Amber Donaldson thought she had her farming aspirations laid out. After relocating with her husband from Montana to her home state of Pennsylvania, she farmed a homestead with a variety of livestock and a quarter-acre garden. Goats, she thought, were her future. 

“I thought I would do soaps and cheeses,” she said. “I thought I’d be a goat person, but I just don’t like them. Cows, though, are so sweet. They’re predictable. And I just feel like they’re the perfect animal.”

Changing course as a first-generation farmer isn’t easy. Breaking into the dairy industry can be expensive, it can take time to establish an operation, and meeting every stipulation as a newcomer can seem daunting. She found guidance, though, in the Dairy Grazing Allinace (DGA). 

As the nation’s first formal agricultural apprenticeship to be recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor, DGA received a $4.7 million Partnership for Climate-Smart Commodities grant that allows farmers to learn the dairy grazing trade through on-the-job training. That training is complemented by college courses and mentors. Through the program, Donaldson accessed crucial financial support that enabled her to learn and grow within the dairy grazing trade.

Graduation from the program requires 3,700 hours of on-farm employment. And it comes with a journeyman designation, which Donaldson appreciates. 

“I really think the program is great,” Donaldson reflected. “The DGA program not only provided me with essential skills but also financial stability, which was crucial in overcoming the initial financial barriers of dairy farming. I don’t know how I would have gotten into dairying without the program, honestly.”

Donaldson admittedly bounced around before finding her path with DGA. However, her relocation to rural, central Pennsylvania from Montana meant a return to a place she knew and loved as a kid. 

She and her husband bought 17 acres, she connected with a childhood friend who became a homesteading mentor, and they raised pasture pigs, chickens, a few sheep, a milk cow and grew some garlic and onion. But, after accepting a job at a dairy about 45 minutes from the homestead she had built, she sold her animals and relocated again — holding on to the 17 acres she and her husband owned.

That dairy position lasted a few years, and she considered starting her own micro-creamery or dairy but realized mentoring to own someone else’s dairy might be a better, long-term route for her to take. The DGA program has equipped her with the skills she needed to learn to support her dairy aspirations. 

And with hundreds of hours of experience under her belt now, Donaldson said she discovered this unexpected connection with cows when all along she had expected to connect with goats. 

“I just remember being so in love with them,” she said of initially getting to work with cows through the DGA program. “I’ve raised a lot of different animals, but when you’re working with cows every day, you get a special relationship with them. They’re really like giant puppies. I think it’s cool to have that intimate relationship with the animals you’re working with.”

As she nears graduation from the program, she said she probably could have gone out on her own and muscled her way through the dairy job market or figured out how to farm on her own across her dainty acreage. But, she said, learning without guidance is challenging. 

If she could do anything differently, she said she’d pursue the DGA program before purchasing her own piece of farmland. Managing her apprenticeship alongside the demands of her own land was difficult. 

“It’s so tempting. You think you need land,” she said, encouraging young farmers to see if older farmers need help managing their land before buying their own. “It’s super hard to learn when you’re managing the brunt of your mistakes. I have had some crazy stuff happen on these farms and have really patient mentors help me learn through that stuff. Do the learning first. When you’re working on an established farm, you get exposed to things.”

Looking ahead, Amber plans to expand her dairy operations sustainably, leveraging the lessons and financial foundation provided by federal programs to ensure long-term success.