Vol. 15, No. 14  February 10, 2009

IN THIS ISSUE... 

...Word from the Associate Director - Extension and Applied Research
...Password Change Deadline is Tomorrow
...Update E-mail Address in Your E-mail Programs
...New Agents Now Hired for Ft. Riley Extension Office
...KEAFCS Awards Due March 2nd
...Enhance Your Meeting Management Skills at March 4 Facilitation Workshop
...College of Agriculture Spring Faculty Meeting
...Marie's Picks of the Week
...Conflict Management Strategies for Extension Professionals
...Diversity Programs Office Update
...Marketing Minute: Make the Most of Your 5 Minutes
...Master Schedule

                                                                                                           ...Tuesday Letter Archives

WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
Next week the Extension administrative team will be meeting with the State Extension Advisory Council (SEAC) members in Topeka on Monday, February 16. On Tuesday, February 17, those SEAC members will be making visits to selected state legislators to convey the public value and importance of K-State Research and Extension to the people in those legislators' districts.

As part of our meeting with the SEAC, we will be reviewing the Partnership meetings that happened a couple weeks back with local Board leadership. Specifically, we are asking the SEAC for their thoughts and ideas on how we can strengthen local Board development, communication, and ultimately Extension at the local level.

A second priority discussion will be to seek ideas and feedback on moving towards an Extension system that embraces differences, creates inclusive and multi-cultural program development committees and boards, advances towards a more multi-cultural and inclusive workforce, and ultimately enhances our educational programs to reach further into our under-served and under-represented audiences.

Lastly, we will be helping them to prepare for those conversations they will be having with legislators on Tuesday.

If you have thoughts, comments, and ideas on any of the above topics, I am always welcome to your input. Have a great week! --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu

PASSWORD CHANGE DEADLINE IS TOMORROW
Don't forget to change your eID password for this semester by TOMORROW, February 11. Everyone will need to change their eID password by tomorrow.

To do this, go to http://eid.ksu.edu  and sign in with your current password. Once logged in, click the link under Password Settings to change your eID password or password-reset options. Once there, you will need to enter your new password. When creating the password, remember you need to follow specific guidelines for it to be accepted. Those guidelines are listed on the eID FAQs page at https://eid.k-state.edu/eProfile/jsp/password/faq.jsp . If your password is not accepted, you will see a message in orange text appear above the boxes where you enter your password. If it is accepted, you will see Success in green text appear. While you are there, it is also a good idea to update your verification e-mail address and security question and answer. Those are useful if you forget your password and need to have it reset.

If you have any questions or problems updating your password, please call IET Tech Support at 785-532-6270 or e-mail us at support@oznet.ksu.edu . For eID and eID password related issues, you can also contact K-State's IT Helpdesk at 785-532-7722 or helpdesk@ksu.edu . --Russ Feldhausen russfeld@ksu.edu

UPDATE E-MAIL ADDRESS IN YOUR E-MAIL PROGRAMS
In order to standardize our e-mail addresses and prepare for future changes, everyone using an @oznet.ksu.edu e-mail address in an e-mail program should change it to @ksu.edu (remove the oznet). That change should be made in any e-mail program you might use at work, at home, or on the road, on desktops, laptops and mobile devices. Doing so will allow you to post messages to various @lists.oznet.ksu.edu addresses, from which all oznet addresses will be deleted.

To find how to make this important change in the most commonly used e-mail programs (Pegasus Mail, Thunderbird, Outlook, Webmail), go to this link: http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/techweb/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=804 .

The deadline for making this change is March 16. After that date, IET will remove all @oznet.ksu.edu addresses from the list server, replacing them with @ksu.edu addresses. Mail sent to you at either @ksu.edu or @oznet.ksu.edu will still come to you after the change---you will not lose any e-mail---but only @ksu.edu addresses will be allowed to post to lists, which is why it is important that messages coming from your e-mail program come from an @ksu.edu address.

If before the transition is complete you have problems sending mail to list.oznet.ksu.edu addresses, send a message to support@oznet.ksu.edu describing the problem and we will fix that list so you to be able to post to it.

If you have any questions, contact support@oznet.ksu.edu , 785-532-6270. --Larry Jackson ljackson@ksu.edu

NEW AGENTS NOW HIRED FOR FT. RILEY EXTENSION OFFICE
We are delighted to announce that the four extension agents for our new office at Ft. Riley have now been hired!

