The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, September 04, 2012
(Vol. 18 No. 44)
IN THIS ISSUE...
WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
With the Kansas State Fair just around the corner, and this
being the 100th State Fair, we’ll be unveiling a little surprise for
everyone in a smart phone mobile app for the Kansas State Fair vendors and exhibitors. The project is in partnership with The Hutchinson
News. Be watching for information this
week! My congratulations go to our KSRE
technology team who developed the application!
Kansas State University for the first time is a day sponsor
for the Kansas State Fair on Sunday, September 9. All the colleges will have display booths in
the vicinity of the 4-H Centennial Hall and there will be entertainment on the
Lake Talbot stage all afternoon. Pep
rallies are planned for a couple different times during the day. Thanks for your help in publicizing this
special day and for the help many of you are providing as volunteers at the
gates or in some other capacity! Should
be a great day for K-State at the Kansas State Fair! President Schulz deserves our thanks for his
leadership in wanting to increase the presence and show K-State spirit at the
2012 Kansas State Fair. Be sure to wear
your purple on Sunday, September 9! Go
Cats!!
We just wrapped up a tour for the Congressional assistants
this past week. This is an annual
opportunity to describe some of our research and educational programs and share
impacts. The presentations convey a
tremendous value in the return on the investment of tax dollars. This year among the highlights were the wheat
genetics resource center, the national plant diagnostic network, a newly
forming center for risk management education and research, water conservation
initiatives with the Ogallala aquifer, grain sorghum initiatives, nutrition
education programs, curbing childhood obesity initiatives, and strategies for
growing young leaders through 4-H to name a few. Several more topics were discussed, and the
Congressional assistants were given opportunities to see some of our
facilities. We hope such a tour builds
understanding, connections, and relationships that will help our
representatives and senators to better serve the interests and needs of
Kansans.
I look forward to seeing many of you this coming weekend at
the State Fair! Please wear your name
badge and be a proud professional representing K-State Research and Extension
and Kansas State University! Have a
great week! --Daryl Buchholz
dbuchhol@ksu.edu
MEDICARE BASICS SEMINARS TO BE OFFERED
Are you turning 65 in the next six months to a year? Do you assist your parents with medical issues? Does the word Medicare send a shiver down your spine? Are you confused about your options and what to expect once your insurance changes? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then the Medicare Basics workshop is for you. This free class will help you gain the knowledge you need to make informed decisions.
Choose the location that best suits your schedule:
Monday, September 24, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Dorothy Bramlege Public Library, Junction City
Register with Deb Wood at dwood@ksu.edu or by calling 785-238-4161.
Tuesday, October 2, 6:00-8:00 p.m., Pottorf Hall, CiCo Park, Manhattan
Register on-line at www.riley.ksu.edu or by calling Sharon at 785-537-6350.
--Jennifer Wilson jrwilson@ksu.edu
FALL 2012 CONSERVATION SEEDLING SALES HAVE BEGUN!
Today is the first day of the 2012 Fall Conservation Seedling Sales Season. We have containerized only in the fall, and not as many species, but we still have a great selection. For $50 per unit of 25 seedlings, cooperators can choose between 6 different containerized evergreen species, 6 different containerized deciduous species, and containerized fragrant sumac for our single shrub species. And as always, we have available marking flags, rabbit protective tubes, root protective slurry, tree tubes and weed barrier fabric and pins.
We will ship the seedlings to the desired location for $14 per unit of 25 seedlings. Our season runs through October 12, so if you need seedlings, give us a call at 888-740-8733, order online at www.kansasforests.org, or come by our office at 2610 Claflin Rd. in Manhattan.
If you would like to pick up seedlings at our office on Claflin while you're in Manhattan for Annual Conference, that's no problem. Just give us a call and let us know, and we can make those arrangements. Price sheets and order forms have been emailed to every county, but if you have questions, please don't hesitate to call! --Leslye Haller lahaller@ksu.edu
RETIREMENT RECEPTION FOR MARY LOU ODLE
Please join us as we honor Mary Lou Odle on Friday, October 5, from 2-4 p.m., for her 38 years of service to K-State Research and Extension. The reception will be held in room 109 at the Salina Extension Office, located in the City-County Building, 300 West Ash, Salina, Kansas.
