Skip to main content

UM System Engagement Week

Tune into UM System Extension and Engagement Week (EEW) from October 24-26!
 
Each year at EEW, UM System faculty and staff engage in professional development, learn about the work being done by their UM System colleagues and leaders beyond the UM System and explore opportunities to advance their work through partnerships. Previous EEWs have led to huge impacts for Missouri:
  • In 2019 we focused on broadband. Today the UM System Broadband Initiative helps create blueprints for digitally connected communities.
  • In 2020, we focused on workforce development needs. This led to the formation of the UM System Workforce Development Workgroup, which has led initiatives to help managers lead and work with multigenerational workforces.
  • 2021, which focused on health, included the grand opening of the Roy Blunt NextGen Precision Health Building.
What initiatives and impacts will come out of EEW 2023?
 
This year's theme is "All Things Youth." Missouri's youth are our future. The opportunities they have and challenges they face will shape our communities, our state and the world for decades to come. It's up to today's leaders and educators to create the conditions needed for today's youth to thrive. EEW will be an opportunity for UM System faculty and staff to explore challenges related to youth development and identify opportunities to address those challenges through collaboration with youth development leaders in UM System and around Missouri. Register now at the link below!
 
Key events for this year's EEW include:
 
  • What My Generation Needs From You (Keynote Session). Orion Jean, 2021 TIME Kid of the Year, will discuss what the next generation needs from adults to build a brighter future for all.
  • Engaging Youth When School’s Out. Individuals who work with youth every day in Out of School Time (OST) settings will discuss how OST programs support youth development and the opportunities they afford young people.
  • Spotlight on University of Missouri System Engagement. Presented by UM System President Mun Choi and Interim UM System Chief engagement officer and interim Vice chancellor of Extension and Engagement Chad Higgins.
  • All Things Youth: State Agency Perspective. Key leaders in youth development will explore challenges and opportunities for youth and families. Panelists include:
    • Lisa Dierking, Coordinator of School-Based Mental Health/Office of College and Career Readiness for Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE)
    • Keith Dietzschold, State Director for Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at DESE and State FFA Advisor
    • Dr. Heidi B. Miller, Chief Medical Officer at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services
    • John Ginwright, Family Support Division Deputy Director at the Missouri Department of Social Services (DSS) and board member for the Missouri Reentry Program Steering Team and the Government Contact Center Council
    • Sherry Moller, Senior Program Specialist, Children’s Division at DSS
    • Donna Brake, Special Projects Manager at the Missouri Department of Higher Education & Workforce Development and President Elect, Missouri Association for Workforce Development 
  • Youth and Mental Health. Dr. Kristin Hawley, director of The Center for Evidence-based Mental Health, will describe the current youth mental health crisis in the U.S., provide an overview of the research evidence on youth and family psychotherapies, and explain current efforts to improve dissemination and implementation of these evidence-based treatments into community-based services. She will also present a model program in Boone County that includes a range of evidence-based assessment, referral and treatment services for youth and families.
  • K-12 Education: College and Career Readiness. Travis Plume from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education will discuss the state of youth college and career readiness in Missouri.
 

 

Reviewed 2023-09-06