Vol. 15, No. 48  October 6, 2009

IN THIS ISSUE... 

...Word from the Associate Director - Extension and Applied Research
...Clover Night
...Save the Date
...Out-of-School Program Idea Conference - October 13, 2009 - Sedgwick County Extension Education Center
..."Practical Evaluation for Youth Development Programs: What Questions Do I Ask Now in Order to Tell the Difference(s) My Work Makes?"
...Thank You from Bob Neier
...Applications for 2010 "Get It - Do It!" Kansas PRIDE-Extension Grants Available October 8
...Do You Like Controversy?
...The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Workshop
...Everyone Ready, Volunteer Management Training
...Engaging Learners: Excellence in Extension Seminar
...2009 Leadership Forum Weekend (Youth and Volunteers)
...Living Well...More Than a Cookbook Orders for KEAFCS Membership
...Marie's Picks...
...Managing Your Expectations - Sizing a Small Wind Turbine to Your Load
...Counties and Districts Encouraged to Apply for CECD
...4-H Reporter Books Due November 2 at 5 p.m.
...Mentor Workshops -
...Creating Coaches for Community Change Efforts
...Spring Action Conference 2010
...Publications and Videos Site Change
...August/September Extension Agent Personnel Changes
...Communications Minute: Social Media and KSRE
...KSRE Master Calendar
                                                                                          

                                                                                                ...Tuesday Letter Archives

WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
K-State Research and Extension Annual Conference is just around the corner, and today is the final day to register! Keep in mind that in order to participate in the Tuesday awards luncheon which is free, you must have registered and have a ticket which will come in your registration packet.

This year's Annual Conference theme is "Live Well, Work Well: Securing the Future." Tuesday morning our new President for Kansas State University, Kirk Schulz, will address the entire conference attendance as our first speaker.

Kirk will be followed by Dr. Michael Wesch , Assistant Professor of Anthropology. Wesch is the 2008 Outstanding Doctoral and Research Universities Professor of the Year. The honor is awarded by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Then, wrapping up the morning will be Fred, providing his vision and challenges for Living Well, Working Well: securing the future for K-State Research and Extension.

We'll break from there for our traditional Awards Luncheon. Tuesday afternoon will continue in forum hall with overviews and updates around the conference themes of living well, working well, and securing the future. Wednesday is loaded with networking and learning opportunities around the program focus teams. Thursday will wrap things up with employee benefits information, committee meetings, and post conference opportunities.

Mixed throughout the conference are all the Extension professional associations meetings, recognition events, and fun times!

I hope you will take a moment and review all the information on the Annual Conference Website . Take advantage of all opportunities to become involved for personal professional grow opportunities. I am confident the 2009 Annual Conference will again rank among the top with great opportunities for learning, growing, networking with colleagues, and celebrating accomplishments. --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu  

CLOVER NIGHT
All K-State Research and Extension professionals are invited to attend Clover Night on Tuesday, October 20, 8-10 p.m. at Rusty’s Next Door. Join colleagues for informal chats, snacks, and door prizes. Price to attend is $5, which will be collected at the door - no pre-registration required! Appetizers, tea, soda, water and lemonade will be provided. See you there! --Andrea Schmidt aschmidt@ksu.edu

SAVE THE DATE
Kansas Extension Association Family Consumer Science Professional Association (KEAFCS) will ask you to "SAVE THE DATE" this one last time!

The KEAFCS Business Meeting for all members will be Monday, October 19, of Annual Conference week at 3 p.m. in the Big 12 Room of the Union. This is a move from the previously announced time of Thursday morning. We welcome new FCS agents to Kansas Extension, and invite you to join our membership that afternoon! Members with special announcements to share...be advised that chocolate is "encouraged"!

Our KEAFCS Officers meeting will begin at 2 p.m. that same day in the Big 12 Room of the Union. Officers who need to plan to attend this meeting include, president elect, treasurer, secretary, area counselors and vice presidents of committees. If you are unable to attend, let Lori Sporer know.

