Background
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) is soliciting a plain language expert to lead an in-depth training program with its national and regional communications teams on applying best practices in plain language to our educational materials and activities. The plain language expert will serve as an independent contractor with SARE’s National Reporting, Coordinating and Communications Office (NRCCO), based out of the University of Maryland in its College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. SARE is a program of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). The NRCCO is the national coordinating program supporting SARE's regional grants and outreach programs, which support various farmer-focused sustainable agriculture approaches and principles across the United States.
Objectives
The successful applicant will work closely with SARE’s communications team to create a tailored series of training workshops and activities that lead us to develop educational resources that are comprehensible and accessible to SARE’s main audiences. Our expectation is to go beyond a general introduction to plain language best practices and instead actively incorporate plain language concepts into our current and upcoming SARE communications activities.
Areas of plain language that we’re looking for guidance on will include, but may not be limited to:
- Plain language writing for the eye and ear
- Information design for print, video and online content
- Content strategy (e.g., repackaging existing content in new ways for improved effect)
The primary audience for our educational materials and outreach include all U.S. farmers and ranchers. Additional audiences include agricultural service providers who are focused on farmer education (e.g., Cooperative Extension, nonprofit organizations, and similar professionals), and both scientists and graduate students who work closely with farmers.
The overall goal of this project is to help us improve the delivery of our content going forward so that our information is easy to find, understand and act upon for our core audience of U.S. farmers and ranchers.
U.S. farmers and ranchers are a variable population in ways that influence our outreach to them, including educational levels, familiarity with the technical concepts of sustainability, and farming backgrounds and experiences. To encourage adoption of sustainable practices, our educational materials include a mix of motivational (why) and technical information (what and how). Our primary formats include both short- and long-form publications in print and online, along with website content and multimedia (audio and video).
Scope of Work
The SARE team of communicators who will be involved in this project include four staff members from our national office, plus one staff member from each of our four regional offices, for an approximate total of eight participants. All project work must be conducted remotely and travel should not be included in project costs.
An initial discovery phase by the selected applicant will allow you to tailor the training series to our needs by better understanding our primary communications goals, styles, activities, subject matter, delivery formats and audiences. This phase should involve a limited number of meetings as well as an in-depth review of a sample of both recently created SARE publications and summaries of upcoming publishing projects across a variety of characteristics (e.g., print, online, audio, video, long-form, short-form, educational, motivational, impact-based). We will provide this sampler of projects after consulting with the selected applicant on an appropriate variety and quantity.
After an initial discovery phase, the successful applicant will develop and deliver a series of workshops that:
- Share relevant best practices in plain language communication for a science-based agricultural organization
- Provide specific recommendations for how we can apply plain language principles to upcoming communications projects
The successful applicant will propose a detailed approach to discovery and training delivery that allows SARE staff to achieve our educational goals.
Minimum Requirements
The applicant(s) should demonstrate the following:
- Extensive experience in delivery of plain language training as related to the goals of this effort.
- Firm understanding of both agriculture and the principles of sustainable agriculture. Previous experience with successful plain language projects in agricultural and/or natural resources fields is highly desired.
- A demonstrated ability to tailor the core principles of plain language to suit the specific needs of an organization.
- Excellent writing and verbal skills.
- High level of professionalism is required, including the ability to organize tasks and meet deadlines.
- Ability to work remotely is required.
Budget
Total budget requests may not exceed $20,000, including any indirect costs. SARE limits indirect costs to 10% of the total of direct costs associated with the contract for a plain language expert to conduct and complete this training program. Project length is anticipated to be one year. Contracts are contingent on USDA funding to SARE as well as University of Maryland requirements and procedures.
We are expecting the project’s duration to be approximately one year from the establishment of a contract through the University of Maryland. The project would consist of an initial discovery phase and an opportunity for the successful applicant to develop a customized training program for eight people, followed by a series of workshops on either a monthly or quarterly basis.
Application Instructions
Please submit a proposal using this Google Form. The successful applicant will be hired as an independent contractor through the University of Maryland (details to be provided to the selected applicant).
The submission deadline is Monday, June 30.
Questions about this RFP? Contact Andy Zieminski at azieminski@sare.org.