Blog

Are you confused or do you have questions about GMOs? Do you feel inadequate when discussing GMOs? Are you given opposing information of GMOs and not sure what is right? Do you wonder how the misinformation about GMOs spreads like a wildfire? UConn’s College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources is offering an online course, Let’s Talk GMOs: Creating Consistent Communication Messages . Participants are introduced to the basics of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). They will learn...

The Extension Foundation welcomes three new Catalyst team members: Dr. Barbara Board , District Extension Director Emeritus, Virginia Tech; Retired Eastern Region Extension Director and Interim Associate Administrator, North Carolina A&T State University. Dr. Dyremple Marsh , Retired College Dean, Research Director, and Extension Administrator, Delaware State University Dr. Dawn Mellion , Retired Vice-Chancellor for Southern University Cooperative Extension. The New Technologies for Ag...

Do you choose to succeed? Successful people very often believe they're doing what they're doing because they choose to...not because they have to. They are committed, not simply compliant. This is normally a positive belief. Here's the issue... The more committed we are to anything, the harder it is for us to admit it's not working. This is very difficult for any successful person who's committed, chose to do it and who's heart & soul is in it. It's great to believe we're committed. It's...

Dr. Chuck Hibberd. Image Credit: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Charles "Chuck" Hibberd is an emeritus professor of the University of Nebraska, where he held several academic positions, including Dean of Cooperative Extension. His email tagline reads "Chuck Hibberd, retired Extensi on Director (but not done yet)." He directed the University's Panhandle Research and Extension Center for 13 years. Chuck also served as Extension director, associate dean of agriculture, and assistant vice...

The words we choose matter. They matter a lot. What if there were things to help people remember our message? Good news! There are! Here are some rhetorical devices taken straight from a TEDx Verona talk by Simon Lancaster to help you speak like a leader! The Language of Leadership Asyndeton/Tricolon Look left, look right, look center, stop, listen... This mimics hyperventilating. President Obama used it…”a world at war, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a generation.” Three...

Please consider participating in this research project for experienced community researchers. Contact Skye Kelty with any questions or to get further information. skye.kelty@rutgers.edu.

"Three things happen naturally in organizations; friction, confusion & underperformance. Everything else requires leadership." -Peter Drucker Friction happens when people don’t understand one another Interpersonal issues are present Confusion happens as a result of poor communication Team goals are unclear Underperformance happens when people aren’t engaged Skill-set mismatch The thing to keep in mind here is that these things “happen naturally”. It’s nobody’s fault. Take a deep breath!

We are excited to provide you with a mid-year update about the Extension Foundation and our progress towards helping Cooperative Extension (CES) make a greater impact on local issues. Funding to the Cooperative Extension System (2020-2021) $22.4M in 2020-2021 85% to LGU’s Total of $19M to LGU’s across Extension program areas Funding Sources (2020-2021): $2M EPA Pesticide Safety Education Funds Management Program (PSEFMP) 85% to LGUs $4.9M USDA-NIFA New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE)...

As we get closer to kicking off a new year of our NTAE Accelerator program , we will catch up with past program teams to share their project stories and outcomes! This week's program spotlight features Dr. Rose Hayden-Smith , the Extension Foundation's 2020 Fellow for Technology in Extension. During Rose's fellowship, she created the first version of the Using Digital Technology in Extension Education ePublication , which provides a digital platform for aggregating content, tools, and...

The secret to concentration is elimination. You can't move forward on the monkey bars without letting go of one hand. It’s in the letting go of something we aren’t uniquely gifted to do that we create opportunity. Opportunity for others to grow in their strength area. Opportunity to focus. Opportunity to step into efficiency. This is the only way we can get to effectiveness. In the letting go we are more prepared to receive. To receive an opportunity from a teammate. In his book ”Good to...

Thank you @Barbara Jirka, USDA-CNPP, for sharing the following update regarding MyPlate! MyPlate is now available on Alexa ! Get MyPlate nutrition information for babies and toddlers straight to your home on an Amazon Alexa device or on your smartphone or tablet via the free Amazon Alexa app. MyPlate on Alexa provides healthy eating tips for parents and caregivers on what and how to feed babies and toddlers based on their age (between 4 to 24 months – older ages coming soon!). Parents and...