Extension Update: September 2005 Archives
Belknap County legislators, commissioners and organizations that partner with Extension participated in the tenth “County Conversation” September 26 at Joe Holliday's Top of the Town in Belmont. The “Conversation” provided an opportunity for UNH President Ann Weaver Hart to learn more about how UNH can collaborate more effectively with New Hampshire’s individual counties and to discover what emerging trends and issues specifically face Belknap County.
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The Monday program included remarks from UNH President Ann Weaver Hart and a discussion designed to generate ideas for further collaborations between UNH and Belknap County.
Belknap County staff shared their program efforts in a discussion earlier in the day with President Hart. She also viewed the gardens planted with the help of Master Gardeners at the Belknap County Nursing Home.
Please click on the image above for a photo of Master Gardeners Kathleen Kozak, Suzanne Simmons and Shirley Splaine with President Hart, Extension Educator Amy Ouellette and me at the conversation.
Here's good news for those who like to see NH Public Television's NH Outlook air earlier in the evening: beginning Monday, October 3, you can watch each weeknight at 7:30 p.m.
For your convenience, shows also re-air at 11:30 p.m., 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. Look for the Friday "Journalists Roundtable" discussion airing at 11 a.m. during NHPTV's Sunday public affairs program lineup. And, you can watch us on the web anytime!
UNH Cooperative Extension recently received the following grants:
Three awards from the USDA Forest Service through the NH Dept. of Resources and Economic Development to Program Leader Bob Edmonds:
• $55,344 for the 2004 Urban and Community Forestry Program
• $27,973 for the 2004 Rural Development through Forestry – Technical Assistance, and
• $156,505 for the 2004 Forest Stewardship/Forest Resource Management/Conservation Educational Programs.
Bob also received a $45,155 grant from the USDA Forest Service through the NH Dept. of Resources and Economic Development for improving the application of forestry best management practices and a $2,500 award from the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station to develop a handbook, “Expanding Coverage of Forest Regeneration.”
Others include:
Two NH Dept. of Environmental Services (DES) awards to Extension Specialist Frank Mitchell, $40,000 and $16,000 for the Natural Resources Outreach Coalition – Coordination and Delivery. Frank also received a $5,000 award from the Center for Land Conservation to provide services to land trusts, municipal conservation groups, other conservation groups, professionals involved in land conservation and landowners.
A NH Dept. of Environmental Services award of $5,000 to Extension Specialist Mark Wiley in support of the DES Shellfish Program.
An award from USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service through the University of Maine Cooperative Extension to Extension Specialist Alan Eaton in support of the New England Pest Management Network 2005 efforts.
An award from NOAA to Program Leader Brian Doyle for the Sea Grant Program of $99,998.
An award from the NH Dept. of Health and Human Services for $947,498 to Extension Specialist Suzann Knight and Extension Educator Debbie Luppold for the Family Lifeskills Program.
Two awards in support of the New England Regional Water Quality project from USDA through the University of Rhode Island for $71,000 and $63,526 to Extension Specialist Julia Peterson.
A $297,874 grant from the National Marine Fisheries Service to Extension Specialist Pingguo He for the design and testing of a Soft Species Separation System for the New England trawl fishery.
A $64,900 grant from the Northeast Consortium to the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance and Extension Educator Roland Barnaby for a collaborative research reporter to increase the number of fishermen and scientists throughout New England knowledgeable about collaborative research.
A $744,255 award from the NH Dept. of Health and Human Services to Valerie Long and Debbie Luppold for the NH Food Stamp Nutrition Education Program.
A $98,997 award from the Northeast Consortium and a $25,000 award from the U.S. Dept. of Commerce to Program Leader Brian Doyle for the Sea Grant program.
A $10,500 award from the National 4-H Council to Program Leader Wendy Brock for the project,
4-H Time in Afterschool Time.
A $25,000 award from the National 4-H Council to Program Leader Wendy Brock for the project,
4-H Time in Rural New Hampshire.
A $6,668 award from the North Country Resource Conservation and Development Area Council to Program Leader Juli Brussell for a Business Assistant Team member for the NH Agricultural Innovation Program
An award of $18,030 from USDA to Extension Specialist Cheryl Smith for participation in the “Sudden Oak Death National Survey”
A $45,000 award from the NH Charitable Foundation to Extension Specialist Suzann Knight to support the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) VISTA site coordination
A $20,000 award from the NH Charitable Foundation to Extension Specialist Charlie French for a feasibility study for a GIS social capital asset mapping system.
A $225,000 grant from the NH Dept. of Environmental Services to Extension Specialist Jeff Schloss for the Biocontrol of Milfoil Using Parasitic Nematodes project
A $100,000 award from USDA’s Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service through Auburn University to Program Leader Wendy Brock and Extension Specialist Charlotte Cross for the Operation Military Kids efforts. In addition, a $50,000 award from the National Military Families Association/Sears American Dream Foundation was awarded for Operation Camp Purple/New Hampshire.
Staff seeking reimbursement for travel and other expenses through the BSC for July, August and September must submit them before the end of the month. This includes grant-sponsored programs. Timeliness enhances management of our budget deficit. Thanks for observing this important deadline.
Following the dramatic decline in Gulf of Maine and George’s Bank fish stocks during the early 1990’s, fishermen faced a multitude of regulations that dictate the gear used, the number of days that can be fished, and how much fish can be landed.
To combat industry limitations and preserve fishing as a means to make a living, fishing industry members partnered with the academic community to cooperatively develop conservation gear.
