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Cooperative Extension Service |
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Agricultural
Experiment Station |
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Dale Bumpers College
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Cooperative Extension Service
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Dr. Tony E. Windham |
Program and Staff Development is changing the way the Division of Agriculture welcomes new employees, trains staff and equips new supervisors with needed skills.
The changes follow a needs assessment survey of extension employees taken April 13-30. The survey, e-mailed to 802 employees, elicited 589 responses from all levels of faculty and staff.
Dr. Karen Ballard, interim director of PSD, said the idea behind the survey "was to put faculty and staff in the driver's seat" and enable the department to reprioritize resources.
The department has initiated:
PSD has also initiated an open-enrollment system for in-service training. There will still be deadlines, but as faculty and staff come onboard, or see new skill development needs, the open enrollment will allow them to gain needed training.
The survey feedback also prompted an in-the-works revamp of the PSD website and access to online learning opportunities. On July 1, PSD launched the Moodle-powered online course interface http://courses.uaex.edu, with 14 courses for employees and the public. The course site is available for faculty to expand its educational reach.
We appreciate PSD's renewed vision and the work it has done to enable our faculty and staff to better serve our constituents.
- Tony E. Windham
Honorary and Memorial Gifts
The following honorary and memorial gifts were recently received in support of programs and funds within the Cooperative Extension Service. This list covers gifts deposited during the month of July.
CES Retiree Scholarship Fund
In memory of Silas Ferguson
Fann Woodward
In memory of Jessie Zagar
Fann Woodward
Mildred and Liz Childs CES Professional Development Fund
In honor of Liz Childs
Merritt and James Royal
Honorary or memorial donations may be forwarded to the Development Office, Cooperative Extension Service, P.O. Box 391, Little Rock, AR 72203. To ensure that proper notification is sent, please also include in whose honor or memory the gift is made and the mailing address of the person to receive the notification.
- Merritt Royal
Conference Highlights Marketing Resources
A one-day workshop to aid growers in their marketing efforts is set for Sept. 9 at the Cooperative Extension Service headquarters in Little Rock. Speakers will include a grower as well as representatives from the National Agriculture Law Center, Center for Agriculture and Rural Sustainability, Bentonville Downtown Development and the Applied Sustainability Center discussing strategies and resources.
Conference goers will be able to explore a new resource: MarketMaker, which can be previewed at www.uaex.edu/marketmaker. The workshop is intended for any grower who markets an agriculture product, primarily food products.
Other issues on the agenda:
Register or learn more about the conference by visiting the following link:
http://www.aragriculture.org/marketing/marketing_workshop/
information.htm
Registration is $10 and must be received by Sept. 3. If space and material are available, registration will continue. If you have registration questions, contact Brenda Duggins, bduggins@uaex.edu (5016712347). To learn more about the program contact Ron Rainey at 5016712175 or rrainey@uaex.edu.
- Ron Rainey
Economic Survival Toolkit
Tough economic times have not only put pressure on families but also on extension personnel to provide sound information quickly to Arkansans in trouble.
A multidiscipline group of faculty and staff has assembled the Economic Survival Toolkit, a library of resources agents can offer their clientele.
The toolkit is available in SPOT. To use the resources, log into SPOT, join the Economic Challenge group, and go to files. The library will include about five dozen files including food columns, radio scripts, fact sheets about farm profitability, financial management and stress management.
Suggestions for additions to the library are welcome and may be addressed to Ron Rainey, rrainey@uaex.edu.
The Economic Challenge Committee was comprised of Ron Rainey, James Marshall, Laura Connerly, Scott Stiles, Shannon Caldwell, Terry Griffin, Wally Goddard, Stacey McCullough, Pia Woods, Terrie James, Danny Griffin, Anne Sortor, Darlene Millard, Brian Helms, Tony Windham, Noah Washburn, Denise Roulhac and Mary Hightower.
National Youth Science Day Gets a "Biofuel Blast"
Millions of youths will be getting a "Biofuel Blast" next month during the second annual 4H National Youth Science Day on Oct. 7.
Youths will become scientists for the day, discovering how ordinary household products can create alternative energy, and how that fuel can power many of the things we use each day, thanks to an experiment designed by the University of Wisconsin.
The experiment offers several activities to showcase how cellulose and sugars in plants can be used to create ethanol. In one activity, for example, youth will combine corn syrup and yeast in a plastic container and cover the bottle's mouth with a balloon.
They will watch as the yeast breaks down the natural sugars in the corn, which will release ethanol gas that will inflate the balloon. Youths are encouraged to test the experiment in the classroom, in their 4H clubs, or at home.
For more information, including the experiment worksheets, go to https://www.4-h.org/nysd/ or contact Willa Williams, 4H STEM instructor, at wwilliams@uaex.edu.
4H Wildlife Team Competes in National Invitational
The 4H Wildlife Team earned a placing in memory at the national invitational in Louisiana. Sixteen teams competed from throughout the United States, and Arkansas earned seventh on the wildlife management plan. "That's the highest ranking that I can remember for an Arkansas team on the wildlife management plan," said Becky McPeake, 4H wildlife habitat evaluation program coordinator. The Pulaski County team earned the honor of representing Arkansas by winning the state contest in April. "They were the happiest kids in the room when Arkansas was called," said their coach Kathy Kline.
