Extension Update: November 2004 Archives

With approval by the Administrative Team of a protocol for "one-copy-all-staff" emails" comes an alternative, an “announcement” email listserv.

Staff must choose to sign up individually for this new “announcement” listserv. This listserv is for such items as marriages, birth and death announcements, information or news that may be of interest across program lines, retirements or staff recognition unrelated to employment. For inclusion on this new "announcement" listserv, email Judi Strauss at judi.strauss@unh.edu

You can review the one-copy-all-staff protocol which provides UNH Cooperative Extension staff with pertinent information relating to our work, critical and emerging issues, and news relating to Extension as an organization. Its intent is for business-related messages of interest to the entire organization.

The December 1 Staff Professional Development Grant deadline for the 4th quarter of this year has been extended to December 7th. If you wish to apply for the Staff Professional Development Grant, with a maximum award of $750, submit your application by December 7.

Grant application information is available at the UNH Human Resources Professional and Organizational Development site.

As mentioned in the Extension Update last summer, you can now submit inservice and other training offerings for the balance of the October, 2004 - September, 2005 year.

This second round of inservice offerings helps to better address core competency needs and provides the opportunity for interdisciplinary teams to offer more workshops.

Please submit information for in-services you plan to offer by Friday, January 14, 2005 to Deb Russell, using this format. The inservice calendar will be ready for electronic registration in late January.

Thank you for your participation in UNH Cooperative Extension's professional development efforts.

New Hampshire Project Learning Tree (NHPLT) awarded UNH Cooperative Extension its 2004 Silver Jubilee Award.

NHPLT Director Esther Cowles, at the October 22 presentation, said, "NH Project Learning Tree is incredibly fortunate to count UNH Cooperative Extension among our closest partners. Their staff is so talented and well respected, and they collectively know the people and land of this state better than any other organization."

She made particular note of those who served on the organization's steering committee and board of directors, first Nory Parr, then Peter Pohl and now Karen Bennett. She recognized Sam Stoddard, who helps with workshops, and Sarah Smith, who facilitates board retreats. She also recognized Bennett as a "driving force behind the writing, editing, and development of our state-specific publications."

Attending the event for UNH Cooperative Extension were Bob Edmonds, Karen Bennett, Sarah Smith, Nory Parr, Peter Pohl, Sam Stoddard and Julia Steed Mawson.

Ken La Valley joins UNH Cooperative Extension December 1 as the new Extension Specialist, Commercial Fisheries Technology Transfer. He is a UNH graduate in Zoology and has a Master's degree in Fish Pathology from the University of Rhode Island. He completed all course work and passed oral/written comprehensive exams for the degree of Doctorate in Environmental Science there. He graduates in December. Ken’s course work at URI included fisheries population dynamics, evaluation and theory of fishing gear design as well as statistics, endocrinology and fish pathology.

This fall Ken held an adjunct faculty position at the New Hampshire Community Technical College in Manchester, teaching an introductory course in microbiology. Prior to that position, he worked for eight years at Spinney Creek Shellfish as director of quality assurance. In that position he conducted outreach programs for commercial shellfish fishermen. In the Extension specialist position, his responsibilities include transferring results of cooperative research projects to fisheries managers, fishermen and other stakeholders.

The UNH Cooperative Extension State Advisory Council, at its November 4 meeting, focused on county public awareness and outreach efforts to newly elected public officials.

A sub-committee of the state council, led by Liz Conrad along with Erick Leadbeater, Anne Krantz, Dick Mallion and Harmony Anderson, are guiding this effort. Each county reported on a variety of completed or planned events, including sending letters immediately to newly elected and re-elected officials. Some counties have events planned in December to meet and orient delegation members to Cooperative Extension.

All counties reported on their County Conversation events, in which University of New Hampshire President Ann Weaver Hart participates. Other ideas to build public awareness include joint events with farm bureaus, promotional efforts and special displays.

In other business, Michele Gagne reported on Strengthening New Hampshire Communities activities from 1996 through 2004. There were brief budget updates and some discussion about ways to strengthen county advisory council meetings. Other business included setting up a nominating committee. The next meeting takes place in January.

