adjust as feedback comes in.
Goal 6
Back your entrepreneurs and employers
Connect entrepreneurs to mentors, expertise and funding, explore innovation or demonstration space, and help employers get ready for new technology.
Goal 7
Grow the next generation
Start two new AgTech programs for young people, or expand two you already run, using the youth kits and at least one education-to-work pathway.
Goal 8
Put the technology in front of people
Host at least one demonstration, showcase, expert panel, field plot, micro-credential or on-farm pilot, and ask participants what was useful.
Goal 9
Write down what worked
Keep simple records of activities, decisions, outcomes and lessons learned, and share them with other communities at a final statewide event so your approach can be reused.
Examples of what your community might do
Each AgTech Champion Community will have different needs, assets, and opportunities. The activities below are examples of the types of learning, engagement, and projects that may be part of your community's 12-month experience. Your community will work with its community coach to select activities that support local priorities and program goals.
- Build Your Community Team
- Explore AgTech and Entrepreneurship
- Understand Workforce Needs and Opportunities
- Prepare Employers and Entrepreneurs for Innovation
- Develop the Next Generation of AgTech Talent
- Increase AgTech Adoption and Innovation
Strengthen the leadership and collaboration skills of your AgTech Champion Team through activities such as:
- CliftonStrengths Finder or Everything DiSC
- Board and community leadership best practices
- Facilitated community conversations and stakeholder engagement
Build awareness of emerging opportunities and connect local leaders with ideas, innovators, and resources through activities such as:
- AgTech conferences and learning events
- Visits to other communities or AgTech innovation sites
- Conversations with AgTech companies, entrepreneurs, and producers
Use community data and local input to better understand your current and future workforce through activities such as:
- Reviewing your Community Workforce Data Profile
- Youth, educator, and workforce partner discussions
- Identifying workforce gaps, emerging skill needs, and opportunities to attract and retain talent
Help local businesses, employers, and entrepreneurs respond to technology and workforce change through activities such as:
- Helping employees adapt to new technologies
- Building employee problem-solving and innovation skills
- Creating workplaces that attract, develop, and retain employees
Create opportunities for young people to explore AgTech careers and connect education with local employers through activities such as:
- AgTech career exploration and designated youth kits/digital content
- CTE, dual credit, EDventures, work-based learning, or other AgTech learning opportunities
- 4-H AgTech programs and industry/youth partnerships
Give producers, businesses, and community members opportunities to see, test, and learn about agricultural technologies through activities such as:
- AgTech demonstrations and technology showcases
- On-farm demonstrations or pilot projects
- Applied research, field demonstrations, or conversations with AgTech experts
Community Expectations
Six commitments your community makes
Being selected is a commitment to do the work. Expect regular core-team meetings plus stakeholder engagement, coaching, youth and workforce activities, implementation and reporting. The pace varies by phase.
10–12
Team members w/two co-leads
Representing agriculture, education, economic development, Extension, local government, the Chamber and regional partners. Two co-leads coordinate.
50
Residents give input in Phase 1
Beyond the core team, and through more than one method: interviews, surveys, forums, youth discussions or employer roundtables.
1
AgTech initiative launched
Select and implement, or substantially advance, at least one AgTech or workforce initiative that answers a regional need.
2
Youth programs added or grown
Including required use of the AgTech youth kits and at least one education-to-workforce pathway activity.
1
Public AgTech event hosted
An adoption or innovation opportunity open to producers, businesses or the wider community.
All Year
Track and share the work
Work with your coach, record participation, outcomes and lessons learned, and share tested practices with other communities.
Afterwards
What your community has after 12 months
- A cross-sector team and stakeholder network that keeps working together.
- A workforce needs analysis built on what employers, producers, educators and youth told you.
- A finished Community AgTech Opportunity and Action Plan.
- At least one AgTech or workforce initiative under way, with youth programs and a public demonstration behind it.
- Stronger statewide partnerships and additional public or private resources brought in.
- A plan to sustain the leadership, partnerships and projects after the program ends.
Apply
Applications Close October 23, 2026
Have questions?
Talk to us before you apply
Carmel Miller
Director, Agriculture Workforce Industry and Innovation Center, NDSU Extension
701.426.9460