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| Photo from left to right: Christopher R., Kennedy B., Sarah K., and Arielle N., introduce themselves to the other state teams at the Invitational held in Zwolle, La. |
Coming Soon: New Enhancement to Online Hiring System
As you know, the online hiring system debuted at Extension in Fall 2006 and the system has been a wonderful success. Posting vacancies, reviewing applications and resumes, and obtaining necessary approvals electronically have become second nature to our hiring supervisors.
Another enhancement is on the way. A module is being added to the system that will allow every employee to have his/her position description in the system for updating performance evaluations, promotion, and on-the-job training.
Donna Rothberg, director of Human Resources, said the new PD Module will streamline the hiring process. "If an employee leaves, the hiring supervisor will be able to post the vacancy from the employee's position description," she said. "The posting will be automatically populated from the position description, which takes the guesswork out of figuring out what needs to be in the vacancy announcement. "In addition, a supervisor will be able to provide an accurate position description to an applicant during the interview, so the applicant will know exactly what job duties/responsibilities to expect," Rothberg said.
Watch for more information on this new PD Module enhancement in the coming months.
- Donna Rothberg
Breakthrough Solutions Conference Set for September 11
"Building Vibrant Communities During Tough Times," this year's Breakthrough Solutions conference, is designed to provide creative ideas for community development, according to Dr. Mark Peterson, professor community development for the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.
The conference is set for Friday, September 11, at the Cooperative Extension Service headquarters, 2301 S. University Ave., Little Rock.
The keynote for the conference is "Creating Economic Opportunities through Entrepreneurship," by Don Macke, director of the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship at the University of Nebraska.
Other presentations include "Visionary Thinking - Going Beyond Assets" - how communities can use their assets as leverage, and "Emerging Markets in Our Own Backyard" unseen opportunities for broadband in rural Arkansas.
The conference will have breakout sessions addressing diverse issues such as creative economies, alterative energy and 21st century economic engines.
Breakthrough Solutions Conference information, agenda, and registration is available at http://survey.uaex.edu/registrations/PCED/intro.htm
For other information about the conference, contact Aly Signorelli at 5016712072, or by email, breakthroughsolutions@uaex.edu.
Grants and Contracts
| Project Title | Award Amount | Principal Investigator | Granting Agency |
| 2009 University of Arkansas EIPM Coordination Proposal | 25,000 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Services |
| 2009 University of Arkansas EIPM Coordination Proposal | 62,950 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Services |
| 2009 University of Arkansas EIPM Coordination Proposal | 87,985 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Services |
| 2009 University of Arkansas EIPM Coordination Proposal | 19,955 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Services |
| 2009 University of Arkansas EIPM Coordination Proposal | 26,570 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Services |
| Initiation and Implementation of the Managing in Tough Times National Extension Initiative | 52,150 | Dr. Anne Sortor | United States Department of Agriculture |
| 2009-2010 4-H Afterschool | 84,613 | Dr. Anne Sortor | Arkansas Department of Human Services |
| 2009-2010 Guiding Children | 126,081 | Dr Wally Goddard | Arkansas Department of Human Services |
| 2009-2010 Best Care | 169,441 | Dr James Marshall | Arkansas Department of Human Services |
| 2009-2010 Best Care Connected | 55,476 | Dr James Marshall | Arkansas Department of Human Services |
| Childcare Voucher Family Support Worker Training | 75,000 | Dr James Marshall | Arkansas Department of Human Services |
| Geospatial Inventorying and Optimization Analysis for Best Management Practices in 12-digit HUC Subwatersheds in L'Anguile River | 87,508 | Dharmendra Saraswat | Arkansas Natural Resources Commission |
| Energy Education Project | 44,368 | Tom Riley | Arkansas Energy Office |
| Parkin Archeological State Park Butterfly Garden | 750 | Richard Klerk | Endowment Foundation of Cross County/ARCF |
| Evaluation of Sampling Procedures for Detecting Tarnished Plant Bug Populations in Cotton:AR III | 4,300 | Dr. Glenn Studebaker | Cotton Incorporated |
| Evaluation of Cotton Yield Loss Caused by Twospotted Spider Mites AR III | 6,600 | Dr. Glenn Studebaker | Cotton Incorporated |
| Economic Contribution of Drew Memorial Hospital | 2,500 | Dr Wayne Miller | Drew Memorial Hospital |
| Evaluation of Cotton Yield Loss Caused by Twospotted Spider Mites AR | 6,600 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cotton Incorporated |
| Achieving Profitable Cotton Production: Plant Bug Management-AR I | 5,513 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cotton Incorporated |
| Evaluation of Sampling Procedures for Detecting Tarnished Plant Bug Populations in Cotton:AR II | 6,000 | Dr. Scott Akin | Cotton Incorporated |
| Evaluation of Sampling Procedures for Detecting Tarnished Plant Bug Populations in Cotton:AR | 6,000 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Cotton Incorporated |
| Achieving Profitable Cotton Production: Plant Bug Management-AR III | 5,513 | Dr. Glenn Studebaker | Cotton Incorporated |
| Achieving Profitable Cotton Production: Plant Bug Management-AR II | 5,513 | Dr. Scott Akin | Cotton Incorporated |
| Evaluation of Cotton Yield Loss Caused by Twospotted Spider Mites AR II | 6,600 | Dr. Scott Akin | Cotton Incorporated |
| 2009 Lygus Efficacy Trial | 20,000 | Dr Gus Lorenz | Monsanto Company |
| Encapsulated Acetochlor in Cotton-EUP Academic | 4,880 | Dr. Tom Barber | Monsanto Company |
| TOTAL JULY AWARDS | $997,865 |
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