In honor of Washington’s Birthday (Presidents’ Day), ECOP Monday Minute will return on 2.23.15.
FY 2016 Budget Priorities for Advocacy – Rick Klemme, ECOP Budget and Legislative Committee Chair and ECOP representative to the APLU Board on Agriculture Assembly Budget and Advocacy Committee, University of Wisconsin, will meet with colleagues 2.10.15 to finalize FY 2016 budget priorities. Decisions and supporting documents will be posted at www.land-grant.org. Additional details about the USDA portion of the President’s FY 2016 proposed budget can be found at http://www.obpa.usda.gov. Check http://www.csrees.usda.gov/about/offices/budget.html for the expected posting of the USDA-NIFA brochure related to the FY 2016 Budget.
ECOP Launches Innovation Inventory Project – Keith Smith, Extension Director, Ohio State University, has been retained by ECOP to develop a Cooperative Extension Innovation Inventory. The purpose of the qualitative study is to determine what innovation in programming, resource development, and administrative processes are underway as Cooperative Extension launches its second 100 years. The report will frame an October 2015 Cooperative Extension meeting where Directors/Administrators will have opportunity to learn characteristics of an innovative organization and what it takes to lead one. Cooperative Extension directors and administrators responsible for day-to-day operations will be contacted by phone.
Measuring Excellence in Extension (MEiE) Team Meets in DC – Joe Zublena, MEiE Implementation Team Chair, North Carolina State University, meets February 18-19, 2015 in Washington, DC to continue work on the password protected portion of the web site at www.landgrantimpacts.org designed specifically for Cooperative Extension Directors and Administrators. The purpose is to report management data (e.g. personnel, funding) that can be shared amongst institutions. For questions on how to submit data, contact Scott Cummings, s-cummings@tamu.edu, 979.847.9388.
Food Systems Leadership Institute (FSLI) Invites Applications – Applications for a new FSLI cohort, designed to launch new leaders for food and agriculture research, Extension and academic programs, are being accepted. See www.fsli.org for details.
World Conference Paper Deadline Extended – February 15, 2015 is the new deadline to submit papers for the June 24-26, 2015 GCHERA conference in Kaslik, Lebanon. GCHERA is the Global Confederation on Higher Education Association for Agricultural and Life Sciences. The 2015 conference theme is “Nutritional Security and Environmental Sustainability for Human Health.” See www.gchera.org for details. Ian Maw, APLU Vice President for Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources, is GCHERA vice president.
