Extension Update: January 2006 Archives

I'm pleased to announce a change in Lisa Townson's responsibilities effective immediately. Lisa will no longer serve as an Extension Specialist in 4-H Youth Development but rather is assuming an "interim" position for an indefinite period as an Extension Specialist focused primarily in the area of program development and evaluation.

This arrangement will be considered "interim" for an indefinite period of time but with the understanding Lisa will not be returning to 4-H so Wendy Brock can proceed accordingly with 4-H staffing decisions. The state 4-H Youth Development program will miss the expertise Lisa has provided to the animal science program, CYFAR, and exploration into other science, engineering and technology programs.

In the short term, 4-H will run a program that best meets the needs of youth with the staff we have available. Systems will soon be put in place to support upcoming events and activities in the animal science arena. Core staffing discussions are being held by the Leadership Team and a proposal for filling a 4-H Youth Development Specialist position will be brought forward by Wendy Brock.

Lisa's position will assume some functions currently held by the Associate Director, i.e., plan of work development, reporting, etc. but will not include any supervisory responsibilities. Lisa will have the next six weeks to work closely with Nancy Franz. In addition, I am currently contemplating how we will fulfill other duties of the Associate Director position as Nancy prepares to make her transition to Virginia in March.

Brian Doyle from our Program Leader team will be serving as Lisa's supervisor and she will be housed in Taylor Hall. Please join me in welcoming Lisa to her new responsibilities.

Nancy Evans, 4-H Program Associate, Merrimack County, recently received the Judith Lonergan award at the NH Association of Volunteer Administrators (NHAVA) annual meeting. Nancy was recognized for 19 years of dedicated service to volunteer administration with the Merrimack County 4-H Youth Development program.

The Judith Lonergan award is given to someone who demonstrates a commitment to NHAVA’s mission as well as an excellence in core competencies in the field of volunteer administration, someone who promotes volunteerism within his/her organization and/or within the community while managing an effective volunteer program. Nancy became involved in NHAVA at its inception in 1996 as one of the charter members. Its mission is to help support and strengthen the profession of volunteer administration in New Hampshire through education, networking and volunteer recognition.

The award has a special meaning for Nancy because she worked with Judith when she served as the Extension Specialist, Volunteer Development, for UNH Cooperative Extension. Congratulations, Nancy.

UNH Cooperative Extension is the recipient of the following new grants:
* Seth Wilner, $16,000 from the Northeast Region Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education Program (SARE,) to help implement strategic plans for professional development and training efforts for sustainable agriculture in the state, and
* Charlotte Cross, $25,000 from the Workforce Opportunity Council, to implement community youth mapping in Strafford and Belknap counties.

The Carsey Institute Brown Bag Series begins February 8 at the Memorial Union Building (MUB) on the UNH campus with the topic, "21st Century Restructuring of Employment in the Northeast."

The guest speaker is Amy Glasmeier, Visiting Faculty, Carsey Institute and the E. Willard Miller Professor of Economic Geography at Pennsylvania State University. The presentation, which runs from noon-1 pm in Room 302 at the MUB, focuses on New England communities that face new challenges as fortunes are tied to late 20th century developments in industry. Dr. Glasmeier will discuss the variety of forces that are causing major shifts in employment in New England and the United States and the needed policy responses.

Other topics and dates in the series are: Supporting Individuals with Disabilities and Elders in the North Country, March 8; New Immigrant Settlements in Rural America: Problems, Prospects and Policies, April 5; and a special event May 3, Empowering Low Income and Disenfranchised Groups through Community Economic Development for Economic Gain and Social Progress. This last event takes place from 5:30-7 pm at the Elliot Alumni Center 1925 room.

For further information, visit the Carsey Institute web site or contact Amy Seif at amy.seif@unh.edu or 603-862-4650.

Congratulations to Geoffrey Njue and his wife, Janet, who became U.S. citizens during a ceremony last week in Concord. Geoffrey joined UNH Cooperative Extension in September, 2000. He is responsible for ornamental horticulture in Strafford and Carroll Counties.

