The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
(Vol. 19 No. 41)
IN THIS ISSUE...
WORD FROM THE ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR - EXTENSION AND APPLIED RESEARCH
Extension reporting, professional responsibility? I want to impress upon each of you that we need you to accept your professional responsibility as an Extension professional and employee of K-State Research and Extension, and fulfill your reporting responsibilities. If you've been doing this, thank you! If not, I hope your thoughts and actions will change upon reading this.
K-State President Kirk Schulz and his cabinet are working with us in selecting metrics that best show the effectiveness of
Extension programming and where our focus will be in the future in reaching audiences and making progress towards identified outcomes. This exercise makes it apparent the importance of each of us being accountable
to the system with respect to reporting our educational contacts and the contacts made through our volunteer leaders. We draw that information through the quarterly reports that each of you complete. Without such reporting, we have no statistical representation of who or how many people we are reaching through our Extension programs.
In the past couple years, we've reported roughly 1.1 million total contacts across Extension programs. Of those contacts, roughly 8.5% are identified as being of a minority / non-white race. Reports further suggest that approximately 7.5% of the total contacts are of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity. In 2013, after 3 quarters of reporting, we are lagging considerably. I'm asking that each of you complete your quarterly
reports. If you are maintaining a log, these reports only take a few minutes of your time on a quarterly basis. Accuracy and completeness are obviously important when we use this data to express the reach we have through our educational programming on a comprehensive basis.
My thanks to each of you who have diligently completed those reports, and I beg of you if you haven't done so, to please do so. If you don't know how or where to find the quarterly reporting template, please go to the KSRE online. Click on "Record Quarterly Effort / Contacts."
This is only one example of the way in which we use these reports. We depend on
the quarterly reports, as well as your reporting outcomes and impacts from your
programs. We regularly share with stakeholders and also use this information in
completing the annual KSRE Plan and Report to the National Institute of Food
and Agriculture (NIFA).
Most people probably do not rank reporting as a priority. I hope you understand it is part of
your professional responsibility. Instead of putting it off, make an effort to
do it accurately and efficiently. Thanks for your attention to this important responsibility, and have a great week! --Daryl Buchholz dbuchhol@ksu.edu
FACULTY/STAFF INFORMATION FOR THE 2013/2014 CAMPUS PHONE BOOK
Student Publications, Inc. is currently developing the Campus Phone Book. Human Resources (HR) provides the faculty/staff information which includes the employee’s name, campus address, campus phone, business or job title, home address, and home phone.
In a few days, a notice will appear in the K-State Today asking employees to verify their personal and job information in HRIS Employee Self-Service and update, if needed. Certain position and job data changes may be made in HRIS by personnel specialists. All changes should be made by August 27, 2013.
This is how employees verify and update information:
To view and update home address and phone numbers, as well as emergency contacts, marital status, and ethnic group, employees should access Personal Information Summary in HRIS (Employee Self Service>Personal Information>Personal Information Summary).
The employee’s home address will appear in the Phone Book if “Print Address and Phone in KSU Campus Phone Book” is marked “Yes” in Personal Information Summary. If it is marked “No,” the home address will not be published.
To view campus address, phone, and business or job title, employees may access View Work Information in Employee Self-Service (Employee Self-Service>View Work Information). This information will represent the employee’s primary job information in HRIS.
Please contact Martha Monihen at 785-532-3076 with any questions. Thank you in advance for helping ensure we have an accurate Campus Phone Book! --Human Resources 785-532-6277
HELP STILL NEEDED AT THE KSRE AND COA STATE FAIR BOOTHS
The College of Agriculture and K-State Research and Extension will once
again have booths in the Pride of Kansas building at the Kansas State
Fair in Hutchinson. The Kansas State Fair runs from Friday, September 6,
through Sunday, September 15. We are celebrating 150 years of
K-State history and 100 years of the Kansas State Fair. An exciting year
for all of us.
We would appreciate
faculty and staff from campus, area offices, counties/districts,
Agronomy Fields, and Research-Extension Centers coming to the fair and
working a few hours in one or both of the booths. Also, we would really
appreciate agents and/or faculty, who are coming to the fair anyway,
signing up to work a couple of hours in the booth before or after your
activities.
Days and times that our KSRE/COA fair booths are open are:
Friday, September 6 - Noon - 7 p.m.Saturday, September 7 - (KFMA taking this entire day)
Sunday, September 8 - 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Monday, September 9 - 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Tuesday, September 10 – 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Wednesday, September 11 - (SG Co taking this entire day)
Thursday, September 12 - 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.(Watershed Specialists assisting with this day)
Friday, September 13 - Noon - 9 p.m.
Saturday, September 14 - 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
Sunday, September 15 - 9 a.m. - 7 p.m.
If you would like to work in the K-State Research and Extension booth, please contact Maria Sweet, marswe@ksu.edu, by August 27.
If you would like to work in the College of Agriculture booth, please contact Sandy Klein, sandy@ksu.edu, by August 27.
We
will be in touch in late August/early September to finalize days,
times, entrance tickets, etc. --Sandy Klein and Steven Graham sgraham@k-state.edu
4-H PROGRAM EXPANSION GRANTS AVAILABLE
We
are pleased to announce the Growing Kansas Leaders: 4-H Program Expansion Grants
for 2013-14, in which we will
partner with an additional 5 local units (district or county) to increase 4-H
membership over the next 3 years. Funding is available through a partnership
with the Kansas 4-H Foundation. Local units currently receiving funds through the
pilot include: Edwards, Grant, Johnson, Reno and Seward.
