Tagged With "ace writing sig"
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August 2020 Farm Journal Story Lead Contest: Soil Health
Get your story lead developed and published by Farm Journal! For this month’s Cooperative Extension feature, Farm Journal’s Trust In Food wants to hear from your county/state/region about an innovative research project, on-farm trial or farmer engagement program you or Extension is leading to help farmers measure, analyze and improve their soil health. Are you ready to pitch your story for a national audience? Post your submission in Connect Extension in the Farm Journal Monthly Story Lead...
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September 2020 Farm Journal Story Lead Contest: How Are You Bringing People in Your Local Communities Closer to Farmers and U.S. Agriculture?
For this month’s Cooperative Extension feature, Farm Journal’s Trust In Food seeks your stories about helping bring people in your local communities closer to farmers and U.S. agriculture. Amid COVID-19, many companies are reporting they will redouble efforts related to mitigating climate change, lowering environmental impact & helping consumers make sustainability-conscious purchasing decisions. What are you doing to help local consumers & farmers connect and better understand the...
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WORRYING...
Worrying is a habit. Do you have it? First, check out " Getting to the bottom of your worrying-and how to let it go " by Gordana Biernat for some great insights! We all have dreams, aspirations & goals. It's healthy to be in a growth mindset but not at the expense of getting meaningful things done today. Making zero progress toward your preferred vision of the future is demotivating. Focus on the task at hand, like the mantra of former NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer. The main thing...
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2, 10, 5, 7
Three PM is the most awkward time...it's too late or too early to do anything. We've all been there...racing against time to get something finished or reluctantly putting off something we don't have time to start. Uhh! Yet we know time is like having to spend all your money every day, it's a precious commodity, we must spend it wisely. We also know failing to plan is planning to fail. Here's a sample plan to spend your time "money" wisely every day! *2 hours in the AM Do something productive...
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Integrating Perspectives
Anna McGrath from Godfrey Dadich Partners is one of the most enlightened people I've ever met. She's cool & wise which is a rare combo! Had the pleasure of attending a workshop she did called " Integrating Opposite Perspectives "...here are my notes from our time together... How can you ensure everyone is working towards a common goal when they all seem to be coming from so many different points of reference? Diverse ideas & perspectives can be a source of strength in your...
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ICYMI: Poetry As A Tool in Extension Programs
Last week, we were fortunate to host Dr. Hiram Larew, an award-winning poet, advocate, and leader in the Arts and Poetry community, and David Myers, an Ag Extension Agent at the University of Maryland Extension for a wonderful webinar! The purpose of their presentation was to demonstrate how poetry is being used to help deliver messages about an important agricultural issue, namely local and global hunger. They used hunger as an example to illustrate how poetry can be used when discussing a...
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Get More Done in '21!
Wow, there was a ton thrown at us in 2020 and we're all looking forward to a new start in the new year. With every new year comes a new beginning, thinking about priorities & how to accomplish our meaningful choices. The attachment in this post from Hubspot highlights some aspects from their blog post on " How to stop the most common productivity prohibitors" Make Every Minute Count Keep Your Workspace Tidy Get Laser-Focused Reset & Recharge If you're curious about time-blocking or...
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Future You
Leonard Bernstein's father was asked in an interview if he supported his son's aspirations in music. He answered with a lukewarm response. The interviewer was shocked and asked "why not?". He responded...Because, how was I supposed to know he would become Leonard Bernstein? He's right, we don't know how our kids lives will go. We protect, guide & nurture and then wait & watch. It's not quite the same with ourselves. We are intimately involved with our own decisions & actions.
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Shhh...It's a Secret!
In life, you get what you want. Really. Think about it.... The way your life is, truthfully, you wanted it that way. If you wanted something different you would have changed things. When was the last time you were late for something? Chances are, if you were late for it twice you didn't really want it. While we know we can control our attitude & effort there's something else going on. You've probably heard of the universal law of attraction. You've probably been curious as to what it is.
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Old You...New You
The hardest aspect of leadership development is behavior change. Often, we lose momentum on creating new habits. Could it be because we don't think about all the great stuff we are choosing to keep? Let's unpack this in 3 parts... Old You What is it about the old you that you would like to maintain? Preserve? Protect? There's more in here than you think. Write them down. Feel good about them. Share them. Celebrate your decision. Stop Doing We spend a lot of time thinking about & deciding...