The main focus of Geoffrey's work is to provide current information and assist home owners and commercial agriculture enterprises in the areas of commercial ornamental horticulture and turf management. He also manages the Master Gardener volunteer program in both counties.

Geoffrey said, "Becoming naturalized citizens is important to us because we decided to make this our home. We decided to make the U.S. our adopted country and we would like to participate in the political process both locally and nationally by being able to vote. Both of us serve the citizens of New Hampshire in our jobs and becoming naturalized citizens means a lot to us because we will derive more joy in serving fellow citizens. We will also derive joy and pride to use American passports in our travels to Kenya and other countries. I hope this gives you some idea of the importance of this step in our lives."

Geoffrey and his wife are shown in a photo shortly after the ceremony. It was provided to us by The Concord Monitor's Thomas Whisenand.

New Hampshire’s first statewide grazing conference takes place Feb. 3 and 4 at the 2006 Farm and Forest Expo in Manchester.

Event sponsors are UNH Cooperative Extension and USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Services Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative. “Grazing and the Bottom Line — Kick It in the Grass” will provide farmers and others interested in grazing and grass-based livestock production the opportunity to engage out-of-state and homegrown experts during the sessions.

Friday’s speaker, Dr. Ben Bartlett, a large-animal veterinarian who works for Michigan State University as a Dairy and Livestock Extension Educator, grazes cattle and sheep in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where winters are rougher than most parts of New Hampshire.

The morning session will address grazing opportunities for New Hampshire and the Northeast. A panel discussion follows on overcoming challenges in the Northeast that will include a discussion on climate and bedstraw issues.

Steve Taylor, NH Commissioner of Agriculture, will address the conference attendees at lunch. Participants can choose from two tracks during Friday’s afternoon session. Track 1 focuses on organic dairy production, including milk production, transitioning and herd health management. Track 2 will focus on grazing and forage production with topics that include forage storage and stockpiling, nutrient cycling and soil fertility, and forage biodiversity and pasture productivity. The afternoon session will address silvopasture, which integrates pasture and forest production, with a presentation by USDA’s Agricultural Resource Service experts.

The conference concludes with a Saturday morning workshop. The workshop sessions will focus primarily on equine owner needs, including pasture and nutrient management as well as equine health and pasturing. Speakers include Carey Williams from Rutgers University and UNH Cooperative Extension’s own Carl Majewski. Contact Program Leader Juli Brussell at juli.brussell@unh.edu for information.

The Rundlett Middle School in Concord was the site Tuesday night for the second round of County Conversations with President Ann Weaver Hart. Over 65 people attended, including 20 legislators, 15 from Merrimack County.

For the past two years, UNH President Ann Weaver Hart traveled to each UNH Cooperative Extension county office to listen to county leaders, collaborators and others about UNH engagement within each county. UNH and Cooperative Extension made the decision that it was important to continue the momentum by taking topics suggested during the first round and returning to each county to share how UNH knowledge and research help foster thriving communities. A new component to County Conversations II is the attendance of new UNH faculty to familiarize them with the outreach component of UNH as a Land Grant university.

Legislators, collaborators and others heard from a panel that featured participants from UNH faculty, Cooperative Extension specialists and educators and collaborators during last night's session. They showcased how the University and Cooperative Extension addressed the issues of nutrition and well-being in the county. Panelists included Valerie Long, Catherine Violette, Elizabeth Martin, Colette Janson-Sand and Deborah Cheever from Extension, and Anthony Tagliaferro and Pam Dinapoli, UNH faculty from the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture and the Dept. of Nursing, respectively. Sarah Foynes, director of the After School Program at the school, also participated.

Prior to the County Conversation, President Hart visited the After School Program and is shown in the above photograph with, from the left, Elizabeth Martin, Susan Entz from UNH, and myself. The next County Conversation II is scheduled April 3 in Rockingham County.