The time set aside for association meetings on Thursday morning, October 22nd of conference week, will still be used for an "Officers Transition & Planning Meeting," of outgoing and incoming KEAFCS Officers, in the Big 12 Meeting room at 10 a.m.

If you have questions about KEAFCS, or about this meeting, please contact Lori Sporer at lsporer@ksu.edu . --Lori Sporer

"PRACTICAL EVALUATION FOR YOUTH DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS: WHAT QUESTIONS DO I ASK NOW IN ORDER TO TELL THE DIFFERENCE(S) MY WORK MAKES?"
The Youth Development Program Focus Team is very pleased to announce the following training opportunity on Wednesday, October 21, 2009, here in Manhattan, during KSRE Annual Conference:

Dr. Melissa Cater from Louisiana State University will share from her personal experiences as an agent and teaching Extension educators how to include evaluation as you create and implement your youth development efforts. Learning to ask better questions in order to retrieve useful feedback for programmatic improvement and reporting will be taught and practiced. Dr. Cater has generously offered to continue to follow up with participants, knowing that we "take one bite of the apple at a time."

Dr. Cater is a 4-H Youth Development Educator with the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service, LSU AgCenter working in Organizational Development & Evaluation. She has 17 years experience in formal and nonformal education. For the past 10 years Dr. Cater's work has included direct services for youth with an emphasis on leadership of non-formal educational 4-H clubs and management of volunteers who work both directly and indirectly with youth. As part of her work she has led and participated in collaborations with other youth organizations. Much of her work has centered on developing youth-adult partnerships and promoting youth ownership and engagement in afterschool programming. Before joining the LSU AgCenter, she was a classroom teacher certified at the secondary level for 6.5 years. Dr. Cater holds a doctorate in Human Resource Education at Louisiana State University.

We begin at 8:15 a.m. in the K-State Union Room 205 lasting through 11:30 a.m.. We return after lunch for a one hour wrap up between 1-2 p.m. with Dr. Cater.

We look forward to having you join us. Please let Aliesa Woods, awoods@ksu.edu  or Gary Gerhard, ggerhard@ksu.edu , know if you plan on coming so we can have an idea of our count, and also let us know of further questions you might have. --Aliesa Woods and Gary Gerhard

THANK YOU FROM BOB NEIER

Thanks so much to the Extension family for your support at the time of the loss of my dad. The cards, visits and encouragement have helped our family so very much. My parents met through an Extension group called Rural Life that was for young adults in the mid 1940’s and they were Extension supporters to the end. Thanks for keeping our family in your thoughts and prayers. --Bob Neier bneier@ksu.edu

APPLICATIONS FOR 2010 "GET IT - DO IT!" KANSAS PRIDE-EXTENSION GRANTS AVAILABLE OCTOBER 8
"Get It - Do It!" grants provide a unique opportunity for Kansas PRIDE community groups to collaborate with local Extension agents to promote health through youth-adult partnerships.

$3,000 mini-grants to PRIDE community groups help fund physical activity and health promotion projects. Appropriate projects include trail development and promotion, physical activity promotion, establishment of walking/biking clubs, cooperation with schools (e.g, Coordinated School Health) and TV/screen-time reduction campaigns.

Applications will be available beginning October 8. Proposals are due November 15, 2009.

Grants awards will be announced December 11 and commence January, 2010 - November, 2010.

Applications will be available electronically through:
Kansas PRIDE: www.kansasprideprogram.ksu.edu
YouthBoost: www.youthboost.org
Or by contacting Jamie Menon - jmenon@ksu.edu , in the Kansas PRIDE office.

For more information contact:
Elaine Johannes - ejohanne@ksu.edu ; 785-532-7720
Trudy Rice - trice@ksu.edu ; 785-532-5840
Dan Kahl - dankahl@ksu.edu ; 785-532-5840

DO YOU LIKE CONTROVERSY?
Want to hear the other side of the story?
Then this week's seminar is the one for you!!!!

Thursday, October 8, 2009
3:30 - 4:20 p.m.
Leasure Hall 13
Kansas State University

"In Defense of Food: Are Criticisms of the Nutrition Profession Justified?"

