Tagged With "creative thinking"
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A Good Night’s Rest is Best
Written By: Andrew Crocker, M.S., Senior Extension Program Specialist, Gerontology and Health, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service Way way back in the 1980s (HA!) the dairy industry had a marketing slogan that went, in part, “…it does the body good.” There are probably a lot of things that we can insert into that phrase, right? Vegetables. Seat belts. Exercise. Sleep? We often do not think a lot about sleep – until we cannot do it – but we will spend about a third of our lives asleep,...
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Servant Leadership and Job Satisfaction among Extension Employees
Are you a servant leader? Is being a servant leader related to your job satisfaction in your Extension career? I am conducting research for a doctoral dissertation on the relationship between Servant Leadership Style and Job Satisfaction among Extension employees. I am interested in all types of work within Extension, 1862, 1890, 1994 and at all levels from support staff to upper level administration, and in all discipline areas and specialties. As an employee in any part of the Cooperative...
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Teamwork Part 1: Making Recognition a Resource
If anyone knows about leadership & teamwork it was Pat Summit, Hall of Fame basketball coach from the University of Tennessee. In her book "Reach for the Summit" she says: “The amount of success you are capable of enjoying and the pleasure you are capable of feeling is equal to the number of people you are willing to share it with.” Sharing doesn’t come naturally though. We’ve all seen this when we watch kids playing; the crying starts when they have to share their favorite toy. Diagnose...
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Looking Back: Arkansas Family’s Farm Legacy and a New Era of Opportunities for Landowners Of Color
We are highlighting a story from a Farm Journal Story Lead contest that focused on stories of 1890 Land-Grant Universities who are making a measurable impact in the lives of farmers or ranchers. The contest-winning story was "Landowner Furthers Family Farm Legacy Through Partnership with UAPB Forestry Program," by Will Hehemann of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. The story spotlights Shane Boler, a landowner, and participant in the University's Keeping it in the Family (KIITF)...
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The Marathon Effect
When any change initiative is announced, the person making the announcement is way ahead of the people hearing about it. They already know about it. They've had time to process what’s about to happen, how it will affect them and how they'd like to present it to others. This means they're days, weeks, even months ahead of others in considerations surrounding the change. Ugh! Not another post about how hard "change" is...that's exhausting! You're right. It's often exhausting. Kind of like...
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A Philosophy for Working on Wicked Problems
A wicked problem is a term used in policy analysis to describe an environmental situation where no matter what policy actions are taken there are still going to be unacceptable losses. Examples of wicked problems can be found in climate change, endangered species, invasive species and environmental justice issues. In order to deal with the psychological stress of threat and uncertainty associated with wicked problems many people are tempted to take a strong position, such as moral outrage.
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Re: MidAtlantic Women in Agriculture: Smart Phone Movies
We definitely need more women in agriculture, it's a must for sure. We also need more movies on movies123 free . I think the collection is now more limited than ever.
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Social Justice and Practicing Connection in a Complex World
The Practicing Connection in a Complex World podcast has come a long way since we first started! We're currently in Season 3, where we've been focusing on social justice in preparation for the upcoming 2022 Academy Series . These episodes are created with Extension professionals, helping professionals, and community leaders in mind. Our latest two episodes feature incredible people doing really cool work in the social justice space. Social Justice and Family Well Being (Season 3, Ep. 1) For...
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What I learned from a 5-day challenge...
These days it seems everyone is doing some kind of "challenge". Truthfully, these make me pretty skeptical and after they try to sell something to you for the first 20-minutes I'm out. This time I stuck with it! Just finished reading " Soundtracks " by Jon Acuff and was curious to learn more about his work. BAM! His Overcoming Overthinking Challenge appeared on his feed and I signed up. Here are the nuggets from each session... Opening The 2 most powerful word in the English language are "me...
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New EXCITE Podcast: The Role of 1890 & 1994 Engagement Coordinators
We’re excited to share a new podcast episode about the important work of the Extension Collaboration on Immunization Teaching & Engagement (EXCITE) program. EXCITE is creating a framework that will model new ways for the Cooperative Extension system to engage and reach Extension programs across all three regions. The EXCITE team has developed practices to ensure that under-represented regions are included in the design of the new system-wide effort and that their institutions will be...
