July 7, 2020
Edition Topics
- Message from Dr. Silvertooth
- Congratulations Bill Brandau
- Congratulations Pinal County
- Pima County Master Gardeners, now on Zoom
- Associate Director ANR Interview Zoom Presentation
- New Publications
- 2019 WRRC Annual Report Now Available
- Major Zoom Update July 19th
- Nominations for the Shirley O'Brien Diversity and Inclusion Award
- 2020 Climate and Drought Outlook for Beef Producers Webinar
- Desert Southwest Soil Health Webinar
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Message from the Associate Dean and Extension Director
Last Thursday marked the 56th anniversary for the passage of the Civil Rights Act, signed into law by Lyndon B. Johnson on 2 July 1964. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 stands as a landmark law regarding basic civil rights and labor law in the U.S.
This legislation outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Very importantly, it also prohibits unequal application of requirements for voter registration and racial segregation in schools, employment, and public accommodations.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 demonstrates how the laws of the land can change via the legislative process and the stroke of a pen in the hand of the President. However, changes are manifest in the fabric of our society and happen more slowly over time, which can sometimes take decades or generations to change. Many of the core issues associated with the recent civil strife we have seen in Arizona, and across the country, are associated with the provisions in the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension System (CES) is a public entity designed to connect the university to everyone in the state and to bring science to bear on practical problems that Arizona communities are dealing with. I am proud to be part of an organization that works to serve all citizens of Arizona regardless of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.
It is a good time to remember that change is possible, we can progress in a positive manner, and the CES serves as vehicle of change by demonstrating our values by how we work and serve the communities of Arizona.
To learn more about CES’ commitment to diversity and inclusivity, visit our online Legal Disclaimer.
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COVID-19: Employee Resources
Please enter any questions, comments, concerns, or additions you'd like to see on this space in the comments section on the FAQ page!
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| Congratulations and Thank You Bill Brandau
Bill Brandau's last day in Cooperative Extension was June 30th. After 13 years of leading Graham County Cooperative Extension, Bill retired.
Thoughts about Bill as our County Director from the Graham County Office:
We appreciate all of the encouragement, help, support, and pushes Bill gave each of us. We have seen a lot in the 13 years Bill has been with us.
Some of the things we have learned from him are:
People are real people, they have emotions, feeling, and need support. They don’t just do
their best without some encouragement.
He allows people to open doors and see what is on the other side. If it doesn’t work, we at
least knew. And if need be, Bill will help us find out how to close the door or make it better.
With Bill there are no walls, just different roads, but no walls.
He has allowed us to grow as a person and explore our dreams.
This might sound kind of mushy, but this is what Bill is to the people that work with him, not for him.
Thank you Bill for all you have done for Cooperative Extension and Graham County.
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Congratulations Pinal County - ALVSCE Outstanding Team Award
Congratulations to the Pinal County Cooperative Extension Sensory and Developmental Team for being awarded the ALVSCE Outstanding Team Award. This team includes Esther Turner, Jennie Treadway, Tammy McCarville, Karin Larimore, Shevonda Joyner, and Flo Bargo. The Outstanding Team Award was created to recognize and honor unusual dedication and outstanding contributions by a team of Division of Agriculture, Life and Veterinary Sciences, and Cooperative Extension (ALVSCE) employees.
Together this group has provided high quality screenings in the areas of hearing, vision and development to thousands of children 1-5 years old in Pinal County, particularly, those children most vulnerable. This exemplary programming has informed the implementation of multiple Cooperative Extension grantees in other counties, thus helping thousands more.
In conjunction with the community screenings, the team has committed to attending Stakeholder meetings through the Rulemaking process for hearing and vision screening over the past several years. They have also participated in several community forums and workgroups to assist in the curriculum development for the ADHS Sensory Program.
Beyond their day-to-day screening programming in Pinal County, multiple individuals in this team are part of an elite group of trainers for the state that certify hearing and vision screeners, including certifying school nurses, child care providers, and beyond. These trainings are almost always done free of charge and have already taken place in over 4 counties statewide; taking extra measures to reach rural and underserved areas of the state. All of these trainings are amazing examples of the level of education that Cooperative Extension has the ability to provide.