Dr. Susan A. Nitzke, PhD, RD
Professor and Extension Specialist
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Dr. Nitzke is known throughout the Extension profession for her work in developing and evaluating techniques for nutrition education. She has worked on multi-state projects that focused on improving fruit and vegetable consumption among economically disadvantaged young adults. She is a registered dietitian and an Extension Specialist. Dr. Nitzke is the Department Chair of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison; has published articles in top nutrition and Extension peer-reviewed journals; and continues to work on multi-state projects targeting the food behaviors of young adults. Dr. Nitzke's research is meeting the challenge of improving nutrition education by identifying pertinent audience parameters and adapting promising theories and methods from related disciplines such as educational psychology and communications for use in specific nutrition education settings.

Please join us for this timely seminar to discuss Michael Pollan's "In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto" and what it means for the nutrition profession. This seminar will stream live. Point your browser to http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/seminars . Scroll down to events.

Certificates of attendance will be available for dietetics students and for dietetics professionals who may wish to seek subsequent approval from the Kansas Department. of Health & Environment for licensure continuing education. --Tandalayo Kidd kidd@humec.ksu.edu

THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE WORKSHOP
There is still room in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Workshop, November 2-5 at Rock Springs Ranch. Registration information is located on Employee Resources Website, http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/employee_resources . Select Registration from one of the purple boxes in the center of the page. Return registration to Dorothy Ireland, direland@ksu.edu by October 16, 2009. --Margaret Phillips margaret@ksu.edu

EVERYONE READY, VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT TRAINING
Announcing the opening of Everyone Ready, an online learning opportunity presented by Energize Inc., a leader in the field of Volunteerism. Everyone Ready is sponsored for Extension by Monsanto. Sign up now at: http://4-h.org/resources/volunteerism.html .

Everyone Ready presents a new topic monthly for building capacity in Volunteer Management. The seminars and self instruction guides for this independent study are online and available 24/7 for self training on demand. Training and materials will be archived so all topics presented will be available for the duration of the training contract.

Topics include: Building the Foundation for Volunteer Involvement, Role and Responsibilities of the Volunteer Manager, New Approaches to Recruitment, Pitfalls and Obstacles to Volunteer Involvement, Effective Volunteer and Staff Partnership and much more, a new topic every month for the next 36 months. --Rod Buchele rbuchele@ksu.edu

2009 LEADERSHIP FORUM WEEKEND (YOUTH AND VOLUNTEERS)
The Kansas Youth Leadership Forum (KYLF) and the Kansas 4-H Volunteer Forum information will be held November 20-22, 2009 at Rock Springs 4-H Center. KYLF is for those 4-H members ages 14-18 before January 1, 2010 and K4-HVF is designed for any Kansas 4-H Volunteer.

LIVING WELL...MORE THAN A COOKBOOK ORDERS FOR KEAFCS MEMBERSHIP
KEAFCS members have received information about the fundraiser, "Living Well...More Than a Cookbook," that NEAFCS is publishing and selling. We have important ordering information concerning the pre-sale of the cookbooks!

Thanks to a very generous national board, they are sharing the profit half and half with state affiliates! To benefit KEAFCS, FCS agents need to place ALL ORDERS with our KEAFCS Treasurer, Belinda Oldham, Wichita County FCS. Your orders will be drop shipped and sold out of your county office, but ordering must go through Belinda.

OCTOBER 15 is a very important date for the sale of these books. The publisher is reducing the cost of the books when ordered by the case (10 per case) at a cost of $22.50 per book, rather than our normal cost of $25.50, allowing us to make $2 more profit per book PLUS the 10th book included free at no charge. We will receive our share of the profit from these sales from the national office.

KEAFCS and county offices will NOT be invoiced for these pre-sold book orders until the end of the year, giving us PLENTY of time to sell the books to cover the cost. We expect shipment of the books to your county office the first 10 days of December.