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Story Lead Contest Winner Published in Farm Journal
Congrats to @Brian Whitacre and Oklahoma State University for submitting the winning story lead for the November 2020 contest. That month's contest was about Rural Broadband Access. The full story, Rural Internet Program Pairs Oklahomans with Cellular Hotspots, was published by Farm Journal and is now available. March 2021 Contest: Carbon Markets For this month’s Cooperative Extension feature, Farm Journal’s Trust In Food wants to ask you about the work you are doing to help farmers or the...
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Your Leadership Puzzle (Part 1)
Clues to guide leadership development often prove to be more art than science. Many of these concepts live in the part of our brain that deals with feelings & not language. This fact alone can make conveying them difficult at best (I'll still try!). Here are some of the pieces we can utilize to begin the journey of putting together our leadership puzzle. PASSION We all find time to do the things that are most important to us. What do you spend 5 hours doing & it seems like 5 minutes?
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May 2021 Farm Journal Story Lead Contest!
For this month’s Cooperative Extension feature, Farm Journal’s Trust In Food is seeking insights on what progressive feedlots & beef operations are doing – with regard to meeting consumer demands such as animal welfare and antibiotics use, traceability and sustainability. Your story lead could be selected for a Farm Journal editor to write up and publish at AgWeb.com, the No. 1 U.S. ag news site by traffic. Visit the Farm Journal Monthly Story Lead Contest subgroup here in Connect...
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Accelerating Success: Q&A with Dr. Fred Schlutt
Dr. Fred Schlutt is a forty-year Extension professional. He worked in Texas, Wyoming, Maine, and Alaska. Dr. Schlutt served for 10 years as the Director of Alaska Cooperative Extension. He was the 2017-2018 chair of ECOP ( Extension Committee on Organization and Policy ). He holds three degrees from Texas A&M. Dr. Schlutt currently shares his expertise as an Extension Foundation Catalyst. Catalysts are Extension experts who support New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE) projects chosen...
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June 2021 Farm Journal Contest: Conservation Practices and Water Quality
Share your stories of success and get your story lead developed and published by Farm Journal! The June 2021 Story Lead Contest has been posted and is due on Wednesday, June 30th. This month’s Cooperative Extension feature with Farm Journal’s Trust In Food focuses on the growing activity of researchers and conservation groups to help farmers improve local water quality . More producers are exploring water quality improvements with edge of field practices including riparian buffers, wetlands,...
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September Historic Day
Each year inspiration hits me again after reading this story, enjoy! ___________________________________________________________________________________ It was on September 13, 1814 that Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the words to " The Star Spangled Banner " by witnessing the British attack on Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor. It had been a dark summer for the young United States. Just three weeks earlier, on August 24, British troops had set fire to much of Washington D.C.,...
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New Job Opening: Manager, Climate-Smart Ag Interactive Programming - Farm Journal's Trust In Food
I'm sharing the following opening in case anyone in the Extension community might have recommendations for a great person to fit the needs of this role -- recognizing you all work with so many fantastic collaborators across the U.S. Please feel free to email any questions or recommendations to me at NBirt@FarmJournal.com. Thank you! -Nate Birt, Vice President, Trust In Food , a Farm Journal initiative Trust In Food, a fast-growth startup division of 145-year-old Farm Journal, seeks a...
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Tips and Tools for Content Creators
Extension educators are content creators. Whether they prepare PowerPoint slides for a webinar, write a blog or social media post, prepare for an interview, or assemble a newsletter, they are constantly striving to create content that is current, relevant, and actionable. At a recent online conference, the Plutus™ Impact Summit, the following eight tips for personal finance content creation were shared: Address “Pain Points” and Goals – Help people by addressing topics that are causing them...
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Values & Chronic Pain
Studies by the CDC and others have found upwards of 50 Million Americans live with some type of chronic pain. Advances in treatments are happening. While these vary greatly in availability and cost, here's one helpful connection we can all do for free! Our core values help define the direction we want our lives to move towards. They drive our decisions and actions. We are never "finished" moving toward our values. Being a loving partner or a helpful colleague are both values because you have...
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Job: Communications Specialist, Oregon State University Extension
Oregon State University Extension Service is seeking a communicator who can write and edit in English and Spanish. The person in this position helps shape science-based information into materials that are accessible and engaging for a variety of audiences. The position is based in Corvallis, Oregon, but remote or hybrid work may be possible.
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EXCITE Job Opening: 1994 Land-grant University (LGU) Coordinator
Job Title : 1994 Land-grant University (LGU) Coordinator Location: This is a virtual position. Travel to 1994 institutions may be necessary to accomplish project objectives. Extension provides reimbursement for travel cost and expenses in connection with performance of services. Project Goal : Create a method of effective collaboration among participating 1994 Land-grant institution Extension offices that focuses on rural, hard-to-reach, Indigenous communities. Develop and implement a pilot...
