The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service

  
Vol. 11, No. 7   December 21, 2004

IN THIS ISSUE...

...Word from the Associate Director - Extension and Applied Research
...Nominations Needed for Distinguished Service Awards
...State Fair Board Appointments
...Third Paycheck in December
...OzNet Holiday Schedule
...KSRE Computer Tool Kit 2005
...Specialists' Quarterly Reports
...Great Plains Vegetable Growers Conference Offers Specialized Training for Beginning and Advanced Market Gardeners
...Kansas 4-H Website
...Planning is Underway for the 2005 Discovery Days
...4-H Centennial Website
...Master Schedule

...Tuesday Letter Archives

WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
Have you ever heard it said "I find it amazing how so and so can somehow get individuals to step forward and take on tasks or volunteer to help out when any other leader could never make that happen."? John Maxwell, in his book The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, would call that the Law of Connection. Maxwell states "leaders touch a heart before they ask for a hand." Another way of describing this law is in the quote "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care."

The effectiveness of you as an educator, especially in those non-formal educational settings, depends upon your ability to fulfill the Law of Connection. Great leaders have learned how to connect with people in both public and private settings. You know those great speakers who seem to be able to touch you individually amongst an audience? They have learned how to connect in a public setting. Great leaders also know how important it is to connect with people, one at a time.

Leaders who have done the work to connect with people can create incredible impact. It can be evident in the vision of the leader becoming the aspiration of the people. As Maxwell concludes, "to lead yourself, use your head; to lead others, use your heart."

May you have a most blessed Christmas and Happy New Year. May you fill your heart with joy and happiness. May you make all those special "connections" with family and friends. And, may your travels be safe. I look forward to connecting back with you in 2005. --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@oznet.ksu.edu

NOMINATIONS NEEDED FOR DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS
Plan now to nominate two individuals for the Distinguished Service in Agriculture (DSA) Awards. These are the most prestigious awards made by the College of Agriculture. Nominees should be persons whose careers have contributed notably to distinguished achievement or public service in or related to the profession of agriculture. K-State alumni are eligible, but active and emeritus faculty are not.

Nominations should include: letter of nomination, full curriculum vita, letter from nominee's supervisor, and a letter from a peer who is external from the nominee's place of work and KSU. The two award categories are: Research and Teaching, and Extension and International Service. Nominations will be due February 4, 2005.

Additional details have been sent to the departments. --Larry Erpelding lhe@oznet.ksu.edu

STATE FAIR BOARD APPOINTMENTS
Two positions on the State Fair Board (Southwest Kansas and Northwest Kansas) are up for appointment/reappointment by the Governor. The Kansans now serving in these positions are Mike Gaskill of Liberal and Jeff Deeds of Goodland.

K-State Research and Extension Area Directors make three recommendations to the Governor for each position. Agents can let individuals with potential interest know about the positions and ask them to contact their Area Directors. Nominations are due in early 2005 so we are asking interested individuals to send a letter of interest and qualifications to their Area Extension Director by January 15. Citizens appointed for these positions shall be actively involved in agriculture production or agribusiness.

The following counties are in the Southwest Kansas State Fair Board area: Clark, Comanche, Edwards, Finney, Ford, Grant, Gray, Greeley, Hamilton, Haskell, Hodgeman, Kearny, Kiowa, Lane, Meade, Morton, Pawnee, Scott, Seward, Stanton, Stevens, and Wichita.

The following counties are in the Northwest Kansas State Fair Board area: Barton, Cheyenne, Decatur, Ellis, Gove, Graham, Logan, Ness, Norton, Osborne, Phillips, Rawlins, Rooks, Rush, Russell, Sheridan, Sherman, Smith, Thomas, Trego, and Wallace. --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu

THIRD PAYCHECK IN DECEMBER
December 30, 2004 is the payday in which we receive a third paycheck in the month of December. Premiums for State of Kansas group health insurance, KPERS Optional Group Life Insurance, TEA Life Insurance and contributions to the KanElect Flexible Spending Accounts will not be deducted from this third paycheck. Premiums for federal employee health benefits will be deducted. Additionally, 12 month unclassified employees do not earn an 8 hour vacation day for the pay period December 5 through December 18, paid December 30, 2004.