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Leadership from "Band of Brothers" Commander
Major Richard "Dick" Winters , a native of Ephrata in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, was the Commander of "Easy Company", 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, part of the 101st Airborne Division, in World War II. They have affectionately become known as the " Band of Brothers ". On D-Day (June 6, 1944) he parachuted behind enemy lines into Normandy, France. 156,000 other American, British and Canadian forces were involved in "Operation Overlord" that become the turning point in...
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An Important Tool for Strengthening Couples’ Relationships in the Wake of COVID-19
by Karen Shirer, Ph.D. In Brief Relationship education (RE) for individuals, couples and families can provide critical support in recovering relationship health after disruptive events like the COVID-19 pandemic. A new podcast series on RE focuses on three important RE programs and resources — the NERMEM , Healthy Relationship and Marriage Training and Elevate for Couples . Dr. Ted Futris shares examples for applying the model’s components to your work with individuals and families in...
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Re: Understanding the Financial Literacy Divide
Good morning, John. Great question. I am sure there are a lot of resources available that would cater to each one of these areas in depth, but there are a few resources that I personally have experience with that I think would be a good place to start, depending on your needs. Free resources: For those working with military families, the Department of Defense Office of Financial Readiness and OneOp Personal Finance are both a wealth of research-based information. University of Florida/IFAS...
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Human Factors
It's December 28, 1978, in New York City. United Airlines Flight 173 has just taken off for Portland, Oregon. Unknown to the passengers, a warning light has come on stealing the Captain's attention. Not long after, the Co-Pilot realizes they won't have enough fuel to reach their intended destination and will need to land at a different airport. With his mind focused on the warning light, the Captain is unable to focus on what is really important. They're going to run out of gas. The plane...
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Central State University Professor Featured on The Sweaty Penguin Podcast
Dr. Brandy Phipps Speaks on Sustainability in the Cannabis Industry Wilberforce, OH — Central State University Assistant Professor of Food, Nutrition and Health, Brandy Phipps, Ph.D., was recently featured on The Sweaty Penguin, a comedy environmental podcast, in partnership with Peril and Promise, a PBS/WNET public media initiative on climate change. The Sweaty Penguin invited Dr. Phipps to join the conversation to discuss her research which focuses on biomolecules in plant extracts and...
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Shifting Your Mindset from a Deficit Ideology
In the second MFRA course, “Family Service Providers: Recognizing and Responding to Inequities”, Dr. Alison De Marco introduces the deficit ideology framework and provides ways to move beyond this mindset.
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Connecting Communities in Asset-based Community Recovery
Learn about the community-building opportunities that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic and how you can start building the foundation for community recovery for the future.
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Extension Foundation Announces Year 4 (2022-2023) New Technologies for Ag Extension Projects
Fifty-seven applications were submitted by 36 Land-grant universities in response to the RFA shared by the Extension Foundation in April, 2022, for New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE). The Extension Foundation will be supporting 39 projects across Cooperative Extension as part of its fourth year of the NTAE program. This program is made possible by funding from USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) through a partnership with Oklahoma State University and the Extension...
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Juntos 4-H and Purdue University
The National Juntos Movement, built on the efforts of many Extension professionals who have a vision to partner and serve a growing community in our states, has a success story to share. During my time with Juntos and Extension, I have worked with great minds who think outside the box and understand the practices and engagement it takes to walk side by side with our youth and their families. I want to highlight one such Extension professional. Over six years ago, I met Xiomara Diaz, who grew...
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Re: Using Mindful Art with 4-H Experiences - Recording Available HERE
Automated message: Thanks for sharing this event! If you can, please remember to update this listing after your event with a link to the recording. You can do that by coming back to your event here in Connect , clicking "Manage Event" and then "Edit Event." From there, I suggest adding the words "Recording Available Here" to the top of your event and linking out to the recording. Example: Recording Available Here FAQs for Learn Calendar Users: Will a recording be available? That is entirely...
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It's time again...
It's time again to talk about time. It's time for a reminder that time isn't a renewable resource. My absolute favorite simple time management tool is this: Don't touch anything twice. When you read that email/text, deal with it then, don't wait. When you take the clothes out of the dryer, fold them, and put them away. You get the point. If you were to add up all the time you take to think about and take action on things you've already touched it would be a bit depressing. Like most of these...
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EXCITE(ing) Strengths!