The
goals of the project include recruiting more volunteers and increasing 4-H
membership, with a focus on reaching new and underserved audiences. Pilot sites
will receive $5,000 for their program expansion efforts over 3 years. An
additional $3,000 will be available for supporting the volunteer screening and
selection process, including background checks. There will also be funds
available for professional development for Extension professionals and
volunteers leading the pilot, technical assistance, and program evaluation
resources.
Deadline for application is October 1, 2013.
The Request for Application (RFA) is available on the Kansas
4-H website: http://www.kansas4h.org/p.aspx?tabid=574.
A webinar is scheduled Tuesday, August 27, to learn more
about the project and what is required to be involved.
Call in information:
1-866-620-7326
Conference Code:
479-963-8009
Web Connect information:
http://connect.ksre.ksu.edu/ks4h/
(Sign in as a guest)
--Barbara Stone bjstone@ksu.edu
KSRE ADOBE CONNECT WEBINAR TRAINING - AUGUST 22, 28, 29 AT 9 A.M.
The KSRE Adobe Connect system will save you time, travel and money. This is a great communication tool to "Connect" to your audience via
the Internet and any mobile device. This system is also great to record and save your presentation for online
playback at anytime 24/7.
KSRE Adobe Connect is free for KSRE and College of Agriculture to use for online meetings, research collaboration, giving online classes and the best available tool for online presentation webinars.
Training is being offered during August 22, 28, 29 online at 9 a.m.
This one-hour session is a
good overview for both new and experienced Connect users. No
registration is necessary. Simply go to http://connect.ksre.ksu.edu/connecttraining/ and sign-in as a guest during the training time.
For more information, visit the Technology site, www.ksre.ksu.edu/technology/, or contact Gerry Snyder, gsnyder@ksu.edu,
IET, 785-532-6270. --Gerry Snyder
WEBINAR: ETHANOL USE IN LEGACY ENGINES
There are a lot of old vehicles around that people care very much about. It may be grandpa’s old tractor, the car they learned to drive in, or the first car they purchased new. Many people have an old something that they keep around to drive occasionally. These vehicles have old or “legacy” engines in them that were designed for use with fuels of the time. Like modern vehicles, modern fuels are much different. This webinar will discuss one aspect of modern fuels in legacy engines—ethanol. This webinar will consider the interaction of ethanol with different materials found in older engines. It will also consider the combustion process and what that may mean for the operation of an older engine. Participants should come away with a better understanding of the care and maintenance of an older engine using ethanol containing fuels.
The webinar, “Ethanol Use in Legacy Engines,” will be Friday, August 30, 10 a.m. CDT. It will be presented by Edwin Brokesh, PE.
How To Connect:Start connecting 5 minutes prior to the start time. You need a computer with Internet access and speakers. At the meeting time, copy and paste this URL into your browser to enter the meeting: https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/agenergy/.
The audio portion of the meeting will be come through your computer speakers. At that URL you will find a login page. “Enter as a Guest” with your name, and business or institution and click “Enter Room.” Any time before the meeting you can visit the following URL to confirm your ability to connect: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/testconnect/.
Past web seminars on bioenergy topics are archived at http://farmenergymedia.extension.org/videos or http://bioenergy.unl.edu. --Ed Brokesh ebrokesh@ksu.edu
GOVERNOR'S WATER CONFERENCE
The Governor's Water Conference will be held on October 24 and 25 at the Hilton Garden Inn in Manhattan. This conference is sponsored by K-State Research and Extension, KCARE, the Kansas Water Office and the Kansas Water Resources Institute. There are several exciting invited speakers. Among these are:
Charles Fishman will be discussing the value of water. The author of two bestselling books: The Big Thirst and The Wal-Mart Effect, he speaks nationally on economic and social issues.
Pat Mulroy, who oversees the Las Vegas Valley Water District and Southern Nevada Water Authority, will talk on drought management.
Dr. James Stack, Director of the Great Plains Diagnostic Network and Professor of Plant Pathology, KSU.
I am encouraging you to register and to seriously consider either a poster or an oral presentation. Registration and presentation/poster submittal and other conference information is available on-line at http://www.kwo.org/Ogallala/Governors_Conference/Governors_Conference.htm, and are due by September 13 (October 4 for student posters).
Registration is $85 for both days (or $50 for single day). Students will be $25 per day registration. There will be a student poster awards program this year (with money awards) and so I encourage you to have your students submit a poster.
Again, please consider attending and/or presenting at the conference. Last year we had over 600 attendees from across Kansas. Please register early as I am limited by the hotel to only 550 attendees this year. --Dan Devlin, KCARE ddevlin@ksu.edu
MARIE'S PICKS...
My pick this week is from the 2012-13 Making
a Difference report submitted by the Adult Development and Aging Program Focus
Team.
Approximately 1.7 million people sustain a
traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year. Kansas is above the national rate for
hospitalizations.
More than 220 people participated in the
educational program, “TBIoptions: Promoting Knowledge,” developed
through a grant from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education and
Extension Service. The overall goal of the program was educating the public
about TBI and the importance of supporting survivors and family members in
their communities.
Outcomes included:
* Ninety-five percent of respondents indicated
they learned something new as a result of their participation in the program.
* Eighty-three percent of respondents indicated
they planned on taking action or changing something in their own lives as a
result of their participation in the program.
* In general, ratings of self-reported knowledge on five different content items increased by more
than one rating level from pre-assessment to post-assessment. --Marie Blythe mblythe@ksu.edu
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