April 2024

The Extension Foundation is excited to invite you to the second topic series in Extension skills! Over the next few months, experts from Cooperative Extension will share diverse methods, best practices and strategies necessary to elevate your community engagement efforts. Register for Extension Skills here. We are excited about the opportunity to learn from Extension professionals on how to enhance our Extension programming and better serve our audiences through these engaging skill-builidng...

Written by: Jason Jowers, MS, MFT April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to promote the safety and well-being of all children and families and to recognize the child welfare professionals and allies who work tirelessly to protect children and youth. When talking about child abuse, one of the toughest issues to face is child sexual abuse. According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (2024), “Child sexual abuse is any interaction between a child and an adult (or...

Drew Dudley says we've made leadership such a huge concept it seems almost impossible for most of us to do. It seems reserved for the few people who can change the world. This, of course, isn't true. In reality, everyone is leading through their behaviors all the time. What we learn from this perspective is... Leadership is influence. Our influence is felt through our behaviors. Our behaviors are driven by our values. Here are three values to embody in your leadership! HUMILITY “Our job is...

Our latest episode of the Extension Out Loud podcast, celebrating Earth Day, showcases the launch of a newly edited edition of Liberty Hyde Bailey's "The Nature-Study Idea." Edited by John Linstrom, Postdoctoral Fellow specializing in Climate and Inequality at the Climate Museum, this edition reintroduces Bailey's often-overlooked masterpiece. It includes enlightening introductory essays and supplementary materials to provide valuable context. Learn more at the Extension Out Loud website .

Oregon State University’s College of Agricultural Sciences is seeking a Director of Marketing and Communications. Apply by May 13, 2024 for full consideration.

Interest in home food preservation has surged in recent years, fueled by more time spent at home and a desire for self-sufficiency. People are rediscovering traditional methods like canning, pickling, and drying to preserve their harvests and reduce food waste. But with this increased interest comes a crucial need for science-based information. Safe food preservation practices are essential to avoid foodborne illness and economic loss from spoiled food. This is especially important for the...

Written by: Hannah Bradford and Kalin Goble, M.S. Mental health concerns in juveniles can be complex. Oftentimes, youth mental health concerns are attributed to hormones, stress at school, or just a “normal” teenage attitude. With military children, mental health concerns can sometimes be exacerbated by parental deployment or repeated relocations. It can be hard for these children to find support when their support systems are constantly changing. The Department of Defense identifies, that...

Stats tell us up to 80% of people who attend a conference, training, or other professional development won't change anything in their lives after the experience. The notes, books, articles, and videos you diligently collected during the experience have been all but abandoned. The ironic part is that most people respond positively when asked if they are lifelong learners. They often take pride in describing themselves this way. If this is so, why do we find it so difficult to act on those...

Individual Presentations Individual oral presentations on topics related to the conference theme or other topical areas of interest will be 15 minutes in duration. Each room will have a moderator to maintain time restrictions which will allow all presenters to use allotted time and enable attendees to attend multiple sessions. Presentations should be succinct, with well-developed concepts, applications, and results. Presentations will be grouped by topic for 60 minutes sessions. Panel...

The Extension Foundation is pleased to announce the release of a new edition of Extension Evaluation Matters , edited by Dr. John Diaz (University of Florida) and Dr. Teresa McCoy (Ohio State University). This comprehensive resource empowers Extension professionals with knowledge and tools to effectively evaluate their programs. Designed for Practical Application Packed with actionable resources, "Extension Evaluation Matters" equips Extension professionals to: Grasp evaluation fundamentals:...

The History of Earth Day Earth Day was launched in 1970. Many factors contributed to the call for a national day focusing on environmental stewardship, including the publication of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring - serialized in the New Yorker - and the catastrophic oil spill that occurred off the coast of Santa Barbara in 1969. The Santa Barbara oil spill galvanized U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (D-Wisconsin) to call for a national day of locally inspired and organized "teach-ins" on the...

This month concluded the first series of Extension Skills, a monthly professional development offering for our members! This quarter's theme, "Telling Our Extension Story, aimed to equip you with valuable insights and strategies to enhance your communication and outreach efforts. We've been fortunate to have had many experts on to share their tips and best practices on how to connect to our audiences, and share the learnings and success of your extension projects and programs in a variety of...