You'll find posted on the New Hampshire Secretary of State's Office website all the winners in the November general elections. Starting with the Governor's office, the list continues with US Senate and House of Representative winners, Executive Council and State Senators. State Representative winners are alphabetical, by county.

Take a moment to familiarize yourself with the returning and new public officials in your county.

Just how do you make sure wildlife continue to thrive when they live in the fastest growing state in the Northeast? The answer is good planning. New Hampshire, like all other states, received new federal funding in 2003 to create a “Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan.” The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department has two years to create this new plan to ensure a bright future for all wildlife in the state.

In the spirit of New Hampshire partnerships, the state’s Fish & Game Department looked to its partners to help them write the plan. These partners include researchers from UNH, biologists from the Audubon Society of New Hampshire, and ecologists from The Nature Conservancy, among many others. Additionally, Fish & Game asked UNH Cooperative Extension Wildlife Specialist Darrel Covell to co-coordinate the plan’s development.

Now into its second year, the Comprehensive Wildlife Plan has come a long way. While biologists work on the wildlife and habitat end of things, Covell is busy gathering input from the public – one of the eight required elements of the plan. Covell and colleagues formed the “Communications and Outreach Team” and conducted a Wildlife Summit meeting of individuals and groups interested in wildlife. Facilitated by professionals (including UNH Cooperative Extension’s Phil Auger, Charlie French and Frank Mitchell), the Wildlife Summit helped define and prioritize issues affecting wildlife.

The team also gathered additional input from a broader public through a Wildlife Plan Web Survey. It is open until November 15. To date, more than 1,200 people responded to the web survey. Please feel free to complete the survey yourself. For more details on the Comprehensive Wildlife Plan, visit the Fish and Game web site, and find out more about critical wildlife habitats and wildlife species.

Diane DuGray and Diana Fiorey of the Cheshire County Extension office received a surprise honor at the 2004 New Hampshire Circle of Home and Family's (NHCHF) Fall Conference.

Although they are not NHCHF members, an exception was made in granting them the NH Circle of Gold Award for their support. Their efforts are always accompanied with enthusiasm and congeniality. Congratulations Diane and Diana!

The latest issue of the Journal of Extension (JOE) continues to offer excellent resources. Articles of interest in this issue include one on "Integrating Ecology and Relating Natural Systems to Agriculture: An Increased Priority for Extension Agricultural Programming," along with articles on "Communicating Impact" and "Entertainment Media Violence: Roles for Extension Professionals."

JOE expands and updates the research and knowledge base for Extension professionals and other adult educators to improve their effectiveness. In addition, JOE serves as a forum for emerging and contemporary issues affecting Extension education, and the latest issue is no exception!

In January, the University of New Hampshire's Campus Journal moves to a "paperless" world. The last print version of the journal arrives on campus January 21, 2005.

Among the 22 nominated for inclusion in the inaugural year of the UNH Outreach Scholars Program are three Cooperative Extension Faculty/Specialists.

They are Charlie French, Extension Assistant Professor, Resource Economics and Development, Jeffrey Schloss, Extension Professor, Cooperative Extension and COLSA, and Peter Erickson, Associate Professor, dairy cattle management and nutritional sciences.

UNH President Emerita Joan Leitzel launched the new program, jointly supported by Research and Outreach Scholarship and the Provost’s office, at an induction ceremony October 13 at Holloway Commons. The program is designed to build faculty strength in outreach scholarship and advance the academic strategic plan.

The ceremony featured the theme “Excellence in Outreach Scholarship.”

Many thanks to Charlene Baxter, who provided exemplary leadership to our Community Development Program. Charlene continues her program leadership role in the area of family and consumer resources, while Nancy Franz, associate director, assumes leadership of the Community Development Program November 1.

With Charlene’s supervision, the Strengthening New Hampshire Communities Initiative (SNHC) addressed the priority needs of New Hampshire communities identified through the Higher Ground process. She helped expand the initiative's focus to a broad range of community issues, including economic development, community consensus, leadership development, community planning, and a host of other areas.

The SNHC initiative effectively tied together all of Extension's disciplines, keeping an important focus on communities. As well, Charlene successfully expanded the number of staff working in this important arena.