This exceptional team not only works well together, but also exemplifies what statewide impact and quality educational programming looks like through Cooperative Extension. As individuals, each member of this team is a top-notch contributor – and together they are exemplary in their conduct in our communities, in their efforts to educate and inform, and in their service to Pinal County and the state of Arizona.
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| Pima County Master Gardeners, now on Zoom
When UA/CE pivoted to remote work on March 13th, the Pima County Master Gardener program had to postpone dozens of pre-planned outreach activities, including a full spring schedule of free talks on home horticulture topics. It was a sad day in March when we called our various partners at 11 Pima County libraries and cancelled our scheduled events. Days later the library system itself closed its doors to the public altogether.
Rather than scrap the presentations that had been prepared though, our incredible Master Gardener volunteers set about investigating and learning alternative platforms to deliver their educational talks to the public. After gaining proficiency with Zoom through peer-to-peer training, the Pima MG program went "live" with their first virtual offering, "Warm Season Vegetables" on June 12th. We advertised the first live Zoom session on Monday June 8th and over 100 people had registered before the end of the day. The demand was so great that our MGs immediately set about setting up and offering a second session on the topic- which also promptly filled.
Between June 12th and 25th our "Library Talks" team facilitated 11 live sessions by Zoom on several topics. These sessions have been attended by a total of over 810 participants. That's about 80 attendees per session or 6 times our in-person attendance at a typical session in 2019. The comments in the chat function and on Facebook have been overwhelmingly positive and our team has found it immensely rewarding to "return to service" and to be helping people in the community again.
To see our current line up of July talks, or to submit a gardening question using our new online submission form, visit the Pima County Master Gardeners Cooperative Extension webpage: https://extension.arizona.edu/pima-master-gardeners
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| Associate Director ANR Interview Zoom Presentation
Our next two candidates will give their presentations on July 16 and July 21. Mark your calendars!
Presentation Title: How will your leadership, management, and professional skills allow you to address and meet the needs for ANR in Arizona?
“Please address what you see as two important issues ANR will face in the next five years, one involving your area of expertise in ANR and one in an area within ANR with which you are less familiar and not directly involved.”
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| New Publications
Yuma County Agricultural Interest Survey
Robert Masson
Yuma County is a major agricultural production center in Arizona. Approximately 180,000 acres are used in agricultural, with most growers producing multiple crops a year on the same land, effectively raising annual production levels to over 230,000 acres. Over 175 different crop types are commercially grown in this region: leafy greens and winter vegetables, durum wheat, sudan grass, alfalfa, date palms, cotton, industrial hemp, and many other crops have a place in Yuma agriculture. The Yuma County Cooperative Extension Department is tasked with providing the diverse local agricultural community with educational resources from the University of Arizona. A survey was circulated to the agricultural community of Yuma County to improve understanding of the educational needs of residents by identifying agrarian topics that are most important to them.
Jeremy Elliott-Engel, Donna Westfall-Rudd, Megan Seibel, and Eric Kaufman
Cooperative Extension is a partnership of county, state, and federal governments to fund the translation and community education of applied research from the land-grant university system. Cooperative Extension’s funding since the 1980s has experienced a few key trends such as federal budget stagnation as well as state and county cyclic funding cycles based on the states’ economic health. Accompanying the state-level budget cuts have been calls for Cooperative Extension to reinvent and improve communication about what it does. As budget stability has become a greater concern, ideas around value and return on investment have become more integrated into the messaging about why Cooperative Extension should be funded. These economic terms reflect the integration of neoliberalism’s frame. In a larger qualitative research study about how Cooperative Extension administrators recognize the need for change, funding emerged as a fundamental influence of organization adaptation. The public contract between citizen, legislature, and public-serving organizations has changed to, “What is the return on investment?” To respond to the shifting narrative, it was necessary to assess, measure, and communicate value. However, administrators also recognized relationships mattered to how the message was received by legislators and other funders.