If you are not able to attend, you may send Mary Lou well wishes and cards to 4415 North Sandy Avenue, Salina, KS 67401.
We hope you are able to join us as we celebrate the contributions and impact Mary Lou has had over her Extension career. --Sarah Maass semaass@ksu.edu
DIVERSITY PROGRAMS OFFICE UPDATE
Greetings and welcome back from the
Diversity Programs Office! Our semester
is off to a great start and things have been very busy here at the DPO. Classes are back in full swing and our
students have been stopping by to hang out or get help as they find their
footing for the new academic year. DPO
has also been very busy participating in different events on campus such as the
AG Week of Welcome, the Black Student Union Picnic, a joint Pizza Party with
MEP (Multicultural Engineering Program), and preparing for our first MANRRS
meeting on September 5, at 6:30 p.m. in 137 Waters Hall.
The Diversity Programs Office is
also proud to announce that Kansas State University’s Diversity Programs Office
in the College of Agriculture is a recipient of the Heart of America Black
Expo’s 2012 Grant Fest Award for Education.
The Certificate of Appreciation was awarded on Friday, August 24, at the Grant Fest Awards Reception at the Brown vs. Board of Education
State National Site in Topeka. Other award winners included Douglas S.
Kingsinger (President of the Greater Topeka Chamber of Commerce), Councilman
William Bunten (Mayor of Topeka), Councilwoman Lavonta Williams (Deputy Mayor
of Wichita), Councilman John Alcala, “Can We Talk” Free State High School
Program (accepted by Ed West, Principal), and Dr. Myra Gordon (Associate
Provost for Diversity, Kansas State University).
We are excited to share this
accomplishment with you and the K-State community. The Heart of America Black Expo’s Grant Fest took place September 1 – 3, in Cushingberry Park
in Topeka. For a list of the weekend activities, please visit www.naaausa.com. We would like to thank all of the departments
in the College of
Agriculture for helping
us achieve this award.
As August comes to a close, DPO has
a lot to look forward to in September. DPO
and MANRRS will be participating at the Kansas State Fair on September 9,
at K-State Day to recruit interested students in Agriculture - especially
minority students. Additionally, MANRRS
will be in full swing with meetings scheduled for the semester and plans to
increase involvement in the organization and on campus.
Lastly, the K-State Research and
Extension Catalyst team will meet on September 25 at the
Historical Douglas Center in Manhattan.
Please be on the lookout for more information about this meeting as the
date gets nearer.
The Diversity Programs Office hopes
you continue to have a wonderful semester and is excited to see what is in
store for the year. --Zelia Z. Wiley zwiley@ksu.edu – Assistant
Dean of Diversity, Daja Menfee – Graduate Assistant, Maggie Roque – Practicum
Student, Simone Holliday – Undergraduate Assistant, and Tyler Warta –
Undergraduate Assistant
MARIE'S PICKS...
This week my picks are outcomes and success
stories from Mike Holder, Flint Hills District; and and Tonya Bronleewe, Sedgwick
County.
**Dealing with the economics of drought—Because
of drought conditions that began in 2011 several ranchers felt the need
to make decisions prior to the 2012 grazing season that would put them in a
better position to deal with possible economic impacts of continuing drought.
Several factors were considered including stocking rates, forage resources,
water resources, lease rates, marketing, landowner relations, and many others. Because of early planning and budgeting, several ranchers put themselves in a
position to be flexible and responsive to conditions that could affect their
2012 grazing program. These ranchers were better able to cope with
continuing drought and have been able to soften the economic blows created by
the drought. Those who did the most budgeting and gave the most thought
to all of these factors were in a better position to deal with these issues.
**At the Kansas Master Naturalist
Meeting/Awards Training, 18 class finishers for 2012 received Completion
Certificates. Sixteen Master Naturalist Certificates were presented to those
from the 2011 class who are now officially Master Naturalists because they completed
40 hours of training, 10 hours of advanced training, and 30 hours of volunteer
service. Since 2011 the KMNs have given more than 1,200 hours and impacted
15,450 people.