Since launching in 2021, the EXCITE program has reached more than 12 Million individuals with immunization education in 1,017 counties across 48 states and territories through the hard work of Extension Professionals from 72 land grant universities and 410 community and healthcare partners. It all began with support for the Center for Disease Control's (CDC) "Vaccinate with Confidence" campaign in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. WHY EXTENSION? Cooperative Extension has an over 100-year...
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Re: Extension's Role in Addressing Social Isolation.
So jealous I wasn't a fly on the wall for this conversation! I think this is a critical population that we so often miss/overlook/under engage.
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Positive Changes
"Whatever you do out there in the world do an equal amount of work internally because if you don't your work in the world will not be as effective." - Dr. Gabor Mate' Recently attended a leadership development workshop where a Psychologist spoke and led us in some discovery exercises. He point-blank stated there are not enough Psychologists to encourage positive lifestyle changes. He asked us to implement them in some way and share the value with others! Here are the therapeutic lifestyle...
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Creativity and Imagination
Was reminded of this story Dr. Ken Robinson told in one of his TedTalks... It's the story of a little girl who was in an art lesson. She was drawing. She was six, and at the back of the classroom. The teacher said she hardly ever paid attention but in this lesson, she did. The teacher was curious. She walked over to her, and asked, "What are you drawing?" The girl said, "I'm drawing a picture of God." The teacher stated, "But nobody knows what God looks like." The girl replied, "They will in...
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Celebrating National Rural Health Day 2022
On National Rural Health Day, we celebrate with the #CDC the #PowerofRural, and the many programs and professionals striving to protect rural communities' health through Extension programming and resources! The Extension Foundation is proud to support the critical work many programs are doing to bring health resources, tools and education to rural communities. Below are projects supported by the Extension Foundation that show the impact Cooperative Extension is making in rural communities...
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Re: Building Public Health Partnerships and Telling Extension's Story
Wonderful post! Extension has a long history of successful work that is within the public health domain. Questions I think about related to Extension's role in public health: How does Extension pull together all of the disparate programs, initiatives, and work related to public health and formulate a comprehensive approach to impacting public health? Would this be valuable at the national level? State and/or regional levels?
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Some things I think I think...
The great sports broadcaster Dan Patrick used to host a podcast with the title "Things I think I think". During a presentation to our team, we were reminded of his show and it sparked my own thinking about what I think I think. Here are a few to ponder... Curiosity over Certainty When we remain curious we're open. We have a growth mindset. We see challenges as opportunities. While we can have aspects of our lives we're certain about, like our core values, in daily interactions it often leads...
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Smart Holiday Spending and Debt Repayment
In December, many Extension educators field questions about holiday shopping and subsequent debt repayment. Check out these tips to share with clients.
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RFA: ECOP Health and Workforce Program Action Teams: Resilient Economies and Community Health (REACH)
ELIGIBILITY: Competitive opportunity available to ALL Land-grant universities (LGUs) (1862, 1890, 1994) by completing a simple online application. The Extension Foundation in partnership with the ECOP Health and Workforce Program Action Teams, is offering two opportunities to apply and be selected to pilot a community development initiative in a community of their choosing. More specifically, successful applicants will have the opportunity to pilot test how Cooperative Extension can catalyze...
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Not a leader?
Do you consider yourself a leader? What about a global leader? Usually when this question is asked only a few people respond positively to the first question and almost everyone says "no" to the second question. Why? Perhaps they are hesitant to respond positively because "leader" isn't part of their title, position, or rank. Then when the question escalates they're definitely out. John Maxwell defines leadership as influence. If we use his definition (which I totally dig) then we're all...
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Happy (Digital) Holidays!
We've talked about this "gratitude" thing before in this post... Get More Gratitude . If you're not able to be together with everyone you'd like, here are some ways to let your friends & family know you're thinking about them. This year, you're more ready than you think to share how thankful you are for the great people in your life. After all, you've had at least a couple of years of practice at this. 😉 Embrace some technology to share your gratitude for the special people in your...
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Alignment with a Stop Light?
You've worked hard to come up with a great plan that will make things easier, remove frustrations, and even save time for everyone. You're proud of it. It's thorough. It's researched. You've consulted people with more experience in this area. You've taken criticism. You've been vulnerable. Now it's time for the big meeting to unveil it. You're excited. Even a bit nervous. It's your turn on the agenda and... Your excitement is met with a mild, lukewarm reception from the team. What happened?
