ECOP Monday Minute 4.29.13

ACTION: Nominate Extension Professionals for Awards – The ECOP Program Subcommittee chair, Mary Jane Willis, Rutgers University, and Personnel Subcommittee co-chair, James Trapp, Oklahoma State University, together with USDA-NIFA, encourage you to submit applications for the 2013 Excellence in Extension and Extension Diversity awards. Awardees will be honored at the November 10-12, 2013 APLU Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. This is an opportunity to celebrate exemplary work of individuals and teams, gain notoriety for your university, and showcase how Cooperative Extension extends knowledge and changes lives. Application deadline is June 1, 2013. Details will be sent to all directors and administrators and associate directors and administrators in a separate email in order to provide unique access links to the online nomination forms.

SAVE THE DATE: 21st Century Extension Professional Webinar – ECOP member Chuck Hibberd, University of Nebraska, invites you to an update on the 21st Century Extension Professionals Project during a webinar 2-3 pm ET, Thursday, June 20, 2013. In addition to learning more about the critical skills and attributes of today’s Extension professional, participants will have opportunity to contribute additional insight to the findings and focus on applications. To participate, go to https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/ecop.

EDEN Update on Avian Flu – ECOP liaison to the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN), Nick Place, University of Florida, alerts you to the new EDEN H7N9 Topic Page on H7N9. H7N9 is an avian influenza which until now has not been known to infect humans. The EDEN Avian Influenza Response Team is hosting a webinar 11 a.m.- Noon, Thursday, May 2, 2013. The link is https://gomeet.itap.purdue.edu/h7n9/. Information also will be available from the EDEN Community of Practice at www.extension.org. At this time, H7N9 is a human health concern, especially for those traveling to China, and is not an issue for the poultry industry.

NEDA 2013 Evaluation – Thanks to the 104 Cooperative Extension Directors and Administrators and other invited guests who attending NEDA 2013 March 18-20, 2013 in San Antonio. The meeting evaluation is at https://www.aplu.org/document.doc?id=4458.

4-H Legacy Awards Recap – National 4-H Council held its annual 4-H Legacy Awards Gala in New York City on April 18th. A special THANK YOU to the 40+ current and previous Extension Directors and Administrators from all five regions who sponsored a table at the Gala for the 4-H Youth in Action award winner! Now in its fourth year, this special evening of celebration honors the remarkable achievements of individuals and corporations that have made lasting contributions to 4-H. Since its inception, the 4-H Legacy Awards have raised more than $2 million in support of 4-H programs.  This year, the 4-H Legacy Awards honored Tractor Supply Company (TSC) with the Corporate Leadership Award, Oklahoma 4-H’er Elisabeth Willis with the 4-H Youth in Action Award, and Temple Grandin, Ph.D. with the Distinguished Alumni Medallion. Dr. Grandin is a world famous animal scientist, researcher and professor at Colorado State University, known for her revolutionary work in the livestock industry, and as an animal welfare and autism activist. Her life story sparked a self-titled, award-winning HBO film starring Claire Danes, who joined the celebration by video to present the award. For more information on the 4-H Legacy Awards Gala and its honorees, visit www.4-H.org/gala.