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Excellence and You!
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” — Will Durant Behavior change is hard. Starting something new means stopping something that's not adding value to your life. What if you thought about leadership development as a habit? Then you wouldn't have to worry about the "right" time to start. Choose wisely and align your saying with your doing. Influence is always happening. Bad driver. Happy bank teller. Slightly pleasant flight attendant. These reflect a...
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Tips to Build a Diversified Investment Portfolio
A key theme in investing that never goes out of style is building a diversified portfolio to reduce investment risk. Below are eight key investing concepts for Extension educators to suggest to their clients: Quantify Your Goals - Encourage clients to write down their goals with the projected cost and a time deadline. Doing this will help them select appropriate investments and provide the motivation required today to set money aside for the future. Discuss Risk - Explain that investment...
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Request for Applications: Grant Proposal Development Strategist
Extension Foundation is hiring! August 1, 2022 Application Deadline ELIGIBILITY: U.S. Based Grant Writer or firm that provides grant writing and grant coaching support to project teams. APPLICATION: The deadline for receipt of your grant writing consulting/support proposal is August 1, 2022. A proposal and a resume should be submitted here: https://registry.extension.org/221955446654060 Extension Foundation, founded in 2006, is a 100% virtual, member-based network supporting approximately...
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NDSU Extension accepting applications for Assistant Director, Agriculture and Natural Resources
NDSU Extension is currently accepting applications for the position of Extension Assistant Director, Agriculture and Natural Resources, with office location in Fargo, ND. This is an excellent opportunity to lead dynamic agriculture and natural resources Extension programs in North Dakota. Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience. The full position announcement and application instructions are available at www.ndsu.edu/employment - Job ID 2943030. Application screening begins...
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Understanding Food Insecurity for Military Families
By Jason Jowers, MS, MFT When families have a tough time providing adequate meals due to lack of access or affordability issues, they face a challenge known as food insecurity. This is a significant problem for many families in the U.S. today and military families are even more so affected by food insecurity. Emerging research has shown that many military families and veterans struggle to put food on the table. With inflation, supply chain issues, and increased food prices, many military...
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Happiness Power!
Is your goal to have a little success each day? Can probably guess you said "yes"! In one of my favorite Ted Talks , Shawn Achor says every time we experience some success we move the goalpost for what it means to us. AND...if our overall happiness is connected with that success, it's likely we never get there. What? We're undermining our own happiness? In his happiness research, he's discovered our brains work in the opposite way. A "happiness advantage" can occur when we raise our level of...
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New Publication Available from the Extension Foundation, Collaborative Design in Extension: Using a Modified Game Jam to Explore Game-Based Learning
A new publication is available from the Extension Foundation. Collaborative Design in Extension: Using a Modified Game Jam to Explore Game-Based Learning describes the collaborative design process used to develop an interactive mobile app for consumers. The work was done as part of the New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE) project Navigating the Grocery Store Aisle: Understanding "Non-GMO" & Other Food Labels . Other funders and supporters of the project are the Extension Foundation,...
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Reviving the Technology in Extension Education (TEE) Subgroup!
Exciting News We're reviving the Technology in Extension Education (TEE) subgroup! Subgroup History The Technology in Extension Education (TEE) Connect subgroup launched early in the pandemic. Content was curated by Rose Hayden-Smith, University of California Extension emerita, as part of her NTAE technology fellowship with the Extension Foundation. (Rose will again be taking the lead and curating content for the group.) This subgroup was very active during the pandemic. We used this space...
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GET MORE GRATITUDE!
What is gratitude ? It's a sense of wonder, thankfulness & appreciation for life . Gratitude helps increase optimism for life. It promotes positive thinking. It helps us cope with daily stress & traumatic events. Appreciating things in our life and focusing on the positive can help us move forward with purpose. Gratitude can also strengthen our relationships. People who feel gratitude towards others feel closer to them and report overall better relationships, even if they don't...
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Beliefs on the Leadership Journey
Getting clear with ourselves about our beliefs helps connect us to our core values. They will shift over our lives so it's a constant journey of discovery. Here are some things to ponder as you check in on your journey. Your Leadership Philosophy Defining what the huge topic of leadership is to you is of utmost importance. It helps us get clear on our approach, communicate it to others, and measure how we're doing every day. Here's mine right now... It's realizing it's not about me &...