Erin Bishop will be our new agent for Family Life. Erin received her MS degree from Kansas State just last year. Her specialty is Family Life Education & Consultation. Erin’s Masters project, published on the K-State Research & Extension website, was titled Sexuality, Parent-Adolescent Communication, and Parental Involvement Laws: Implications for Family Life Educators and Policy. She also received her BS degree of K-State in Family Life Community Services with a secondary degree in Women’s Studies.

Sara Mietzner comes to K-State Extension as the Child Development agent. Sara graduated in August 2004 from the University of Nebraska – Lincoln with a Master of Science degree in Family Science as well as a BS in Child Development Studies. Sara’s graduate degree project was Positive and Negative Characteristics and Relationship Skills Gained in a Long-Distance Relationship, which will be invaluable in her work with families of deployed soldiers. Sara’s wealth of research and work history will enhance K-State’s work at Ft. Riley.

Debra Wood, whom many of you already know and work with, joins the Ft. Riley Extension office as our Family Resources agent. Deb received her BS degree in 1980 from K-State in Fashion Marketing and her MS degree in 2003 (also from K-State) in Family Studies & Human Services, specializing in Personal Financial Planning. She is also a Certified Financial Planner and will contribute much to our efforts on the base.

Susan Schoneweis is relocating to Manhattan as the Health & Nutrition agent at Ft. Riley. She is a Registered Dietitian and received her certification in Dietetic Nutrition from the University of Nebraska Medical Center in June 2008. She also received her MS degree in 1988 from Purdue University, and her specialty was Plant Breeding & Genetics. Her thesis was Vegetative Propagation to Utilize Heterosis in Lima Beans (Phaseolus lunatus L). Her BS degree (1984) is from K-State, where she majored in Horticulture; Option: Greenhouse / Nursery Management. Her education in both Horticulture and Nutrition will enhance her work with both children and adults in these areas.

Welcome to all our new agents!

The mailing address for the Ft. Riley office is

K-State Research and Extension Office
Building 7264
Normandy Dr., Room 29
Fort Riley, KS 66442
Phone: 785-239-9991

--Toni Bryant tjbryant@humec.ksu.edu

Professional Development Awards: Sarah Taylor, Sedgwick County
Communications & Public Relations Awards:  Kathy Tharman, Doniphan County
Program Awards:  Jan Stephens, Greenwood County

ENHANCE YOUR MEETING MANAGEMENT SKILLS AT MARCH 4 FACILITATION WORKSHOP
Tired of sitting through endless meetings that waste everyone's time and accomplish next to nothing? Then plan to attend "Making Meetings Work: Small Group Facilitation Skills for Extension Professionals," a hands-on workshop scheduled for March 4, 2009 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at K-State Salina.

You will learn how to design and facilitate effective meetings when working with PDCs, fair boards, 4H clubs, civic organizations, and other groups. Whether you're the chair, an advisor, or a committee member, you can contribute to effective small group processes that move groups forward in accomplishing their goals. Topics will include asking the right kinds of questions, managing disruptive participants, and overcoming decision deadlocks. You will also gain insights and ideas from colleagues sharing their facilitation experiences.

The $50 registration fee includes lunch, parking permit, and a copy of the Facilitation at a Glance guidebook. Registrations are due by February 20 to Cheryl Klingensmith at 620-431-1530 or cklingen@oznet.ksu.edu . Don't wait - seats are filling quickly! --Robert Wilson rmwilson@k-state.edu

COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE SPRING FACULTY MEETING
The College of Agriculture Spring Faculty Meeting has been scheduled for March 11, at 3 p.m. in Waters Hall 231. Several important items will be discussed and we currently have at least three issues that will need to be voted upon.

These are
(1) the course and curriculum proposals,
(2) a proposal to allow General Chemistry to count as a free elective when a student takes both Gen Chem
     and Chemistry I, and
(3) the procedure for selecting members of the College Committee on Policy (CCOP).

Dean Cholick will also be giving an update on budget and state and federal legislative issues. If you have other agenda items, please forward them to me. This will be an important meeting, so please plan to attend. --Don Boggs dboggs@ks.edu

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR EXTENSION PROFESSIONALS
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
College Center @ K-State Salina
Sponsored by the Leadership Development & Volunteer Development Program Focus Teams

We all practice conflict management every day – at home, in our communities, and especially at work! Conflict can involve a variety of people and contexts, including interpersonal conflict such as disagreements with co-workers and clients, intergroup conflict such as disagreements among fair board members, and community-wide conflict such as disagreements over decisions made by county commissioners.