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Re: Assistant County Director
Hi Anthony, We do not have an Assistant County Director, but I think it's a great idea. As a matter of fact we are looking to hire a County Director at UMassExtension at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst- if you know of any candidates. Carole
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The Perfect Meeting
"One can either work or meet. One cannot do both at the same time." -Peter Drucker Darn it! He's right again. Despite our best efforts we can only do one of these (effectively) at a time. Through this, he also reminds us of the multitasking myth. What we actually do is task switch. It takes 40% longer to accomplish two things we're switching on and longer when we add a third or fourth task. One thing we can do to help with effectiveness is to have better meetings. Most HR professionals will...
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Equitable Development: Starts Within Individuals and Emphasizes Well-Being
When you think about how societies have grown and developed in the past, can you identify efforts where, “ good governance, sustainable socio-economic development, cultural preservation, and environmental conservation,” were prioritized? Unfortunately, most stories of development tell tales of exciting economic growth and ignore the inequity that serves as the foundation for their success. However, some countries are shifting from economic-focused standards of development to factors centered...
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Evaluating a System-wide Project: An interview with the EXCITE evaluation team!
We are excited to have Isabel Osborne and Laura Downey to discuss their involvement in the evaluation and reporting process for the system-wide Extension Collaboration on Immunization Teaching and Engagement (EXCITE) Project. Isabel and Laura have been integral in developing a comprehensive and dynamic system for evaluating the EXCITE project's progress and success. Q: Isabelle and Laura, could you please tell us about yourselves and the roles you play in the evaluation team? Laura: Great.
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Let’s talk about nutrition security
By Noelle Harden I recently talked with my mom and grandparents about hunger and food insecurity in the military. My grandpa served in the air force, then worked for the Veterans Administration. My mom spent her childhood moving across the country from base to base. They shared their struggles to be able to afford healthy and affordable food. Food Insecurity in the Military The RAND Corporation released a report last month on food security in the military. They found that 15.4% of active...
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Free Event: Transforming Educational Futures
Based out of Vancouver, BC and Salt Lake City, Utah, the Solvable team is our strategic partner in designing and developing an Equitable Development Action Academy in the fall. Their work is focused on launching organizations towards regenerative futures. Alongside a group of education professionals, researchers, and senior administrators, they're hosting Transforming Educational Futures , a 75-minute inquiry into how we educate our way out of the polycrisis , and what stands between...
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"No" isn't negative
"No! Don't touch the hot stove." "No! Don't text and drive." In these examples, "no" is actually positive to alert us from burning ourselves and not driving while distracted. In other situations, primarily in our professional lives, we perceive saying "no" will be viewed as negative. This leads to saying "yes" to much more than we can accomplish and the mistaken idea that if we're busy it means we're valued more. Does always being busy with more equal accomplishing more? Here's a scenario...
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Mental Health First Aid Summit- #BeThe1in15 during Mental Health Awareness month this May
Have you taken a first aid class or been trained in CPR? What about Mental Health Frist Aid? Mental Health First Aid is a course that teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. We were fortunate enough to attend the Mental Health First Aid Summit in LA on May 1 st . We spent the day learning from our peers about the importance of mental health and how we can bring the MHFA program to every corner of the country and the world.
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USDA Studies Determine that the Way We Treat Our Land Impacts Water Availability
Studies by USDA Agricultural Research Service Determine that the Way We Treat Our Land Impacts Water Availability Media Contact : Maribel.Alonso@usda.gov What impact, if any, do farming and ranching practices have on how much water is available downstream? That was the question scientists at the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS) Agroclimate and Hydraulic Engineering Research Unit in El Reno, Oklahoma, set out to answer in a series of studies conducted in Central and Western Oklahoma.
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2 Questions...
How do you know it's time to do leadership development? The short answer is it's always time. Developing our leadership is a journey, not a destination. Improving our self-awareness and becoming truly effective takes consistent focus. Here are some clues to watch for on your journey to help stay focused: If you're feeling like some honest and respectful feedback it might be time for leadership development! Feedback is the breakfast of champions. Getting meaningful information from trusted...
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Future You
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, which is why we call it the present." -Bill Keane Ok, a little bit of a cheesy way to start. Seriously though, tomorrow isn't promised to any of us. Our challenge is to make the most out of every day because each one is an opportunity to move closer to the person we want to be. The journey is the destination. Here's a big thing that gets in the way... Damaging Self Talk When we describe ourselves (to ourselves and others) in...