Undergrad Research Tech - Mushroom Cultivation #755401346

SUMMARY Cal Poly Pomona Enterprises is hiring one undergraduate Plant Science student for a fall research position supporting a mushroom cultivation research project under the mentorship of Dr. Eshwar Ravishankar, Assistant Professor in Plant Science. The project grows mushrooms in two climate controlled tents, one for incubation and one for fruiting, and pairs cultivation records with continuous environmental sensor data to improve yield and consistency. The position pays $18 per hour, runs from October 15 to December 15, 2026, and is open to students with hands‑on experience or coursework in mushroom cultivation or mycology. SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU WILL GET TO DO (this is just a small sampling of work variety) Specific responsibilities include: The research technician will run day‑to‑day mushroom production in the incubation and fruiting tents and keep the cultivation records the research depends on. Prepare and sterilize growth media, including agar plates, liquid cultures, grain spawn, and bulk substrates, using pressure sterilization and laminar flow hood technique. Inoculate plates, grain jars, and substrate bags using sterile technique, and carry cultures through colonization, fruiting, and harvest. Run cultivation trials comparing strains and substrate recipes, keeping replicate bags labeled and tracked from inoculation to harvest. Check the incubation and fruiting tents each workday, confirm that temperature, humidity, and carbon dioxide stay within target ranges on the lab's automated control system, and report problems promptly. Harvest, weigh, and record yield for each bag, along with days to full colonization, days to first pins, and biological efficiency. Photograph cultures and fruiting blocks on a fixed schedule and label each image by growth stage and contamination status, building an image set used by the lab's machine learning work. Identify, isolate, and record contamination, and maintain cleaning and sterilization logs. Write and update standard operating procedures for media preparation, inoculation, and fruiting. Record observations in the lab notebook, contribute to an end-of-semester research report, and present results at an end-of-semester lab review. The position offers up to 20 hours per week, with technicians working closely with supervisors and reporting any issues promptly. This is a temporary position from October 15 to December 15, 2026. Compensation is $18 per hour. MINIMUM EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE Must be a current undergraduate student at Cal Poly Pomona in Plant Science or a related field. Hands‑on experience or coursework in mushroom cultivation or mycology, such as grain spawn production, agar work, or bulk substrate preparation. Working knowledge of sterile technique, pressure sterilization, and contamination control. Ability to follow research protocols and keep accurate, dated records for every batch. Comfort with repetitive hands‑on work, lifting filled substrate bags, and working in warm, humid growing spaces. Basic proficiency with Microsoft Excel for data entry. Experience photographing samples is a plus. Strong attention to detail, effective communication, and teamwork skills. Motivated, dependable, and shows initiative. CSU along with Cal Poly Pomona Enterprises strongly recommend faculty, staff, and students who are accessing campus facilities to be immunized against COVID-19 or declare an exemption from doing so. The systemwide policy can be found at COVID-19 Vaccination Interim Policy and any questions may be sent to View email address on click.appcast.io. Cal Poly Pomona Enterprises is an Equal Opportunity Employer. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Cal Poly Pomona Enterprises may provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities and encourages both prospective and current employees to discuss potential accommodation with the employer. #J-18808-Ljbffr Cal Poly Pomona Foundation, Inc