The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
(Vol. 20 No. 19)
IN THIS ISSUE...
ETHANOL USE IN SMALL NON ROAD ENGINES WEBINAR
Ethanol gasoline blends of 10% are ubiquitous. Yet questions and rumors abound about how ethanol blends affect small engines. This presentation will discuss how ethanol blends are different than 100% gasoline and how these changes impact small engines. In particular this presentation will cover the combustion process and how ethanol blends function in small engines. If you have ever wondered about how ethanol impacts your small engines this presentation is for you.
The webinar, “Ethanol use in Small Non Road Engines,” will be Friday, March 28, at 10 a.m. CDT. It will be presented by Edwin Brokesh, PE.Past web seminars on bioenergy topics are archived at http://farmenergymedia.extension.org/videos or http://bioenergy.unl.edu.
Who Should Attend: Anyone interested in Bioenergy and renewable energy. Extension Educators, Professors, State Agencies, Federal personnel, Teachers, College Students, Bioenergy industry personnel etc. How To Connect: --Ed Brokesh ebrokesh@ksu.edu
2014 KANSAS 4-H SPORTSFISHING TOURNAMENT
The Kansas 4-H Sportfishing Tournament is open to all 4-H
members. The contest runs throughout the
year and ends September 15, 2014.
One 4-H Angler of the year will be named in each of the
species listed below. These are fish
commonly found in Kansas waters. Each
Angler of the Year will receive a 4-H Sportfishing cap and tackle box with
fishing gear or comparable prizes (one per individual). All participants that enter a certified
entry will receive a 4-H Sportfishing cap (one per individual).
The following species will make up the contest:
Specie Minimum length for
entry
Catfish 15"
Sunfish 6"
Crappie 10"
Black
Bass 15"
Carp
or Drum 15"
Find complete instructions and rules on the Wildlife Project page of the Kansas 4-H Website: http://www.kansas4h.org/p.aspx?tabid=529. --Gary Gerhard ggerhard@ksu.edu
DEPARTMENT OF 4-H YOUTH DEVELOPMENT RETIREMENTS
Jim Adams, Extension Youth Development Specialist, has
announced his retirement as of May 2, 2014. After 43 years of working for
K-State Research and Extension with 38 years in 4-H Youth Development, Jim is
looking forward to what the future holds for him. We will acknowledge and
celebrate Jim’s contributions at a retirement event on Friday May 9, 2014. Look
for more details to follow. Jim’s responsibilities, particularly his
support of the dog, geology and shooting sports 4-H action teams will be
reviewed and reassigned. After May 2, please direct your questions to
Barbara Stone, bjstone@ksu.edu.
Mary Gehrt, Senior Administrative Assistant, 4-H Youth
Development, has also announced her retirement from the Department of 4-H Youth
Development as of March 17, 2014. Mary has provided office support for
many 4-H project areas and has been the liaison to the Kansas 4-H Foundation
accounts. During her tenure of over 8 years, Mary’s greatest reward
was her work with the 4-H recognition and scholarship programs. Effective immediately, please direct any questions you may have, including Kansas 4-H Foundation financial accounts, to Keli Yungeberg, keliy@ksu.edu. --Barbara Stone bjstone@ksu.edu
ASK THE OEIE EVALUATOR: IMPLEMENTATION FIDELITY AND ADAPTATION, STRIKING THE BALANCE
In the previous Ask the OEIE Evaluator installment, we discussed implementation fidelity across seven areas of focus when considering consistency of program delivery according to design. In this installment, we provide guidance on areas of acceptable program adaptations and ones to avoid.
Where can I make program adaptions, while at the same time staying true to implementation fidelity?
While we don’t want to stray far from the developer’s recommended program or curriculum implementation guidelines in order to increase the likelihood of producing the desired results, we recognize that many educators may face the tension of changing the program’s content or delivery method to fit a particular need. Typical needs fall within population variations and program relevance or limited time and resources.
It is always a good idea to consult with the developer of the program or curriculum before making any changes as a first step. Chances are the developer may have information already available on how best to make adaptations, while ensuring consistency of program delivery. In absence of developer guidance, it is prudent to document changes to track what has been done in case you need to revisit core implementation components of the program. Be sure to include extra planning time to make changes or add evaluation activities to assess the impact of the adaptations.
Adaptations to Accommodate- Language or Cultural References of Target Audience: Translating, interpreting, amending words or phrases or substituting cultural differences to ensure that the language expressed, written, seen, or spoken, or the cultural reference inferred is identifiable to targeted program participants can help assure adequate engagement.
- Images of Target Audience within Materials: Swapping out images to more accurately reflect the target audience may boost enrollment or broaden the appeal of the program or curriculum.