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University of AZ - Associate Director for 4-H Youth Development
Arizona is hiring and we encourage YOU to consider applying and joining our team! This is a full-time, year round position that provides leadership for 4-H statewide. To review the position description and qualifications, see attachment. To apply for Req16498 use link: https://arizona.csod.com/ux/ats/careersite/4/home/requisition/16498?c=arizona
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Engage your Extension Audience in New Ways
It's important for Extension Programs to stay current on the latest strategies for engaging with their audiences and be able to adapt and create new strategies in order to reach their communities more widely or effectively. The Extension Foundation offers a variety of resources to help you discover new ways to reach, understand and engage with your audience. Through Connect Extension, you can find videos and publications that can teach you new strategies to improve engagement and promotion...
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How Practicing Connection Can Cultivate Food Security Collaborations
Like many of the issues that impact our families and communities, food security is complex. There are multiple factors that affect the issue, including economic, social, environmental and political factors. Interrelated issues like poverty, healthcare, and climate change make food security even more complex. Complex issues can only be addressed from multiple perspectives and by a wide range of people and organizations. Obach and their collaborators write, “Building networks allows for...
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A ChatGPT Primer for Financial Educators
Since launching in November 2022, ChatGPT has become the fastest technology tool to reach 100 million users…ever. Some are calling it “the next transformational platform.” Extension Educators may field questions about ChatGPT or consider its use in their work. Below are five key things to know about this ground-breaking artificial intelligence (AI) tool: ChatGPT Description - ChatGPT is “a very smart text-based robot” that can answer questions and have conversations with users. GPT stands...
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Ten Tips for Military Families to Survive a “Financial Tornado”
U.S. consumers haven’t just experienced a “perfect storm” of financial challenges…they have experienced a “perfect tornado!” Challenging financial events include sustained high inflation (and increased costs for food, utilities, rent, gas, insurance, housing, etc.), recession fears, increased interest rates, bank failures and government bank take-overs, volatile stock prices, lower savings rates, and increasing household debt. Extension professionals routinely answer questions from clients...
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Leadership is...
So often when we think about "leadership" it becomes such a big concept we can't imagine how it might apply to us. It is easier to think that it applies only to people with bigger positions, titles, and more responsibility than we have. As a coach of mine once said: "That's stinkin' thinkin'." When we think leadership is just for those "other people" we've unconsciously decided it's not for us. That we don't have to do it. We've told ourselves what we do every day doesn't really matter. In...
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Growth!
The hardest part of leadership development is behavior change. It's hard, not impossible. Haven't met a single person who isn't capable of interpersonal behavior change. We all can do it! Step #1 is awareness. If we're not aware we can't put efforts in place to make meaningful growth happen. Feedback is the breakfast of Champions! Step #2 is don't be so hard on yourself. We will all mess up. Great leadership is allowing people to fail but not allowing them to feel like a failure along the...
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EXCITE Adult Vaccination Project
The Virginia Cooperative Extension EXCITE Team and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) conducted a symposium on November 3rd, 2023 to discuss the EXCITE project funded through CDC and ways that Virginia Cooperative Extension Agents could get involved in vaccine education! This session introduced our vaccine ambassadors and their roles in their respective localities, provided background on adult vaccinations and the current vaccination schedule, and discussed approaches to communicating...
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What is leadership to you?
When we lived in Japan the leader of North Korea was posturing and threatening nuclear war. We did biological and nuclear war drills. Our kids did drills at school. It was stressful for everyone. During this time my wife deployed leaving me to balance parental responsibilities with the intensity of work. It was exhausting but also a period of growth for me. To help get through it all I decided it was time to figure out what leadership meant to me. This took going back over my plethora of...
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Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) Conference Registration is Open
The Association for Communication Excellence (ACE) conference registration is now open. The conference is being held June 23-25 in Salt Lake City, Utah. This year's theme, "Big Ideas Start Here," encapsulates the essence of what ACE stands for – innovation, collaboration, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. We are eager to come together to explore the transformative power of big ideas. The conference planning committee has put together a program that features a lineup of keynote...
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NTAE Workforce Program Action Team Fellowship Position Available
Summary: One individual is needed to fill an Economic and Workforce Development Program Action Team (WF PAT) Fellow role. The Fellow will support the PAT co-chairs with PAT operations; assist with meeting planning; assist the PAT working group chairs with documentation and reporting; and assist with the development of a Workforce PAT convening and with writing of a post-conference white paper. Application Due Date: Open until filled. Application Link:...