A reminder for those that have not yet reviewed it, the FY0910 County Allocation Plan is available online. If you have any questions, contact my office.
Arizona Cooperative Extension was honored with a Future Leaders' Award at the Governor's Excellence in Rural Development Awards Luncheon held on Friday, August 28 as part of the 2009 Governor's Rural Development Conference. Edessa Carr of Yavapai County and Kerry Schwartz and Candice Rupprecht of the Water Resources Research Center accepted the award jointly with Cottonwood Middle School and the City of Cottonwood for the School Water Audit Program (SWAP) that was carried out at Cottonwood Middle School in April and May 2009. This project provided a real-world, action-based opportunity for 120 7th graders to audit their school's water usage and implement efficiency retrofits that resulted in a water savings of 239,000 gallons annually. With our project partners including the Arizona Department of Water Resources, the City of Cottonwood, Cottonwood Oak Creek School District, Salt River Project, Yavapai County Board of Supervisors, the Yavapai County Water Advisory Committee and many community volunteers, our shared goal is to develop a community culture of water conservation and stewardship.
About 100 people participated in the V Bar V Explorer Ranch Day held Saturday, August 22. Among those who presented were Trent Teegerstrom, Doug Tolleson and Peder Cuneo. Dave Schafer and the staff at V Bar V put together an excellent program with Dean Sander and other administrators and volunteers helping to serve an original cowboy BBQ.
Proposals for the FY2009-10 Extension Program funding are still being reviewed and the funding announcement will unfortunately be delayed due to the State budget (or lack thereof). It was our hope to announce funding this week but it appears the announcement may be delayed by 10-15 days. If you have any questions, contact Patti B. (pattib@cals.arizona.edu or 520.621.5308).
Shay Stautz (stautzs@email.arizona.edu or 520.621.9191) is the Associate Vice President for UA Federal Relations and the point person for all University contact with members of the Congressional Delegation. He has worked very effectively with Dr. Colin Kaltenbach and other leaders in getting federal support and funding from the federal government. If you wish to have contact with the federal elected officials, it is best to work through Shay or at least to keep both Colin and Shay informed on issues you are supporting.
The call for nominations for the Extension Faculty of the Year Award and the Extensionist of the Year Award are still open and I strongly encourage you to submit a recommendation for one or both of the awards. The Faculty of the Year award will be presented at an appropriate event where the recipient will receive $1,000 and a plaque. The Extensionist of the Year award will be presented at an appropriate college-wide event to recognize residents of the State of Arizona who have contributed time and talent, through Cooperative Extension, to citizens of their community and state. Letters of nomination from faculty and staff in Extension should state the nature and extent of the service that the individual has performed and how it has benefited the community, the state and its citizens. Please submit your nominations to my office by September 30. Go to http://cals.arizona.edu/awards/extfacultyawd.html) for Extension Faculty of the Year Award nomination form and criteria and to cals.arizona.edu/extension/download/2009_Nomination_Form.pdf for the nomination form for the Extensionist of the Year Award. If you have any questions, please contact my office (520.621.7205).
More Drupal training is available as we move forward with the transition of our Cooperative Extension Website to a content management system. We want to enable you, or your designee(s) to put your content directly into the Website right from your computers. Trainings are now being offered for state programs, county sites, county programs, state 4-H and county 4-H information. This system will allow you to easily change and update your information. A number of trainings are being offered to teach you how to enter content. Please go to doodle.com/tcxi25yg74qd7mt7 and indicate your availability. Trainings are being offered on-campus, via Breeze, at Maricopa Agricultural Center, Maricopa County Extension Office, and Cochise College in Benson. If you have questions, contact Sheila Merrigan (merrigan@cals.arizona.edu or 520.626.6543). If none of these dates and times works for you, contact Sheila to set up another time.
The Climate, Natural Resources and Sustainability Working Group has developed a survey titled "An Assessment of Sustainability in Arizona's Extension Programs" which will help the working group develop a strategy to better enhance, foster or develop concepts around the topic of sustainability within Extension. The survey shouldn't take more than 5-10 minutes to complete online. The working group is looking forward to as much participation as possible by ALL Extension staff and faculty conducting outreach programs. To access the survey, go to www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=b3N0DB8q6IgB7_2bY5UDD4dw_3d_3d. If you have questions about the survey or the working group, contact Chris Jones (ckjones@cals.arizona.edu), Gila County Agent or Mark Apel (mapel@cals.arizona.edu), Cochise County Area Agent.
Ranching in the Future Workshop - Cochise County, the Arizona Land and Water Trust and the 47 Ranch will be sponsoring another Ranching in the Future Workshop on Wednesday, September 16 in McNeal. The workshop, titled "Renewable Energy Options for Ranches and Farms," will host a variety of experts in financing, installation, and rebates for renewable energy equipment like solar panels and wind turbines. For more information, contact Mark Apel (mapel@cals.arizona.edu), Area Associate Agent.
James A. Christenson, Ph.D.
(jimc@cals.arizona.edu)
Associate Dean and Director
Arizona Cooperative Extension
Forbes, Room 301
Tucson, Arizona 85721
520/621-7205
520/621-1314 FAX
TMN submittal: http://cals.arizona.edu/extension/tuesday/submittal_form.html