- Aspects of Delivery: Incorporating variations with some aspects of participants’ activities to be responsive to the culture of the target audience may more aptly reflect accepted social norms and increase participant involvement.
- Enhancements within Content: Adding relevant content (either evidence- or practice-based) or other supportive materials, such as out-of-class projects or assignments, may further enhance the experiential learning or mastery of content and expand upon the learning concept.
Changes to a program or curriculum that may take the manner of removing, abbreviating, or reorganizing a program’s content or composition is probably not a good idea. It may diminish the learning experience and interfere with program outcomes.
Adaptations to Avoid - Dosage: Reducing the number of lessons or sessions, the amount of time given to each lesson/session, or the period of time in which participants are engaged in the program may limit participants’ exposure to the material to be learned and compromise intended results. Additionally, elimination of proscribed topics, topic sequence, key messages, or critical skill building components could inadvertently remove essential features of the program that makes it work.
- Delivery: Repressing the extent of participant interaction could minimize practicing a new skill or demonstrating a key concept. Using fewer educators than recommended may lower the ratio of educators to participants, and thereby decrease opportunity for group or individual exchange. And, changing the assumptions or framework of how the program should work may unintentionally shift the purpose of the program.
- Provider Training/Qualifications: Using staff or volunteers who are not adequately trained or qualified may lessen the quality of program implementation.
For sources on this article or to read more about program fidelity and adaptation, please visit the Extension Evaluation Resources website.
Questions about evaluation? Visit the Extension Evaluation Resources website or contact Kathleen Gary, ksgary@ksu.edu or 785-532-5127, at OEIE. --Office of Educational Innovation and Evaluation
MARIE'S PICKS . . .
This week
my picks are outcomes and success stories from Diane Nielsen, Atchison County;
Susan Johnson, Douglas County; and Sharon Erickson-Fryback, Gray County.
* As
the result of attending FNP nutrition education
classes, Head Start families report making changes when
shopping for food, food preparation and food
storage. Proper cooling methods of leftovers is often a change made. One parent commented that their
family seemed to have the flu a lot but now that she is checking
temperature of foods when reheating and storing food, their family has had fewer flu symptoms.
*
Fourteen individuals preserved homemade salsa during the three-hour "Sensational Salsa"
workshop that was sponsored by K-State Research and Extension and the Master
Food Volunteers. In addition, they learned how to preserve using the
water-bath, pressure canner, and freezing.
*
Participants in the Employee level training discussed how they could implement
some of these concepts in their home lives, as well as, how the items learned
would affect their work. One participant in particular was excited to go home
and share her information with her family and to try to calibrate the meat
thermometer, as it was a new concept for her. --Marie Blythe mblythe@ksu.edu
DIVERSITY PROGRAMS OFFICE UPDATE
Happy Spring!
The College of Agriculture’s Diversity Programs Office would like to sincerely thank everyone who participated and supported Black History month this year! Below lists some of the events held during the celebration of Black History Month:
- Tuesday, February 4, Personal reflections on Nelson Mandela’s Legacy was presented by Linda Biehl and shown in the Alumni Center.
- On Monday, February 10, “An evening with Harry Belafonte,” where Harry Belafonte shared some history and inspiring words.
- Tuesday, February 11, a viewing of “Sing your song,” a documentary on the life and work of Mr. Harry Belafonte was presented.
- Friday, February 28, Black Faculty Staff Alliance (BFSA) held the Inaugural Boyer/Switzer Lecture Series in the Hemisphere room located in Hale library.
- The Navigating Difference Training team would like for you to join us as we celebrate Class V as they successfully completed the Navigating Difference training in Wichita. There are still openings for our May, 2014 class in Hays. If interested, please contact Zelia Wiley or Charlotte Olsen with questions.
Feature Events held in March:
- Multicultural Pride Day was held on Friday, March 7. High school students and their parents had the opportunity to spend a day exploring K-state’s campus and learning about college life.
- Kansas Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (KS-LSAMP) Kick-off Meeting was held on Friday, March 14, in the Town Hall of the Leadership Studies building. Thanks to our college administration, John Floros, Don Boggs, Ernie Minton and Steven Graham for being a part of the celebration. We were so pleased to have their support. Dr. James Hicks, LSAMP Senior Program Director of the National Science Foundation, was here to make the official presentation to us and now the work begins. Provost April Mason is the principal investigator, Zelia Wiley is one of the co-principal investigators and Brenee King is the KS-LSAMP project coordinator.
- MANRRS National Conference March 27-30, in Birmingham, AL.
Thank you so much for your continued support of the College of Agriculture/KSRE diversity efforts. Please give your attention as we advertise future diversity events in March and best wishes for a productive Spring 2014 Semester. For those of you on spring break, “Enjoy it.” --Zelia Wiley zwiley@ksu.edu
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