Questions should be addressed to the Division of Human Resources at 785-532-6277. --Stacey M. Warner  swarner@oznet.ksu.edu

OZNET HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
A reduced holiday work schedule (December 24, 2004, through January 2, 2005) is in effect for most people on campus.

OzNet services, including e-mail and web functions, will be available but operating in "unattended" mode during this time. This means that should there be any interruption in service, IET staff may not be readily available. If these services are interrupted, please contact IET staff by first calling 785-532-6270. Otherwise, call us in the following order should you need assistance: Larry Havenstein, 785-537-0131; Roger Terry, 785-537-2245; Gamage Dissanayake, 785-323-1608. No one will be available on December 25, 2004 or January 1, 2005. Technical support staff (students) will not be available from December 24 through January 2. Normal operations will resume January 3, 2005. --Roger V. Terry rterry@oznet.ksu.edu

KSRE COMPUTER TOOL KIT 2005
The new K-State Research & Extension Computer Tool Kit 2005 is now being shipped to departments and units. The KSRE Computer Tool Kit 2005 is a collection of office applications and utilities that make a computer fully functional and secure for daily use. The tool kit is licensed for use by all faculty, staff, and students of the College of Ag and K-State Research & Extension.

The new computer tool kit includes the newest versions of Symantec Anti-Virus, many new computer security tools, Windows XP Service Pack 2, Pegasus Mail 4.12c, Open Office 1.1.3, and updates to most of the programs on previous computer tool kit CDs.

If you don't receive a copy of the tool kit, you can make copies of the disc sent to your office or download an ISO copy of the disc from http://support.oznet.ksu.edu/intranet/apps.htm  to create a disc.

If you have any questions, contact your computer support person or IET, support@oznet.ksu.edu ,  785-532-6270. --Larry Havenstein Lhavenst@oznet.ksu.edu

SPECIALISTS' QUARTERLY REPORTS
The Specialists' Quarterly Report is online at http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/prev/ . Please submit your report to the database soon after the end of the reporting period in December. If you have questions or need assistance, please call the Planning and Reporting office at 785-532-6775. --Marie Blythe mblythe@oznet.ksu.edu

GREAT PLAINS VEGETABLE GROWERS CONFERENCE OFFERS SPECIALIZED TRAINING FOR BEGINNING AND ADVANCED MARKET GARDENERS
A great set of educational meetings for market gardeners, and commercial vegetable and flower growers is coming up at the Great Plains Vegetable Growers Conference at the Ramada Inn, St. Joseph, MO on January 6 to 8, 2005. Conference program and registrations are available at http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/horticulture/Upcoming_Conferences/ . 

HIGH TUNNEL WORKSHOP - January 6 
This day-long session on high tunnels (unheated greenhouses) will  feature presentations by nationally-renowned growers/educators, and by local growers who will share their experiences. Steve Moore, Sonnewald Farm, PA, will provide a detailed overview of his experiences using sustainable methods for year round production of diverse crops. Ralph Cramer, Cramer's Posie Patch, PA, will talk about Haygrove Tunnels  for cost-effective, larger-scale production of vegetables, fruits and  flowers. This workshop will be valuable both to those just thinking  about getting a high tunnel, and to experienced growers. Cost for the  day is $50.  

GREAT PLAINS VEGETABLE GROWERS CONFERENCE - January 7 and 8  This major educational event for regional vegetable and cut flower growers is cooperatively organized by extension and vegetable growers associations from Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and South Dakota.  It features multiple simultaneous sessions with tracks on production of specific vegetables, organic production, marketing, cut flowers, and equipment. This year there will be in-depth sessions on greenhouse tomatoes. Lectures are provided by extension experts, and leading  growers, and are complemented by grower roundtable discussions. The trade show, with 30 to 35 vendors, offers conference participants opportunities to shop for the latest seeds, supplies and equipment. Cost per day is $35.  

