John Gerber

He/Him

Program Coordinator for the ONLINE Sustainable Food & Farming Bachelor of Science Program

Professor of Sustainable Food & Farming

Faculty
A headshot of John Gerber.
Contact
Email
Email
Phone
changingthestory.net
Location
Stockbridge Hall 17

Cell Phone
(413) 687-7798
John Gerber, holding eggs in one hand, squatting by a chicken in a backyard.

John currently teaches courses relating to sustainability at the University of Massachusetts where he provides leadership for the online program in Sustainable Food and Farming. He continues to investigate ways in which students are encouraged to explore personal growth and community responsibility through service, dialogue, and contemplation. His greatest professional joy is to watch young people find their calling (especially when it relates to local food and farming). He was instrumental in helping to initiate student projects at UMass such as the Permaculture Initiative, the Student Farm, GardenShare, and the Real Food Challenge. He received the highest honor awarded a teacher at UMass in 2008 with the University Distinguished Teacher Award.

Curriculum Vitae

Professor of Sustainable Food & Farming

Education

Ph.D. Cornell University; 1978
Major: Vegetable Crops Ecology
Minors: Agricultural Education & Soil Science

M.S. Cornell University; 1976
Major: Vegetable Crops Ecology
Minor: Soil Science

B.S. University of Rhode Island; 1973
Major: Botany
Minor: Chemistry

CLASSES TAUGHT

  • STOCKSCH 100 - Botany for Gardeners ONLINE -  Offered Fall, Summer and January terms (GenEd BS) for UWW.  I take a holistic view of plants including ecology, plant form and function, inheritance and evolution, and the relationship between plant life and human life. The class is taught using world food, agricultural and gardening examples as much as possible. Four credits. 
  • STOCKSCH 172 - Plants in Our World ONLINE  - Offered Spring, Summer, and January terms (GenED SI) for UWW.  This class looks at plants from an historical, social and psychospiritual perspective to give us with a richer understanding of the relationship between humans and the plant world. 
  • STOCKSCH 356 - Food Justice and Policy - Offered during the Fall semester on campus.  This class explores the need for fundamental change in policy to result in a more just global, national and local food system. 
  • STOCKSCH 379 - Agricultural Systems Thinking - FALL semester blended (lectures online and discussions on campus). This course will provide students with an opportunity to learn and practice systems thinking to deepen their understanding of complex food and farming systems and integrate the learning acquired from discipline-focused courses. Satisfies the Integrated Experience (IE) requirement for Sustainable Food and Farming majors. Three credits.