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| 2019 WRRC Annual Report Now Available
The University of Arizona Water Resources Research Center is pleased to announce the publication of its 2019 Annual Report. The report’s theme is enhanced communication, which supports engagement, collaboration, and cooperative relationships. It focuses on our efforts to assist understanding and resolving real-word water resource issues and includes information on our organization, staff, and financial status.
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Major Zoom Update July 19th
Zoom continues to strive for tighter security within meetings. Please see the following details around the latest update coming July 19th, 2020. Once users receive this update, Zoom will require that all meetings have a Passcode or a Waiting Room enabled for all accounts.
Commonly asked questions about this change:
What if I don’t have a Waiting Room or Passcode enabled by July 19?
If neither is enabled, Zoom will enable a Waiting Room for your meetings.
What are Waiting Rooms and how do they work?
The Waiting Room feature allows the host to control when a participant joins the meeting by placing participants in a Waiting Room prior to joining the session.
How will this affect my calendar invitations when scheduling meetings?
If you add Passcodes to an existing meeting, calendar invites will need to be resent to include the Passcode.
This is not the University’s preference as it is easily defeated by social media posts.
New meetings will have the Passcode embedded in the meeting link automatically.
Can I see which of my meetings have Waiting Rooms or Passcodes enabled?
Yes. You can log into your Zoom web portal (arizona.zoom.us), and in the “Meetings” tab see a list of meetings that have been scheduled without a Passcode or Waiting Room. This is indicated with a red warning icon. denotes no password
You can read more about this update here: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articles/360045009111
Please contact your CES IT Professional, Andy Medina (gamedina@cals.arizona.edu), if you have any questions.
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Nominations for the Shirley O'Brien Diversity and Inclusion Award due Sept. 1, 2020
Current faculty and staff in ALVSCE are eligible for nomination and can be nominated for two awards to honor Shirley O'Brien for her exemplary work in promoting diversity and an inclusive environment within ALVSCE and across campus.
- Legacy Diversity and Inclusion Champion for an individual who has demonstrated exemplary leadership for 5 or more years.
- Emerging Diversity and Inclusion Champion for an individual who has shown exemplary leadership by initiating a new program or effort in the past 4 years or less.
Selection criteria, the nomination form, and how to submit nominations are at: https://compass.arizona.edu/awards/diversity.
Contact: inclusive@cals.arizona.edu
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| 2020 Climate and Drought Outlook for Beef Producers Webinar
University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
2020 Climate and Drought Outlook for Beef Producers Webinar
Mike Crimmins, University of Arizona Climate Science Extension Specialist will take a look at Arizona’s climate outlook specifically tailored for beef producers: Where we were last year, where we are now, and what the outlook is for the next few months.
• AZ Climate/Drought Update
• Overview of the 2020 Monsoon Season
• Outlooks for Summer/Fall 2020
• Overview of myRAINge Log for precipitation monitoring on the ranch
TUESDAY, JULY 21, 2020 | 6 PM - 7:30 PM
CONTACT
Ashley Wright
Livestock Area Assistant Agent
Ph: 520-270-7075
Nate Brawley
Assistant in Extension, Livestock
Ph: 928-965-3188
Ph: 520-626-4244
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| Desert Southwest Soil Health Webinar
Thu, July 23, 2020
8:00 AM – 6:00 PM MST
Three part webinar lecture series, staring speakers in industry, government, and the university system; covering the following soil health topics:
Soil Organic Matter – Interpreting Soil Test Results – Structure & Function of Plant Roots – Mycorrhizae 101 – Compost & Cover Crops – Microalgae – Biochar – FDA Soil Health Perspectives – Conservation Tillage – Organic Production – Pesticide Effects – Soil Borne Pathogens – Ag Engineering Pest Control
PCA, CCA, and Pest Control continuing education credits requested for AZ, CA, NM, and NV.
Nineteen speakers from industry, academia, and government offices will be speaking on July 23rd about ways to improve soil quality in the desert southwest. RSVP today!
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