The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, October 01, 2013
(Vol. 19 No. 47)
IN THIS ISSUE...
MULTI-CULTURAL SUMMIT IN GARDEN CITY OCTOBER 10-12
This summit is sponsored by the City of Garden City Cultural Relations Board, K-State Research and Extension, Finney County Community Health Coalition, Garden City Community College, Southwest Human Resource Managers, Garden City Public Schools, and the Finney County Convention and Visitors Bureau.
To
register and for more information, please call 620-276-1175 or mail your
registration and payment to:
City
of Garden City
Diversity
Dinner P
O Box 998 Garden
City KS 67846
Registration deadline is TODAY, October 1, 2013.
Cost
for the Diversity Dinner is $30 per person or $225 for a table of 8. Cost for
the Multi-Cultural Summit is $75 per participant and includes the Diversity
Dinner.
The Diversity Dinner is Thursday,
October 10, 6:30 p.m., at the Clarion Inn. Summit sessions are Friday,
October 11, 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., at the Pauline Joyce Auditorium,
Garden City Community College.
There will be free tours of Sandsage Bison Range, coffee, and walkabout/discovery stations at the Lee Richardson Zoo on Saturday,
October 12, 9-11 a.m.
For
the Community Tours (please indicate number of tour participants)
Bison
Range Tours (9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.)
Coffee
at Garden City Arts (9 a.m.)
Walkabout
Discovery Stations at Lee Richardson Zoo (9 a.m.)
About
the Speakers:
Dr.
Vivian Jackson is a social worker with over 30 years of experience. She is a
member of the faculty of the National Center for Cultural Competence, Georgetown
University Center for Child and Human Development. Wendy
Jones is a research instructor in the Department of Pediatrics, Georgetown
University Medical Center in Washington, D.C. She is a bilingual special
educator and social worker. Dr.
Don Stull is a professor of anthropology at the University of Kansas, where he
has taught since 1975. From 1987 to 1990, Don directed a team of six social
scientists in a Ford Foundation study of changing ethnic relations in Garden
City, KS. For
more information, including how to register, visit www.garden-city.org. --Debra Bolton dbolton@ksu.edu
4-H SUNDAY AT LAZY T RANCH FALL FESTIVAL
Come celebrate 4-H Sunday at Lazy T Ranch during Fall Festival on Sunday, October 6! A special admission price of $4 will be given to those who wear their 4-H club shirt. Additionally, attendees will receive a treat of green fudge from Barbara’s Fudge Kitchen. The ranch is open between 12 noon and 5 p.m. and will provide opportunities for hayrack rides, a pumpkin patch, farm animals, inflatables, the “GIANT” slide, duck races, and much more.
Lazy T Ranch is located at 2103 Zeandale Road, Manhattan, KS. For more information, you can call 785-537-9727 or check out their Facebook page at Lazy T Ranch – Adventures in the Flint Hills. --Chelsea Richmond crichmon@ksu.edu
ITEM(S) WANTED FOR THE 150TH TIME CAPSULE
As a 150th College & Unit Representative, I recently received the following request from Grant Hill, student chair of the 150th Anniversary Time Capsule effort.
Grant explained, "Since you continue to serve as the 150th representative for your respective college/unit, I am requesting that you would collaborate with your faculty and staff about an item that could be submitted for the 150th time capsule.
Our committee is looking for items that embody your organization (as of year 2013 ) in order to preserve its historical significance for the future of K-State. Some items that have already been selected for the time capsule include, a K-State Proud t-shirt, the letter "U" from the Dev Nelson Pressbox, the Master Plan, items for the Sesquicentennial celebration events, etc.
Please select an item that is no larger than 1 cubic foot."
Please send your suggestions to me for an item(s) that we might put in the time capsule on behalf of KSRE by next Tuesday, October 8. That will give us time to decide what to put in the capsule and to collect the item(s) and submit them by the October 18 deadline. Please email your ideas to me at sgraham@k-state.edu. --Steven Graham
STATEWIDE EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS EXERCISE
As part of an effort to improve emergency preparedness, the Kansas
Department of Agriculture is conducting a two-day exercise on October 9-10. Kansas
State University is participating. As needed, K-State Research and Extension
will be assisting.