Since 2000, more than 190 cooperative research projects in the Northeast received over $25 million. Two regional programs, the Northeast Consortium (NEC) and the Cooperative Research Partnership Initiative (CRPI), support the majority of cooperative research projects. The NEC funds a broad scope of projects, ranging from oceanographic monitoring to fishing gear conservation engineering. The CRPI initiative enhances the data on which fishery management decisions are made.
Presently, conservation engineering has focused on reducing the bycatch of commercially important non-target species by making fishing gears more selective. Selectivity was increased by altering net mesh characteristics (size, shape or position) and by using fish behavior to develop gear that excludes fish or adds selectivity devices such as grates and separator panels.
The cooperative research process has been most successful with projects that are equal partnerships that rely not only on scientific and statistical verification but the insight and operational wisdom of the fishing industry.
For more information on cooperative research, visit the NEC and CRPI websites.
Mary Jo Johnson joins Cooperative Extension September 19 as the new Senior BSC Assistant replacing Tim Fredette.
Mary Jo comes to us from UNH's Accounts Payable, where she managed the travel office. Mary Jo will handle the Forestry and Agricultural Resource accounting areas. Please help us in welcoming her to Extension.
Over 400 people celebrated the dedication of the Grafton County Nursing Home Saturday at the Family Day and Open House at the Grafton County Complex. Grafton County Commissioners first dedicated the Grafton County Nursing Home, then moved on to the 1930's original section of the building, which now houses UNH Cooperative Extension, the Commissioners' Office, the Registry of Deeds, Human Services and Human Resources.
Festivities continued at the UNH Cooperative Extension Greenhouse, a research and educational facility under the direction of Tom Buob, Agricultural Resources Educator.
Music and clowns entertained residents of the Nursing Home and their families. A complimentary cookout was available as well as tours of the facilities and the Grafton County Courthouse. Grafton County's Extension Educators filled the conference room with educational displays.
Those on hand included Executive Councilor and County Commissioner Ray Burton of Bath as well as County Commissioners Mike Cryans of Hanover and Bill Gabler of Hebron. Elected officials included State Reps. Edmond Gionet from Lincoln and Margie Maybeck from Holderness as well as District 2 State Senator Carl Johnson of Meredith.
Extension staff in attendance included Dean & Director John Pike, Assistant Director, County Operations, Paul Bonaparte-Krogh, Agricultural Resources Program Leader Juli Brussell, and Grafton County staff Tom Buob, Nory Parr, Robin Peters and Deb Maes.
Shown in the photo are left to right, John Pike, Executive Director Julie Clough, Commissioners Bill Gabler and Mike Cryans, Paul Bonaparte-Krogh, Carl Johnson and Ray Burton.
A Community Youth Mapping (CYM) orientation day held March 24 proved to be the stimulus for summer projects conducted in partnership with UNH Cooperative Extension. Of the 70 attending the orientation provided by the Academy for Educational Development (AED), Center for Youth Development and Policy Research, two county groups, the CoRe Group in Belknap County and the Transition Resource Network in Strafford County came forward with grant money to conduct a summer asset mapping project. Encouragement from the Workforce Opportunity Youth Council to apply for discretionary funds also proved successful for UNH Cooperative Extension with a $25,000 award.
The Community Youth Mapping (CYM) effort is a catalyst for motivating youth and adults to identify existing resources, places to go, things to do and special opportunities in the community, as well as create and expand new opportunities. CYM is a youth development approach to information collection that requires meaningful participation by youth and adults. Young people are the stakeholders in the planning, collection, data entry, analysis and dissemination of this information. Adults provide technical, political and personal support. The assets often mapped include existing resources for young people and families in such areas as art, food, counseling, health, education, housing, emergency services, employment and recreation. Ideally, CYM is coordinated by a local public, private and nonprofit partnership that engages youth and adults. The strength of this youth-adult partnership is key to the CYM process.
In trainings held this summer in both counties, youth mappers and their adult mentors were introduced to the process and the survey tool they would use to collect and record information. The training featured role-playing, canvassing safety, dealing with difficult people, professional protocols, interpersonal relations and daily expectations on the job.
Youth collecting the information were compensated with either a regular wage, stipend or school credit. As a result, important elements of commitment are learned, such as arriving at work on time, filling out a timesheet, following a code of conduct, working in individual and group settings, communicating with a supervisor and completing tasks.
Mapping took place through August 4. In Belknap County there were 21 youth mappers and 10 adult volunteer supervisors. They "mapped" the following towns: Center Harbor, Meredith, Weirs, Laconia, Gilford, Belmont, Gilmanton, Alton and Barnstead. In Strafford County there were 18 youth mappers and eight adult supervisors. They "mapped" Rochester and Dover.
The youth involved learned valuable workforce skills, such as how to conduct interviews, record information, work with databases, analyze, report, and present what they’ve learned. They also developed important job-readiness “soft” skills: teamwork, conflict resolution, communication and professional behavior. They took on leadership roles that help build confidence and self-esteem.
We've joined Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont in creating a new on-line planning and reporting system that will replace TERS for our next five-year plan of work cycle.
Steve Judd, Lisa Townson and Nancy Franz have been working with a four-state consortium to develop a system that better streamlines our planning and reporting.
Contact Steve or Nancy if you'd like to help test the new system as it is developed or if you have questions.
Deadlines for planning and reporting, performance management and promotion have been updated and posted on our internet on the performance management page.
Since we are entering the last year of our plan of work cycle, logic models and impact reports simply need to be updated instead of created from scratch. The plan of work summary form for educators has been discontinued. The number of planned days for programming efforts will be recorded on the annual performance management plan instead.
Contact your supervisor if you have questions about these important processes.