Contact Us

Thank you for your interest in the Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers! Our office is located in Room 263A of the Soils Science Building on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.

Our mailing address is:

CIAS – Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers

1535 Observatory Drive

Madison, WI 53706

You can also feel free to contact the WSBDF Director with any questions, using the contact information below:

Nadia Alber, WSBDF Director

Email: nalber@wisc.edu

Phone: 608-265-6437

Alternatively, you can fill in the form below, click send, and we will get back to you as soon as we can!

"The quality and depth of the presenters for the WSBDF has given our family a top notch how-to manual for entering into a grazing based business and life."

“The business plan put it all into reality. It gave me confidence."

“The School opened my eyes up to a different direction of farming that has worked out very well for me. WSBDF was very important in my decision to start a grass-based dairy farm.”

“You have the opportunity to make lifelong friends; you have so many people there that have the same interests and the same drive.”

"I'm by nature a cynic who doesn't often run into programs, meetings, or groups that truly embody optimism and change, but WSBDF manages to accomplish that in a humble and practical way."

“I really enjoyed all the speakers we had and all the real life experiences they were able to share.”

“The School made me think outside of the box…and look at the many ways to approach a farm business.”

"I can sincerely say that the WSBDF course was everything I had hoped for, and then some. I met a lot of great people, learned an incredible amount, and came out of the experience feeling inspired"

"We came away with a barn-full of inspiration, and the solid ground-under-our-feet feeling of having been shown 'how it is' with all the beauty and the sweat right there."

“The most beneficial thing by far was…the network of people I met – classmates and mentors – that are actively farming…to learn from what they are doing and compare [these things] to what I’m doing.”

“I took the grazing courses [with WSBDF]…and this is the best crash course I’m ever going to get.”

“My fears were primarily financial. The WSBDF showed me that there were different institutions…to loan me money and that is what really got me started."

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Sponsored by the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems and the Farm and Industry Short Course, both within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; and by Badgerland Financial, Culver’s Restaurants, Organic Valley, Wisconsin Cattleman’s Association, Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board, and Wisconsin Farmers Union; with additional support from the NIFA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program and individual and corporate contributions to the UW Foundation WSBDF Endowment Fund. A full list of each year's contributors is available in our newsletter, available through the link below:

2018 Newsletter