A partnership between the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department and UNH Cooperative Extension was recognized January 11 at a ceremony in Concord. I presented a commemorative plaque to N.H. Fish and Game Executive Director Lee Perry (shown below) in observance of 20 years of jointly caring for New Hampshire's wildlife.

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department has been a close and active partner with Extension for decades. Twenty years ago, the department and UNH Cooperative Extension entered into an agreement for a joint effort to reach landowners, natural resource professionals, volunteers, the forest industry, community leaders and the public to protect and enhance wildlife habitat in New Hampshire. This has been a successful program that has made a difference in people's stewardship values and practices and we look forward to our collaborative partnership for many years to come.

Forestry and Wildlife Program staff and several people from the NH Fish and Game Department attended the luncheon held at the Forest Society's Conservation Center in Concord. In attendance were the founders of the joint Extension - Fish and Game program, Roger Leighton and Gibb Dodge, both former Forestry Program Leaders and Howie Nowell, who represented Fish and Game in the development of the original partnership.

Also present was every person who served as the Extension Wildlife Specialist made possible by this arrangement including Scot Williamson, Charlie Bridges, John Kanter, Ellen Snyder, Matt Tarr and Darrel Covell.

As a result of this partnership, over 300 New Hampshire resource professionals have gained the ability to identify, maintain and enhance wildlife habitat for New Hampshire landowners. We now have over 250 trained volunteers in the NH Coverts Program helping communities and landowners make informed decisions regarding natural resources. The general public and public decision makers now understand concepts such as biodiversity, the dangers of invasive species and the need for permanently protecting critical natural resource areas. Darrel Covell has been involved in the development of New Hampshire's new Wildlife Action Plan, which will guide this state's wildlife-related practices and programs for years to come.

Each year, we reaffirm our commitment to UNH Cooperative Extension's Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity responsibilities and in advancing UNH's Diversity Initiatives. I am committed to the implementation of unbiased employment practices and the delivery of educational programs that serve all people of New Hampshire, with particular efforts to include under-served and under-represented groups.

I'm proud to be part of an organization that values Civil Rights and Equal Opportunity, and is consistently sensitive to the needs and rights of others. I commend the efforts I see throughout the organization demonstrating your spirit of accommodation and inclusion.

Please review the Civil Rights Guide for University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension staff. In addition, you'll be interested in reviewing UNH's Diversity Initiatives.

We multiply our delivery system effectively through the use of volunteers and increased diversity training for them. County Extension Advisory Councils have also received civil rights training. As a result of our civil rights and diversity training with volunteers, we see enhanced awareness and improved practices among our council volunteers.

Thank you for your personal and professional commitment to reaching out to welcome, involve and serve all people in New Hampshire.

Nancy Franz, UNH Cooperative Extension's Associate Director, has accepted an offer from Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) to serve as a Full Professor/Extension Specialist in Curriculum Development.

The position resides in the VCE Program and Curriculum Unit at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. She will provide leadership for assisting field faculty in 107 county and city units and more than 150 campus faculty in developing outcome based curriculum for educational programs including developmental work on learning styles, distance education and non-formal teaching methods. She will also teach and conduct research on curriculum and program development.

Nancy will begin her work with VCE in March. She thanks Extension staff, UNH faculty and staff and clientele who supported and worked with her on educational programming and organizational management and leadership during her time in New Hampshire. She will forward contact information to her colleagues when it is available and welcomes visitors to see her and her husband Bill at VTech and Blacksburg.

I personally want to thank Nancy for the many organizational contributions she has made over the past two and a half plus years in her role as UNH Cooperative Extension Associate Director and wish her the very best in her new position with Virginia Tech. Prior to her departure in March, Nancy will continue to provide leadership to complete the new five year Plan of Work process for New Hampshire. In the meantime, I will be working with the Leadership Team over the next couple of months in determining the transition of Nancy's responsibilities until such time as a decision has been made regarding a replacement.