Given how common conflict situations are, you would think that we would all be pretty good at handling it, but the reality is that most people report little confidence in addressing conflict. How good we are at managing conflict is based on how skilled we are at diagnosing the cause and skillfully taking action to resolve the conflict.

This interactive workshop will offer Extension professionals an excellent opportunity to:

* Assess their personal styles/approaches to dealing with conflict
* Learn how to recognize conflict and identify the drivers of conflict situations
* Develop communication skills and constructive behaviors to effectively manage conflict
* Practice positive interaction and facilitation of conflict situations based on real-life examples from Extension
* Gain insights & practical advice from seasoned Extension colleagues who manage conflict effectively

The registration fee is $50 and includes workshop materials, lunch, and parking permit. The deadline to register is April 1. Early registration is encouraged - seating is limited to 30 participants. The workshop flyer and registration form are posted at http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/employee_resources/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=206 . –Sarah Maass, semaass@k-state.edu

DIVERSITY PROGRAMS OFFICE UPDATE
Happy Valentine’s Day and Black History Month from your Diversity Programs Office! To celebrate Black History Month we would like to invite everyone to participate in the Wallace Kidd Memorial Diversity Award Ceremony sponsored by MANRRS. It will be held on February 11, at 6:30 p.m. in the Kansas State Student Union Room 204.

Wallace Ray Kidd was born February 21, 1924 in Kansas City, Missouri to Prentis Kidd, Sr. and Clara Ray Owens. Mr. Kidd enrolled in Kansas State University where he majored in entomology and graduated in 1950 as one of the first minority students. At Kansas State, he became a member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. According to Veryl Switzer, Wallace co-signed the loan used to secure a house for the Kansas State University chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity. This was a tremendous achievement for African-American students in 1969. That house operated for 17 years and 98 African-American men lived and graduated from that house.

To commemorate Mr. Kidd's commitment to education, the Wallace Kidd Family Scholarship was established in 2000. Wallace Ray Kidd was a family man and community leader up until his home going on October 25, 2004. He set an example for everyone, students, adults, faculty, community, black and white. The Wallace Kidd Memorial Diversity Award is a fitting commemoration of his legacy and commitment.

We would also like to invite everyone to help us celebrate Black History Month by participating in the events hosted by the Black Student Union. A complete list of events can be found at http://www.k-state.edu/ddcd/BlackHistoryMonth2009.pdf .

Finally, the Diversity Programs Office is featuring a exhibit on the first Black male and female graduates of Kansas State University on the display board outside of Waters 138. They were George Washington Owens and Minnie M. Howell (Champe). Please stop by and view this piece of Kansas State history.

If you would like more information on any of the aforementioned events, please contact your Diversity Programs Office or Dr. Zelia Z. Wiley, Assistant Dean for Diversity, at zwh@ksu.edu  or 785-532-5793. Please do not hesitate to use us as your diversity resource center. --Zelia Wiley

MARKETING MINUTE: MAKE THE MOST OF YOUR 5 MINUTES
You happen to catch a key funding source in the hallway and have, literally, five minutes to state your case on why your funding should be maintained, or at least not cut as much as other groups. What do you say and how do you say it?

Times like these are when key messages are essential. Key messages are the short 3-5 points that you want to make when given the opportunity. Whereas an elevator speech will provide the verbatim text, key messages give you the ideas to convey in your words.

K-State Research and Extension has key messages that may help you in this situation:
* K-State Research and Extension provides Knowledge for Life.
* We improve the quality of life and standard of living for all Kansans.
* We are a partnership between local government, Kansas State University, and USDA.
* We have an office in every county.
* We create and distribute research-based information on TOPICS IMPORTANT TO KANSANS.

And, when the specific topic of funding does come up, consider highlighting these points, from our 2006 statewide telephone survey:
* 80 percent of Kansas citizens surveyed said that they approve or strongly approve of spending public funds to support K-State Research and Extension.
* Of those surveyed, nearly 75 percent said it is very important to maintain our service of delivering unbiased, research-based information. An additional 23 percent consider it somewhat important.
* More than 63 percent who have participated in our programs rate their experience with K-State Research and Extension as excellent or good.
* 96 percent of those surveyed consider information from K-State Research and Extension as credible or very credible.

For more information on key messages or other marketing topics, go to our blog at www.ksremarketingminute.blogspot.com . --Linda Sleichter lsleicht@oznet.ksu.edu

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Please Submit Items no later than Noon on Monday to include in the following Tuesday Letter to:
tuesday@oznet.ksu.edu . Put the word "Tuesday" in the subject line.

K-State Research and Extension is an equal opportunity provider and employer.