If you want to look at the book contents and sample pages, go to www.neafcs.org  and click on the "Living Well...More Than a Cookbook" link. Those of us who attended the conference in Birmingham in September had the opportunity to see pages from the book...and we want you to encourage you to order a case, or share a case with another agent. They are beautifully done, full of GREAT information for homemakers, new brides, college kids, everyone who has a question concerning a number of topics that we address as Family Consumer Science agents, available in a book that advertises our profession and our association!

If you have questions about ordering, contact KEAFCS Treasurer Belinda Oldham at boldham@ksu.edu , or KEAFCS President Lori Sporer at lsporer@ksu.edu . --Lori Sporer

MANAGING YOUR EXPECTATIONS - SIZING A SMALL WIND TURBINE TO YOUR LOAD
This webinar will begin a series of three Wind related webinars - one per month starting in October. In November the focus is on Land lease contract for large wind and finally in December will be transmission issues.

*Managing Your Expectations -- Sizing a Small Wind Turbine* to Your Load*
*October 15, 2009 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. CST

*Target Audience: Inservice webinar for extension educators, agents, and specialists.

*Program Summary: This webcast explains the process of sizing a wind turbine to a specific load. Topics to be covered include: wind characteristics, sources of wind data, estimating wind turbine energy production, sizing and selection example, and small wind turbine economic analysis. This presentation will give participants the tools they need to evaluate the performance and economics of a small wind turbine project.

*Presenter: Antonio C. Jimenez - National Renewable Energy Laboratory/National Wind Technology Center
Mr. Jimenez is a member of the NREL Wind Powering America team. His activities include administering NREL’s Native American Anemometer Loan Program and providing analysis assistance to tribes contemplating wind energy projects. Other work includes, leading DOE/NREL’s small wind turbine Regional Test Center project, development of wind farm financial analysis and small wind analysis tools, wind project economic impact analysis, outreach to the cooperative extension community, and co-authoring two hybrid system application guidebooks. A commissioned officer in the U.S. Army Reserve, Mr. Jimenez worked on reconstruction in Iraq as a project manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He holds a B.S. in engineering physics from the University of Colorado and an M.S. in mechanical engineering from Colorado State University.

*How To Connect: On October 15, start connecting 5 minutes prior to the start time of 11:00 CST. You need to have a computer with Internet access with speakers. At the meeting time, copy and paste this URL into your browser to enter the meeting: http://connect.extension.iastate.edu/unl/ . At that URL you will find a login page. Click on “Click to Enter” under the “Enter as a Guest” heading. You will then be prompted for your name. Enter your name and click “Enter” to enter the meeting space. The audio portion of the meeting will come through your computer speakers. Anytime before the meeting you can visit the following URL to confirm your ability to connect to the Breeze server: http://breeze.extension.iastate.edu/common/help/en/support/meeting_test.htm . --F. John Hay,  Extension Educator University of Nebraska - Lincoln Biological Systems Engineering

COUNTIES AND DISTRICTS ENCOURAGED TO APPLY FOR CECD INCENTIVE GRANTS
The KSU Center for Engagement and Community Development is interested in funding efforts that link local needs and project efforts through the work of KSRE with campus based resources. The incentive grant program offers funding up to $15,000 for projects important to the success of KSRE programming. Projects that agents are working on that link directly to important community outcomes are high priority projects for CECD as well. If you have any questions about the granting process, please contact Dan Kahl or David Procter at cecd@ksu.edu .

Applications for this round are due November 2. More information about the grants can be found at: http://www.k-state.edu/cecd/funding/grants.htm . --Dan Kahl, dankahl@ksu.edu

4-H REPORTER BOOKS DUE NOVEMBER 2 AT 5 P.M.
Just a quick reminder that Extension Units may submit their outstanding 4-H Reporter Books for evaluation no later than Monday, November 2, 2009. They may be delivered or mailed to the Department of 4-H Youth Development, 201 Umberger Hall, KSU, Manhattan, KS 66506-3404. Recognition is provided by the Kansas 4-H Foundation.