In late March 2012, in partnership with the
Lawn Care and Irrigation Series by Rebecca McMahon, Horticulture Extension
Agent; and Kay Drennen, City of Wichita Environmental Specialist Water
Resources; we presented a Pond Class. Prior to the presentation, half the class
was not sure what caused algae blooms, and after the presentation every class
participant was able to explain that excess algae was caused by excess
nutrients running off into the pond. --Marie Blythe mblythe@ksu.edu
PART 7 FINNEY COUNTY HEALTH/WELL-BEING ASSESSMENT AND SOCIAL CAPITAL STUDY
As we in Extension look for educational opportunities in
communities, it becomes important to understand the health and well-being issues
on a local level. If you do not have a
local source for a needs assessment, look to other studies among similar
populations, and you can often generalize the data to your own. While this study was done in Finney County,
it is safe to say that its results can be generalized to other rural
populations with similar demographics.
That means it can be useful in many other parts of the state.
Last week we looked at needs and how those items factored
with varying demographics. We treated
health conditions in a similar fashion. We asked respondents what sorts of conditions affected them (the
respondent) and/or the household. The mathematical
insignificant items were what drew my attention first. So much of the research tells us that
Hispanics have a higher incidence of diabetes than Anglo populations. We did not find that in Finney County. Diabetes affected Anglo and non-Anglo
alike. Also in the non-significant realm
were heart disease, lung disease, cancer, alcohol and other drug dependence (p= 1.00), visual impairment, physical
disabilities, and mental disabilities. Keep in mind, the meaning of non-significance here means that both Anglo
and non-Anglo respondents, in this study, were equally affected by the aforementioned
conditions. One group was not more
affected by these conditions than the other.
That is not to say that these conditions were not problematic or chronic,
which in fact they were, which is certainly a call for Extension education in
languages other than English across the board. This is also a call to Extension state specialists, area specialists,
and agents to be thinking about non-English speaking populations when
developing programming.
Of statistical significance in health conditions, as we
looked at Anglo and non-Anglo populations, hypertension jumped out as a blaring
difference. Forty-six percent (45%) of
Anglo respondents reported hypertension as compared to non-Anglo who reported
30%. For overweight and obesity, Anglo =
43%, and non-Anglo = 28%. In general, self-reporting
is not always the most reliable measure when studying people, but this was an
interesting result. Again, it
illustrates that Extension’s health education is needed and is important. Remember non-English speakers when
writing curricula.
Another interesting significant difference was that Anglo
respondents were twice as likely to have arthritis as non-Anglo. Qualitatively, we found that it may have been
a diagnosis issue, and Anglo respondents were more likely to have health
insurance, so they were more likely to have a doctor’s diagnosis of
arthritis. We saw a similar instance in
hearing impairments. For example, 10% of
Anglo as compared to 2% of non-Anglo respondents reported hearing impairment as
a health condition. Again, we think that
it may be a diagnosis issue related to having or not having health insurance. Are there ways to address such issues in
Extension? Data like this makes me think
that we should have asked about occupations to look for a connection to hearing
loss. Would we have seen different outcomes for hearing impairment in non-Anglo
populations?
Next week, we will factor other items related to
demographics with health conditions. --Debra Bolton dbolton@ksu.edu
AUGUST EXTENSION AGENT PERSONNEL CHANGES
Janice St. Clair, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent in Comanche County, retired effective on August 4, 2012.
Barrett Smith, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Kiowa County, began employment on August 5, 2012. His email address is basmith@ksu.edu.
Erin Tynon, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent in Pottawatomie County, began employment on August 5, 2012. Her email address is etynon@ksu.edu.
Byron Evers, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Flint Hills Extension District, began employment on August 13, 2012. His email address is bevers@ksu.edu.
Jonie James, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in McPherson County, transferred from Harvey County on August 19, 2012.
--Stacey Warner swarner@ksu.edu
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