INTRODUCTION TO MARKET FARMING - January 8 
This short course provides a detailed overview of commercial market gardening for those who are thinking about getting started in this field. Participants might include hobby gardeners starting to sell  their produce, row crop farmers who are considering diversifying, or those with little previous experience. The course will consist of a  team-taught lecture followed by a workshop on budgeting and a grower roundtable discussion on various aspects of scaling up market garden operations. Jim Leap, farm manager at the Farm and Garden Apprenticeship Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will co-teach with Kevin Loth, Shadowbrook Farm, Lincoln, NE, to provide a broad overview of the multiple factors to be considered by  the successful market gardener. Both instructors have extensive practical experience growing and selling vegetables for a living. Jerry Jost of the Kansas Rural Center, and Katherine Kelly, local grower, will cooperate in the lecture on budgeting, and the grower panel discussion on scaling-up will provide real-world insights to course participants. Cost per day is $35 (register for Great Plains Vegetable Growers Conference). --Chuck Marr cmarr@oznet.ksu.edu or Ted Carey tcarey@ksu.edu     

KANSAS 4-H WEBSITE
The following items or links have been added to the Kansas 4-H Website this week:

What's Hot:
Discovery Days Class/Tour Proposal Form
Discovery Days Spirit Leader Application
State 4-H Leader Candidate Bios and Interview Schedule

What Happened
IFYE Experiences - 2 PowerPoint files of Members' Experiences in Japan &  Norway

4-H Centennial
MP3 Music Files
Sheet Music
Candle Specifications for the State Fair Birthday Cake
Skits

Resource Library
Shawnee County 4-H Club Visit Evaluation by Toni Reeves & Leroy Russell
Strong 4-H Clubs Training by Rod Buchele
Theme Ideas for 4-H Events collected by Jessica Heller & Andrea Schmidt

Other Items
Shooting Sports Flyers for local matches
United Association Conference

--Justin Wiebers jwiebers@ksu.edu

PLANNING IS UNDERWAY FOR THE 2005 DISCOVERY DAYS!
The conference will be Tuesday, May 31, through Friday, June 3, on the K-State campus in Manhattan. As you have heard, the Action Team has decided to extend Discovery Days by one day. Of course, this means we can add another session of classes, more awesome activities, and so much to do that this message won't hold it all!

Over the years, volunteer instructors have insured that this event is an exciting experience! Three, 2-hour class or tour experiences are scheduled this year which means we need more instructors than ever!

Wednesday, June 1
1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Thursday, June 2
9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

or

9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

The Action Team encourages experiential, hands-on classroom opportunities which engage the delegates. Lecture classroom format is boring. Won't you volunteer to teach or lead an exciting, energizing class at 4-H Discovery Days 2005? You might also recruit a volunteer or other resource person for teaching a class!

Feel free to share this information with everyone (youth, adults, people outside of extension) who could provide a great class or tour! Contact Justin Wiebers, 4-H Events Coordinator, jwiebers@ksu.edu or 785-532-5800, if you have questions or need additional information.

Please return the Class/Tour Proposal Form by January 14, 2005 to:

State 4-H Office
201 Umberger Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506-3404

Thank you for your consideration in helping make this Kansas 4-H tradition another year of great success! --Justin Wiebers

4-H CENTENNIAL WEBSITE
Please take time to check out the 4-H Centennial website again. A Centennial skit as well as Centennial sheet music and CD downloads are now available. You can check out what is being planned for the 2005 and 2006 Kansas State Fair to celebrate the centennial of 4-H.

You can still submit your ideas for club and county level celebrations or write us of your 4-H experiences at http://4-h.k-state.edu/Events/Centennial/Default.htm . --Cheryl Thomas for Steve Fisher cthomas@oznet.ksu.edu

VIEW THE MASTER SCHEDULE OR ADD NEW ACTIVITIES AND EVENTS. 

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