For additional details, please check the October 2009 KS 4-H Tip Sheet or the 4-H Awards page at http://www.kansas4h.org/DesktopDefault.aspx?tabid=238 , and scroll to the bottom item. --Gary Gerhard ggerhard@ksu.edu

MENTOR WORKSHOPS -
All extension agents, area faculty and others who are interested are invited to attend an upcoming mentor workshop. These will be held on Tuesday, November 10, in Scott City; and Thursday, November 12, in Emporia. These workshops will focus on the role that various partners in K-State Research and Extension play in the success and professional development of new agents.

For additional information and registration information, go to the Employee Resources website at www.ksre.ksu.edu/employee_resources . Click on Registrations in one of the purple boxes in the lower center of the page.

For questions, contact Stacey Warner, swarner@ksu.edu ; or Margaret Phillips, margaret@ksu.edu . --Stacey Warner

CREATING COACHES FOR COMMUNITY CHANGE EFFORTS
While the term "coaching" often brings Friday night football first to mind, coaches today work with more than athletes. Personal life coaches work with individuals; executive coaches work with leaders in the private and public sector; and community coaches work with local leaders and community organizations.

Coaching for communities is new concept for Kansas. Simply stated, coaching for community change is a strategy that helps community leaders plan for, and overcome challenges to progress and community development. Coaching offers a hand in keeping community leadership or groups focused on long-term vision and priority goals despite setbacks. Coaching helps communities be purposeful and strategic about initiating, implementing and sustaining change. What might result from having regularly scheduled "coaching consultation sessions" with a community group to help them stay focused, consciously planning for inclusion, and thinking about long-term impact?

K-State Research and Extension and the Center for Engagement and Community Development are working with a network of other collaborators in Kansas to encourage the development of community coaches through a series of trainings in 2010 and 2011. If you are interested in exploring the idea of becoming a community coach - contact Dan Kahl in the Kansas PRIDE office. As coaches are trained over the next 18 months, we will be linking PRIDE and other interested communities with coaches. More information on the community development academy and the community coaching academy is available at www.ksu.edu/cecd/cda . --Dan Kahl dankahl@ksu.edu

SPRING ACTION CONFERENCE 2010
Spring Action Conference will be held April 7 and 8, 2010 at the Highland Hotel and Convention Center in Great Bend, Kansas. An agenda and further details will be sent at a later time. A block of rooms has been reserved under K-State Research and Extension. The room rate is $60 per night. Please make your reservation by calling 620-792-2431 or 1-866-212-7122. You can make your reservation now but no later than March 23, 2010. --Linda Lamb llamb@ksu.edu

PUBLICATIONS AND VIDEOS SITE CHANGE
Thanks for your calls and comments regarding the new "Publications and Videos" site at http://www.ksre.ksu.edu/library/DesktopDefault.aspx . Our staff has been working for many months to update this huge site. Unfortunately, equipment failure forced us to roll out the product before we had a chance to test and refine it. Fortunately, it has given us an opportunity to learn how many of you use it and what you need from it.

We ask for your patience -- and your suggestions -- as we work toward the goal of a site that will allow you to easily check prices, print out a single copy, place an order, or preview a list of items by topic.

Please forward comments and questions to me. I will respond -- and pass the technical ones to appropriate staff. --Nancy Zimmerli-Cates nancyz@ksu.edu

AUGUST/SEPTEMBER EXTENSION AGENT PERSONNEL CHANGES
Melissa Thomas, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Edwards County, changed her name to Melissa Schlegel on August 22, 2009.

Chelsey Wasem, Horticulture Agent in Johnson County, resigned effective September 2, 2009.

Sherrie Mahoney, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent in Central Kansas District #3, retired effective September 3, 2009.

Frannie Miller, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Rice County, resigned effective September 5, 2009. Frannie has accepted the position of Pesticide Safety and Integrated Pest Management Coordinator in the Department of Entomology.

Leah Robinson, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent in Central Kansas District #3, transferred from Kearny County effective September 6, 2009.

Kendra Baehler, 4-H Youth Development Agent in McPherson County, transferred from Reno County effective September 6, 2009.
--Stacey Warner swarner@ksu.edu