When completing the "Report of Injury/Occupational Illness" form, remember to use the University's most-up-to-date form as the reporting addresses have changed.

Other important Cooperative Extension information about the filing process is available at our web site.

UNH Cooperative Extension has a new photo/clip art database. Use the keyword search to find copyright free photos for your presentations. You may also add photos to the database.

Do you have slides you’d like digitized but don’t have the time and/or equipment? The ITDE office will digitize your slides/negatives for you if they can be added to the database. They also will create a CD of the photos for you and your name will be listed as the author. If you have any questions, contact the WWW & Media Specialist.

Cooperative Extension family education and policy specialist Emily Douglas is collaborating in several projects both within and outside of the UNH campus. In one such project, Emily is part of an interdisciplinary evaluation team working with the Family Resource Center in Gorham. Along with Drs. Sally Ward (Department of Sociology) and Wendy Walsh (Department of Sociology and Crimes against Children Research Center,) Emily is evaluating the effectiveness of a job-readiness program called JOBPro.

JOBPro is a community-based program that offers participants both hard and soft job skills and is in part the result of a partnership program developed by the Androscoggin Valley Economic Recovery program, Community Technical College, Granite State College and area employers.

The program provides training in computer skills, on-the-job problem solving, workplace safety, time management, financial management, resume writing, and the importance of punctuality and dependability to maintain employment. Participants are surveyed before and after they complete the program; follow-up interviewing will be scheduled place in the coming months.

Jane’s Trust, which funds JOBPro, makes grants to address important issues in the Trust's fields of interest and areas of geographical focus described below. Trustees are interested particularly in organizations and projects that primarily benefit underserved populations and disadvantaged communities. Jane's Trust makes grant in the states of Florida and Massachusetts, and in the northern New England states of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. To learn more, contact Emily at emily.douglas@unh.edu

UNH Campus Recreation is offering CPR and First Aid classes next week. The adult CPR class runs from noon-4 pm Wednesday, January 11, and the First Aid class is Friday, January 13, from 1:30-4 pm. A maximum of eight participants is needed for the CPR class, and 20 for the First Aid class.

The cost is $35 for the adult CPR class and $38 for the First Aid class. If you attend both, the cost is $45. For information, call 862-2031 and speak to Kathy Casler or Linda Hayden. Additional courses are offered throughout the semester at a variety of times. Check the campus recreation website to learn more.

The RFP for UNH Cooperative Graduate Assistantships is now available. Proposals are due March 1st to Nancy Franz. The Leadership Team will review the proposals and announce funded proposals in mid March.

This program provides a great opportunity for meaningful interaction between Extension Educators, specialists, graduate students and faculty. I look forward to your participation in this aspect of our strategic plan for university engagement.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently awarded Mark Wiley, Extension Specialist, Marine Science Education, other UNH staff, and two other collaborating institutions a Centers for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE) grant. Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences will coordinate the grant, which also involves University of Maine staff. The new Center, COSEE-Ocean Systems (OS), will engage scientists and educators eager to deliver effective marine science education tools and techniques to existing COSEE's, helping them spread their efforts inland and to rural areas.

COSEE program goals are to:
• foster collaboration and communication between ocean science researchers and educators,
• facilitate integration of research into high-quality educational materials and develop linkages that foster development and dissemination of these materials,
• provide pedagogical expertise and guidance for research scientists involved in education and
• provide material that promotes a deeper understanding of the ocean and its influence on each person’s quality of life and our national prosperity.

This is the first COSEE funded to support a thematic approach to the goals of the program. All previously funded COSEE’s have a regional focus. COSEE-Ocean Systems will develop, implement and evaluate several different approaches to connecting rural and inland students and teachers to the marine environment. Successful approaches will then be shared with other COSEEs in the network. Wiley will work with Amy Cline of the UNH Center for Coastal Ocean Observation and Analysis to develop teacher professional development opportunities that share the successful strategies developed by the collaborators. The program is funded for five years. To learn more, contact Wiley at mark.wiley@unh.edu