The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service

  
Vol. 8, No. 4   December 4, 2001

IN THIS ISSUE...

...Beware of Scams from Nigeria or Elsewhere in Africa
...New City Pull Factors Available
...KAE4-HA Dues
...Tuesday Letter Schedule
...Continuing Education Opportunities:
...Fourteenth Annual High School Leadership Conference to be Held at KSU
...Environmental Air Quality Workshop to be Held at K-State
...Flint Hills Writers Forum will be Hosted by KSU
...Master Schedule

...Tuesday Letter Archives  

BEWARE OF SCAMS FROM NIGERIA OR ELSEWHERE IN AFRICA
Carla Stovall recently warned state employees they may become targets of various scams from Nigeria or elsewhere in Africa. Dr. Robert Hudgens and I have received letters this fall from Nigeria and the Ivory Coast, so we can attest to the need to be on guard for these scams.

The scam usually comes in the form of a letter, fax, or e-mail. The sender often claims to be a civil servant who wants to transfer millions of dollars out of his country for some reason. As a civil servant, he claims he is forbidden from owning or operating a foreign account. Therefore, he proposes to deposit a large sum of money in your bank account. He then says he will give you a certain percent (15-35%) and he will then transfer the rest to another legal account, once it has cleared and been deposited in your account.

Another version of the scam has a person writing and saying that he is a student who, along with his family, had to flee his country to escape an evil dictator. The family has now discovered a way to tap into the money they were forced to leave behind. He just needs to transfer the money to a legal account in the United States. Once in your account, he will give you a big percent of the money and then transfer the money to some other account for his family.

To receive the cash, recipients (you) are asked to send your bank and banker's names, telephone and fax numbers, bank account number, and possibly a blank sheet of business stationery signed by the banker.

Please beware that these are merely scams to obtain your banking information, which will allow the sender to access your bank account and steal your money!

Carla Stovall encourages Kansans to ignore these letters and e-mails in spite of the temptation for tremendous wealth. If you respond to the first request, you will continue to be milked for more money until you have had enough, run out of money, or both. The scam artist may even wipe out your bank account electronically. This is why you should never give out your bank account number.

If you receive a letter that resembles this scam, but have not suffered financial damage, fax the documents to the Secret Service Task Force at 202-406-5031. If you have suffered financial loss, call 202-406-5850 and leave a telephone number where an agent can reach you. Or, you may send your documents to: U.S. Secret Service, Financial Crimes Division, 950 H St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20223. 

If you have questions about this type of scam, please call the Kansas Attorney General Consumer Protection division at 1-800-432-2310 or at 785-296-3751. Please be careful and keep your money. --Steven Graham sgraham@oznet.ksu.edu 

NEW CITY PULL FACTORS AVAILABLE
The FY2001 city pull factor report is now available on my website. Also, new data from the Department of Revenue makes it possible for me to calculate a city pull factor for any city in Kansas.

GO TO: www.agecon.ksu.edu/ddarling . --David L. Darling ddarling@agecon.ksu.edu 

KAE4-HA DUES 
Now is the time to send in your KAE4-HA dues! Send your dues to Shawna Mitchell in McPherson County. Dues are $90 for renewing members, $45 for first year agents, or $35 for associate members. --Shawna M. Mitchell smitchel@oznet.ksu.edu 

TUESDAY LETTER SCHEDULE
Expect a Tuesday Letter on December 11 and December 18.  Following the holiday break, the next Tuesday Letter will be sent on January 8, 2002. --Dick Wootton rwootton@oznet.ksu.edu  

CONTINUING EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES:

FOURTEENTH ANNUAL HIGH SCHOOL LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE TO BE HELD AT KSU
The 14th Annual High School Leadership Conference, "The Future of Leadership," will be held at Kansas State University, January 24, 2002. Blue Key National Honor Fraternity, Leadership Studies and Programs, Institutional Advancement and K-State’s Division of Continuing Education sponsor the conference. The conference is an exciting forum for both emerging and established student leaders.

Topics of group discussions will include motivating yourself and others, making ethical decisions, solving problems creatively, developing mentors and more. The keynote speaker will be Dr. Bernard Franklin, a 1976 graduate of Kansas State University and consultant to numerous organizations on leadership, diversity and family issues. Other presenters for K-State will include Pat Bosco, Dean of student life; Bob Funk, instructor of leadership studies and programs; and Jackie McClaskey, assistant dean in the College of Agriculture.

Registration must be complete by January 11, 2002. The registration fee is $20 per student and $10 per advisor. To register call 1-800-432-8222 or 785-532-5569 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Program and registration information is also available at www.dce.ksu.edu/dce/conf/hslead . 

ENVIRONMENTAL AIR QUALITY WORKSHOP TO BE HELD AT K-STATE
The Environmental Air Quality Workshop, Air Quality Near Large Feed Lots, will be January 7-9, 2002 at Kansas State University. The workshop is being offered for air quality professionals, students and faculty who want a better understanding of the science and engineering of environmental air quality. The registration fee for the workshop is $150. If participants choose the credit option, an additional fee of $128.25 per undergraduate credit hour or $163.25 per graduate credit hour will be charged. For more registration information, call the Non-Credit Programs Office at (785) 532-5569 or 1-800-432-8222, or visit http://www.dce.ksu.edu/dce/conf/airquality .

FLINT HILLS WRITERS FORUM WILL BE HOSTED BY KSU
Kansas State University will host the Flint Hills Writers Forum, sponsored by the English department in conjunction with the Division of Continuing Education, January 12, 2002. This is a workshop series for aspiring writers and poets, from children to adults, from novices to experienced amateurs. There will be four concurrent sessions in the morning and three concurrent sessions in the afternoon from which to choose. The registration fee for each session is $35. To register, call 1-800-432-8222 or 785-532-5569, or visit http://www.dce.ksu.edu/dce/conf/flinthills . For information about course content and program, contact Elizabeth Dodd at 785-532-0384. --Janell Walther jwalther@dce.ksu.edu 

VIEW THE MASTER SCHEDULE OR ADD NEW ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS . 

Submit corrections to previously submitted items to jzarger@oznet.ksu.edu .

DATES TAKEN FROM THE MASTER SCHEDULE FOR DECEMBER 12, 2001, THROUGH DECEMBER 18, 2001:

Wednesday, December 12
.... SE FACS Program Update/Enhancement, TBA, SE Area, M. Gayle Price gprice@oznet.ksu.edu 
.... Manure Utilization Workshop: Beef/Dairy, Erie/NO, SE Area, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Joe Harner jharner@bae.ksu.edu 
.... SC FACS Program Enhancement, McPherson, SC Area, 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m., Margaret Phillips mphillip@oznet.ksu.edu 

Thursday, December 13
.... Manure Utilization Workshop: Beef/Dairy, Ottawa/FR and surrounding counties, SE and NE, 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Joe Harner jharner@bae.ksu.edu 

Tuesday, December 18, through Wednesday, December 19
.... Certified Crop Advisor Course, Manhattan, Statewide, Dallas Peterson dpeterso@oznet.ksu.edu 
.... Basic Operations II: 4-H Youth Development, Sedgwick County Extension Office, Statewide, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Marcia McFarland mmcfarla@oznet.ksu.edu 

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