ECOP Gathers Info for Ag Statistics MOU

The ECOP Monday Minute writers will take a hiatus next week to pay homage on Memorial Day to those who have sacrificed all for freedom. Have a safe start to the summer of 2023. 

ECOP Gathers Info for Ag Statistics MOU - This past week the ECOP Executive Committee asked members of the Cooperative Extension Section of the BAA to provide current information on USDA National Agriculture Statistics Service surveys. The intent of the effort is to test the need of modernizing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the agency that is scheduled for renewal this summer. The current MOU recognizes the value of the long-standing collaborative relationship between the Section and NASS, "to address common concerns among all the agriculture communities across the United States." The deadline to respond is May 30. To request a copy of the specifics, link to the brief survey, or acquire more information, contact Sandy Ruble, sandyruble@extension.org, before the deadline.

2023 NEDA Sunset Supper Experience - The 2023 NEDA Meeting is October 10-12. On the evening of October 11, after a morning of business and leadership dialogue, Extension Directors and Administrators and their national partners will be shuttled by coach bus to the 1-acre Tucson Village Farm to experience Extension community partnerships in action. After guiding small group tours, 4-H Teens will serve a 4-5-course Sunset Supper with organic foods they have raised onsite. The youth will have worked with local chefs to plan, prepare, and share information with Extension Leaders from across the whole system. Watch email for the release of registration to attend. 

Call to Action for Research Facility Act Continues through June 1 - ICYMI, last Wednesday Doug Steele, APLU FANR VP, provided the status of the FY2024 House Ag Appropriations Bill and reminded everyone within the Board on Agriculture Assembly to work with APLU Council on Governmental Affairs (CGA) representative, to consider contacting your state’s House Members asking them to support mandatory Farm Bill funding for RFA by June 1. Detailed resources are available at land-grant.org or by contacting Caron Gala cgala@aplu.org. 

New CMC Representative

The Communications and Marketing Committee (CMC), a standing committee of the Board on Agriculture Assembly's Policy Board of Directors, oversees and guides the effort to increase awareness of the land-grant universities’ agricultural and related programs, Agricultural Experiment Stations, and Cooperative Extension Services. Shelly Nickols-Richardson (pictured left), Associate Dean, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences & Director, Extension and Outreach, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, was chosen by ECOP as the CMC Incoming Chair. Shelly will liaise between ECOP and CMC several times each year for her 3-year term. The appointment targets one of ECOP's four Strategic Directions, to "increase the visibility and recognition of the Cooperative Extension System as a provider of evidence-based education and services and as a valuable partner to federal and national non-federal entities through improved communications of program impacts and successes." Shelly has also served on the Executive Committee of the APLU's Commission on Economic and Community Engagement (CECE; Class of 2021). Please join ECOP to thank Shelly for representing the entire Cooperative Extension Section with the CMC.

Identifying Professional Development Needs for Extension - Cooperative Extension professionals from 1862, 1890, and 1994 Land-grant universities are invited to participate in a survey to identify professional development needs. The survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. Findings from this survey will be used to determine future direction for the Extension Foundation and be shared across Cooperative Extension organizations. Please widely share this link to the survey https://virginiatech.questionpro.com/t/AVkR8ZyDIj and encourage Extension personnel to participate by May 22, 2023. Karen Vines, Virginia Tech, is serving as the Foundation’s National Needs Assessment Fellow for this work.

Non-Traditional Skill Development Collaboration

Video Recording: https://youtu.be/cbGkS_YETOo

Last Friday, May 5, 2023, members of 2 APLU Board on Agriculture Assembly Sections, Academic and Cooperative Extension, convened to build the national dialogue for collaboration with 3 different learning audiences. The unique Learning for Leaders event covered:

• Youth Audiences - Extended learning opportunities for 4-H with college pathway development; 4-H projects for meaningful high school or college credit such as tech camps, and more.
• College Student Audiences - Summer and semester long Internships, undergrad scholar programs. Apprenticeships with stackable credentials leading to academic credentials that include students and adult learners.
• Adult Learners and Workforce Development - Continuing education, certifications, digital badging, micro- credentials. 

Examples of these innovations be found by reviewing the YouTube recording with these slides. Next steps in collaboration will be considered during summer leadership meetings.  

AFRI Education and Workforce Development RFP - AFRI Education and Workforce Development (EWD) funding focuses on developing the next generation of research, education, and extension professionals in the food and agricultural sciences. The range of awards is $20,000 - $750,000. The closing date is Thursday, December 7, 2023. There are various competitive funding opportunities available to the Extension System. To explore AFRI EWD, visit NIFA's website here.

Increasing Food Security for Military Families - OneOp is mobilizing family service professionals at federal, state, and local levels to focus on expanding food security for military family populations throughout the country with the 2023 Military Family Readiness Academy (MFRAcademy) call to action for Military Families and Food Security. An estimated 24% of our nation’s active-duty service members and their families are food insecure. Extension educators can help! The 2023 MFRAcademy is a multidisciplinary approach to alleviating food insecurity needs within the military family community. Please share this opportunity widely during the month of May when many states and non-profit organizations are celebrating National Military Appreciation Month. 

Program Action Teams Take Center Stage

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A significant portion of last week's ECOP meeting in Bloomington, MN was devoted considering the successes of and opportunities facing the national ECOP Program Committee (PC) Action Teams (PATs). Each of the PATs are featured at pats.extension.org. 

ECOP established the APTs to connect Extension professionals, provide program leadership, build partnerships, and explore nation-wide opportunities for the Cooperative Extension System. The PATs received $305,500 of seed funding from ECOP, and with the support from NIFA and Extension Foundation went to work on behalf of the System. 

The activities and successes of each PAT are available in this 12-page report. 

Success is measured by:

• Multi-state cooperation/collaboration on key Cooperative Extension System (System) programming areas
• Increased funding for the System
• Active involvement of NIFA, other Federal Agencies, and many liaisons Experiment Stations, Regional Rural Development Centers, and Private Partners
• Identification/cultivation of current and new partners external to the System
• Alignment of work of System-related groups with similar goals