TopicsOctober 10, 2023
- Message from the Associate Vice-President and Director of Extension
- Arizona Winter Viticulture Symposium
- Building Benson Water Resilience
- Yavapai and Maricopa Candidate Seminars
- Requesting CRED Team Evaluation Support
- Job Openings
- New Publications
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Message from the Associate Vice-President and Director of Extension
Last week, I attended the Ag 100 Council meeting in Phoenix. Ag 100 is a 501(c) 3 that supports the College of Agriculture, Life and Environmental Sciences. The initial group was made up of the top 100 agricultural leaders in the State. Today, Ag 100 is open to all and works to build a network of donor support for CALES students, researchers, and Cooperative Extension. The group continues to grow, and it was great seeing so many CALES Unit heads in attendance. Presentations were made on several research initiatives, including a virtual fence, manufacturing guayule, and the Novo Nordisk grant supporting culinary medicine. There was also a round-robin session with the CALES Academic Unit heads, which included Kathryn Stoner, SNRE; Ken Wilund, SNSW; Scotty Merrell, ACBS; and Laura Scaramella, AETI. Ag 100 does much to support our students within CALES, and although they have “Ag” in their name, the Council supports all of the college’s majors and is a critical resource to CALES. Many thanks to everyone involved in Ag 100 for their support. If you want to get involved, more information on membership and the advocacy of Ag 100 is available here.
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Arizona Winter Viticulture Symposium
The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension is hosting a FREE Viticulture Symposium for the Arizona wine industry to deliver educational programming for the vineyard as well as a “Growing Season in Review” workshop, where growers can discuss what went right, what could be improved, and how UArizona Extension can provide support for challenges and priorities.
When: 7:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. December 6
Where: University of Arizona Controlled Environment Agriculture Center, 1951 E. Roger Road, Tucson
Presenters and will include: Mat Halldorson: Vineyard Irrigation Management; Alex Hu: Pathology; Shaku Nair: IPM for Arizona Vineyards; Debankur Sanyal: Soils and Fertility; Danusia Szumowski, Small Business Development Center: Helping Businesses Grow; Jeremy Weiss: Weather; Climate Growing Season in Review Workshop
The symposium is FREE but registration is required, and space is limited. Contact Sierra Sheeks at ssheeks@arizona.edu to register or for more information.
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Building Benson Water Resilience
The University of Arizona Water Resources Research Center in partnership with Cochise County Cooperative Extension’s Water Wise program, is pleased to host Building Benson Water Resilience. This partnership stems from the WRRC’s Arizona County Water Factsheet initiative and the release of the Cochise County Water factsheet in 2022. County Water factsheets draw from a wide range of public water-related data and are developed with the help of local water experts into an accessible resource for a general audience. The Water Wise program has been conducting water education and conservation in Cochise County for nearly 30 years, working with youth and adults on topics ranging from the water cycle to rainwater harvesting, native plants, and more. The Building Benson Water Resilience event will cover how water availability in an arid climate has shaped agriculture, land and water management, as well as conservation strategies being applied locally. Featured speakers include local residents presenting on regenerative agriculture and groundwater use myths and best practices with additional representation from local organizations like The Nature Conservancy and Kartchner Caverns State Park.
What: Building Benson Water resilience
When: 5 – 7:30 p.m., October 19
Where: Cochise College - Benson Center, Room 113-115, 1025 State Route 90, Benson
Food will be provided.
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Yavapai Assistant Small Acreage and Food Production Area Agent Candidate Seminars
Yavapai County Cooperative Extension is hosting Associate/Assistant Small Acreage and Food Prodcution Area Agent candidates Jackee Alston and Laura Davis on Thursday, October 26 at 9:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. The presentation will be on Building and Strengthening a Vibrant Small Acreage and Food Production Extension Program in Yavapai & Coconino Counties. There will be time after the seminar for Q&A.
When: October 26, 9:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m.
Where: Yavapai County Cottonwood Annex 10 South 6th Street Cottonwood, Arizona
Yavapai Assistant Livestock Agent Candidate Seminar
Yavapai County Cooperative Extension is hosting Assistant Livestock Agent candidate Kathryn Hazlewood on Tuesday, October 17, 2023 at 1:15 pm. Kathryn will present on Building and Strengthening a Vibrant Livestock Extension Program in Yavapai County. There will be time after the seminar for Q&A.
When: 1:15 p.m., October 17
Where: Yavapai County Cooperative Extension, 840 Rodeo Drive, #C, Prescott, Arizona; or via Zoom at this link. Password: 386617
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Maricopa County 4-H Agent Presentations
The Maricopa County Cooperative Extension has interviewed two candidates for the 4-H Agent position. Please take some time to contribute to the selection process, and provide your input. Below are the links for recordings of both presentations, CVs, and the link for the evaluation form:
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Requesting Community Research, Evaluation and Development (CRED) Evaluation Support
CRED is excited to have more dedicated time this year to support Cooperative Extension and its program planning, proposal writing, and evaluation efforts. While CRED will continue to focus on evaluation capacity building by offering training and workshops on topics that Extension personnel have told us are important, we are also available to all Extension programs to help with using the Statewide Needs Assessment materials, writing proposals, program and evaluation planning, designing surveys, program evaluation, analysis, and reporting.
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Job Opening
Extension Specialist (Assistant/Associate/Full), Program Evaluation – The Norton School of Human Ecology is seeking an Evaluation Specialist (rank to be determined). This position serves as a leader, partner, and resource in program planning and evaluation for the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension system and communities and organizations across Arizona. With expertise across the spectrum of evaluation (including strength/needs assessments, developmental, process, and outcome evaluation), the Evaluation Specialist provides leadership, coordination, and capacity building in program planning and evaluation to support data-informed decision-making and effective communication regarding needs and program impacts with an array of stakeholders. The Specialist will maintain a program of extension, research, and scholarly outreach in community-based program evaluation in content areas relevant to UACE and Norton School expertise. This position will involve 60 percent Extension, 30 percent research, and 10 percent service. This is a continuing track (i.e., tenure track) position. For more information or to offer recommendations or nominations, contact search committee Chair Dan McDonald at mcdonald@arizona.edu. Please share this position profile link with your professional networks.
Area Assistant / Associate Agent Commercial Horticulture, Willcox – This continuing eligible Assistant/Associate Extension Agent position will work with a dynamic team of professionals developing and delivering community outreach programs that provide research-based, objective informal agriculture education in Cochise County, Arizona (80%), Graham County, Arizona (10%), and Small-Scale Horticulture/Value Added & Specialty Crop Production in Cochise County, Arizona (10%). The position is based in Willcox, Arizona. The primary focus of the position will be to develop and deliver education and assistance in the areas of commercial fruit, nut, vine, and vegetable production, small-scale horticulture, and specialty crop production. In addition to outreach, the agent will develop and conduct applied research, produce scholarly Extension publications, present at conferences and meetings, and pursue grant funding to support research and program work. This position is administratively and programmatically responsible to the County Extension Director and the Director of Arizona Extension and is located at Cochise County Cooperative Extension. Click here to view the posting on the UArizona Talent website.
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New PublicationLauren McCullough
What is community engagement? The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention defines community engagement as, “the process of working collaboratively with and through groups of people affiliated by geographic proximity, special interest, or similar situations to address issues affecting the well-being of those people." Community engagement addresses the core concerns of residents and stakeholders by engaging them in a process of initiating, drafting, and implementing community-based programs. Community engagement guides collaboration and communication among organizations, stakeholders, and the public to create sustainable community-driven change2 Some community-based programs may seek to solve a specific problem, others may involve policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changes.
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