The Tuesday Letter
Agricultural Experiment Station & Cooperative Extension Service
Tuesday, July 22, 2014
(Vol. 20 No. 37)
IN THIS ISSUE...
RETIREMENT RECEPTION FOR PHIL SLODERBECK
Phil Sloderbeck is rafting down the river of retirement! Let's celebrate years spent and a job well done.
WHEN: Friday, August 1, 2014WHERE: Southwest Research-Extension Center, 4500 E. Mary Street, Garden City KS TIME: 12:30 p.m. for sandwiches and refreshments. Program to follow.
RSVP to Lynn Harshbarger by email: harshbar@ksu.edu or call 620-275-9164
--Lynn Harshbarger
K-STATE FIELD DAY TO CELEBRATE 25 YEARS OF SUBSURFACE DRIP IRRIGATION RESEARCH
For 25 years, K-State researchers have studied subsurface drip irrigation technology for field crop production. To mark the anniversary, K-State's Northwest Research-Extension Center at Colby will host a special anniversary SDI Technology Field Day on Wednesday, August 6, at 105 Experiment Farm Road in Colby.
The field day, from 2 – 8 p.m., features presentations by K-State Research and Extension specialists in engineering and agricultural economics, plus field tour stops, refreshments, poster presentations on SDI-related topics, a trade show and an evening meal. Producers who are using SDI technology will give their perspective in a panel discussion. The event is free and open to the public but pre-registration by July 28 is required for meal planning purposes. Contact Vicki Brown at vbrown@ksu.edu or 785-462-6281 (phone) or 785-462-2315 (fax) and indicate the number of people being registered. --Mary Lou Peter mlpeter@ksu.edu
K-STATE RESEARCH AND EXTENSION AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES REORGANIZATION UPDATE
Integration of the K-State Research and Extension (KSRE) technology staff with Information Technology Services is continuing this week with the moves of Gerry Snyder, Neal Wollenberg, and Heath Yates.
Gerry Snyder, Instructional Technologist, will be moving to 137 Foundation Center. His number will remain the same, 785-532-1179. Gerry will be working with the Academic Services group within the Office of Mediated Education. Gerry will still be responsible for scheduling and managing the Adobe Connect service for Web Conferencing and working with streaming media.
Neal Wollenberg, Web Developer, will be moving to the Office of Mediated Education. His office will be in 146 Foundation Center, and his number will remain the same, 785-532-1147. Neal will still be assisting with the KSRE CMS and other web applications for KSRE. He is also working as part of a team to develop a strategy to migrate K-State Research and Extension web sites to the K-State Content Management System.
Heath Yates, Systems Programmer, will be moving to the Office of Mediated Education and will be in 139 Foundation Center. His number will remain the same, 785-532-1169. Heath will continue to provide support for K-State Research and Extension web applications.
On August 4, Larry Havenstein, will move to Enterprise Server Technologies as part of the Windows Engineering Team. Larry will be located in 14 Hale Library and his number will remain the same, 785-532-1170. Larry will continue to provide server support and assist with account and listserv management. As part of the integration, we will be moving our account management to use the central campus Active Directory for authentication of KSRE resources. In 2015, we will begin to move servers from our data center in Umberger to the data center in Hale Library. This will allow the campus operation center to monitor and manage our systems more efficiently and effectively.
Poongothai Ammaiappan, Systems Programmer, will be moving on August 4th to the Office of Mediated Education. Her office will be in 139 Foundation Center and her number will remain the same, 785-532-1168. Poongothai will continue to provide support for the KSRE web applications along with Heath Yates. Heath and Poongothai will be working with faculty and staff and the Office of Mediated Education to find ways to provide more efficient support and service for K-State Research and Extension web applications.
Plans are underway to migrate KSRE Tech Support to the Information Technology Assistance Center IT Help Desk and Client Services. We are planning to complete the move during the week of August 18th. We will keep you informed by way of the KSRE Tuesday Letter, K-State Today, and the ITS Reorganization FAQ at http://www.k-state.edu/its/ as we finalize these plans. David Dunn, Gary Kepka, and Steve Spencer, will remain as Computer Support for the Counties, Districts, Research Centers, Area Offices, and Farm Management Centers that they have always supported. Gary will be moving to 214 Hale Library and his number will remain the same, 785-532-1177.
For support calls, call the Help Desk at 785-532-7722 or toll free at 800-865-6143. You can also email helpdesk@ksu.edu. You will still be able to call 785-532-6270 or email ksresupport@ksu.edu. Once the move is complete the 2-6270 number and KSRE support email will be forwarded to the IT Help Desk. After August 18, if you are coming to campus and need assistance with a mobile device or bringing a computer to be repaired, please go to 214 Hale to the IT Help Desk. We suggest that you contact the IT Help Desk prior to bringing a device in for service so that we can attempt to resolve the issue and eliminate the need to bring the computer in for service. For information on the IT Help Desk, go to http://www.k-state.edu/its/helpdesk/. --Joe Lear learj@ksu.edu
MARIE'S PICKS . . .
This week
my picks are outcomes and success stories from Linda Beech, Ellis County:
The noon-hour
program, “Financially Prepare for Disaster,” was held in Ellis County in early
September for National Disaster Preparedness Month. Participants learned the
importance of creating a household inventory and grab-and-go kit. The topics
led to good questions and discussion from the 12 people who attended. On the evaluation,
eight people reported that they intended to take one or more actions to become
financially prepared and gave permission to be contacted in 30-60 days to
follow-up on their plans.
In late November, six of those (50% of original class) participated in
follow-up interviews. All agreed that they believed it was important to get
financially prepared before disaster, and two-thirds reported spending time to
accomplish some disaster preparedness tasks. Most (66%) reported taking action
to make- or start- a financial grab-and-go kit. One person who had not
previously had insurance on her belongings reported that she purchased renters
insurance. Another also reported “I bought a bicycle helmet to put on in the
bathtub to protect me during a tornado since there is no storm shelter in my
apartment that is quick and easy to get to.” All reported sharing this Extension information with others– Extension FCE
groups, church women’s groups, exercise groups and coffee groups in addition to
family and friends. These eight people extended the information to 45 more
individuals, more than a 5-fold multiplier effect!
One participant who works at the Adult Learning Center reported that the “Financially
Prepare for Disaster” information was shared with students as part of their
Patriot Day observation on September 11, 2013. She said, “I went through the
financial notebook explaining the importance of each document. Each student
received the home inventory tool. We also purchased large totes for our English
Language Learner students so that they could prepare emergency supply kits for
their households. Several students commented that they were excited about
making a disaster notebook. I felt the information was relevant and important. Thanks
for sharing your expertise in the community. --Marie Blythe mblythe@ksu.edu
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