As our stakeholders become aware of the exercise, they may have some
confusion about it, perhaps even believing the event to be an actual emergency.
If you are contacted, please let people know it is an exercise, not an actual
event. Below is the notice from the KSU Division of Communications and
Marketing. This can be used in your communications.
During the event, we will learn more about how KSRE fits with this type of
work and how we can best support KDA and KSU.
----
Kansas State University will participate in the Kansas Department of
Agriculture's emergency preparedness exercise October 9-10.
The two-day functional exercise, based at the Biosecurity Research
Institute, will enable the state Department of Agriculture and its partners in
other state agencies, federal and local government, industry and the university
to practice the state's foreign animal disease response plan. More than 200
individuals will participate in the simulated emergency that will be based on
the confirmation of foot-and-mouth disease in the United States.
According to Kansas Secretary of Agriculture Dale Rodman, the exercise will
provide valuable preparation experience for the agency and all stakeholders as
well as identify gaps in the response plan.
While you may notice an increased presence of state authorities in
Manhattan, regular campus activity will not be affected.
For more information, contact Mary Soukup, communications director at the
Kansas Department of Agriculture, or the Division of Communications and
Marketing at vpcm@k-state.edu. --Kris Boone kboone@ksu.edu
NCR-SARE GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NCR-SARE) currently has three open calls for proposals that may be of interest to Extension professionals.
The 2013 Research and Education (R&E) program supports sustainable agriculture innovators with competitive research and education grants ranging from $10,000 to $200,000. The current request is for R&E grant preproposals. Deadline for preproposals is October 24, 2013. Preproposals will be reviewed and selected entries will be asked to submit a full proposal. Details are available at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Our-Grant-Programs/Research-and-Education.
Youth Educator will be awarded to youth educators who develop programs to encourage young people and their parents to try sustainable practices and see sustainable agriculture as a viable career option. Projects should help youth discover more about the benefits of sustainable agricultural practices. Grant maximum is $2,000. Youth Educator proposal deadline is November 1, 2013. More information is available at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Our-Grant-Programs/Youth-Educator-Grant-Program.
Farmers and ranchers have the opportunity to submit grant proposals that explore sustainable agriculture solutions to problems on the farm or ranch. Farmer Rancher Grant Proposals should emphasize research or education/demonstration. Three types of competitive grants for farmers are available: Individual grants with a $7,500 maximum, partner grants for two farmers/ranchers from separate operations who are working together with a maximum award of $15,000, and group grants for three or more farmers/ranchers from separate operations who work together with a maximum award of $22,500. Farmer Rancher Grant application deadline is November 14, 2013. Helpful information for completing a proposal can be found at http://www.northcentralsare.org/Grants/Types-of-Grants/Farmer-Rancher-Grant-Program.
All proposals must be submitted to the NCR-SARE Regional Office at the University of Minnesota. Detailed information about all SARE programs and examples of reports from previously funded projects can be found at www.sare.org. --Kerri Ebert kebert@ksu.edu
KS SARE OFFERS SCHOLARSHIPS FOR WOMEN IN SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE CONFERENCE
Kansas SARE (Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education) is offering travel scholarships for Extension agents and farmers who are interested in sustainable agriculture to attend the 4th National Conference for Women in Sustainable Agriculture, Cultivating our Food, Farms and Future, November 6-8, 2013 in Des Moines, IA. http://wfan.org/cultivating-our-food-farms-and-future-2/
Scholarships of up to $500 for Extension agents and up to $800 for farmers are available on a first come first served basis. This is the first time the conference has been held west of Pennsylvania. You won’t want to miss this opportunity to enjoy 42 breakouts, the company of like-minded, dedicated women, arts events, fantastic field trips, locally grown food, and inspiring national keynote speakers!
We encourage Extension agents to share this information with women in their area who are interested in attending the conference. Contact Kerri Ebert at kebert@ksu.edu to learn more about the Kansas SARE scholarships. --Kerri Ebert
ESTATE PLANNING COULD BENEFIT YOUR OFFICE, PROGRAMS
Could one of these benefit your office?
- Private funds to provide a FACS intern annually
- Discretionary funds for the Master Gardener program
- A gift that finances a regional livestock school
These
examples reflect the type of support your office could receive from your
neighbors – if only they knew their options. All of these examples - and many others - can become reality through
estate planning. All too often,
distributing a lifetime of asset accumulations is left to chance. Without planning, it’s exceedingly rare that
one of your neighbors will establish an internship, support Master Gardener
programming, enhance your livestock events or create a scholarship.
The
first step is to promote estate planning. Neighbors with enthusiasm for your programs, a commitment to your
community, and the ability to see “the big picture” can support these and other
programs through a well-crafted estate plan.
They create a personal legacy and your value to the community grows.
My
short presentation will help break down the barriers that keep people from creating
an estate plan and prepare them to visit an attorney. When plans are created, people can support
your office or a scholarship for students from your community. The key is to plant seeds because many people
don’t realize their opportunities.
If you
have an estate planning meeting, Extension Board election or other event that
could include my “Don’t be an Uncle Fred” presentation, let me know. Together, we will plant seeds that will benefit
your neighbors, your community and your programs. --Gordon
Dowell gordond@found.ksu.edu
DIVERSITY PROGRAMS OFFICE UPDATE
Happy Tuesday from the Diversity Programs Office (DPO)! We have had a very busy September!
The K-State MANRRS chapter met on September 25, and it was a special meeting as there were four future employers (Cargill, ConAgra, Frontier Farm Credit, and John Deere) in attendance who talked with students about internships and job opportunities. The K-State MANRRS chapter meets the second and fourth Wednesday of every month. Please stop by to support our students.
The Diversity Programs Office and the K-State MANRRS chapter hosted the regional conference, September 20-22. The regional conference was held at K-State Olathe and we truly appreciate the partnership and collaborative efforts of the K-State Olathe staff, as they truly helped to make this event successful.
This conference was a weekend event, where regional MANRRS chapters fellowshipped together and had the opportunity to engage in professional development; specifically as it regards chapter development. There were 6 MANRRS chapters (K-State, Oklahoma State University, Lincoln University, Langston University, University of Missouri, and the University of Arkansas), and 1 JR MANRRS chapter (Topeka, KS high schools); equaling 80 students. The Cluster delegates also had the opportunity to network with corporations, which included an Industry Panel, graduate student panel, various professional development sessions, and learn about K-State’s Public Health and Veterinary Medicine programs.
We would like to thank our university and corporate partners – K-State’s Office of Diversity, K-State’s Career and Employment Services, (CES), Cargill, John Deere, Eco Passports, Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Monsanto, Frontier Farm Credit, and ConAgra - for helping to make this event such a success.
September 8, the DPO attended K-State Day at the Kansas State Fair in Hutchinson, to help recruit students, by advertising student organizations like MANRRS, and the Project IMPACT/MAPS summer bridge program for incoming multicultural freshmen.
For more information about upcoming events or to collaborate with the DPO, please call 785-532-5793 or contact Dr. Zelia Wiley, Assistant Dean of Diversity, zwiley@ksu.edu; or Carolina Camacho, Coordinator, carolinc@ksu.edu. --Zelia Wiley
SEPTEMBER EXTENSION AGENT PERSONNEL CHANGES
Dusti L. Cason, 4-H Youth Development Agent in Midway District, changed her name to Dusti Betts effective August 24, 2013. Her email address remains dusti@ksu.edu.
Kristen Garcia, 4-H Youth Development Agent in Riley County, resigned effective September 6, 2013.
Dale Helwig, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Cherokee District, began employment on September 8, 2013. His email address is dhelwig@ksu.edu.
Kurt Sexton, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Thomas County, began employment on September 8, 2013. His email address is kurtsexton@ksu.edu.
Deanna Sweat, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent in Post Rock District, retired effective September 27, 2013.
Michelle Buchanan, Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent in Midway District, began employment on September 29, 2013. Her email address is mbuchanan@ksu.edu.
--Stacey Warner swarner@ksu.edu
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