ECOP Monday Minute 9.23.13 - Strategic Opportunities and Measuring Excellence Database

Strategic Opportunities and Measuring Excellence Database – The ECOP database at www.excellenceinextension.org has been rebranded to include expanded salary data, the ability to input and retrieve impact statements, and new options for charting data. Scott Cummings, who manages the database, reports that of the 75 institutions in the Cooperative Extension Section, 35 have reported excellence data and 27 institutions have reported impacts. For more information on how your institution can be represented, contact Scott at s-cummings@tamu.edu. 

Galaxy IV Update – Among highlights of the Galaxy IV Conference last week in Pittsburgh, ECOP Chair Daryl Buchholz received the prestigious Ruby Award from Epsilon Sigma Phi http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KcIHoc1EUmY; the forward-looking, outwardly-focused Cooperative Extension centennial celebration was launched www.extension100years.net; Chuck Hibberd, ECOP Personnel Subcommittee co-chair, facilitated a discussion of the 21st Century Extension Professional Project, and ECOP chair-elect Jimmy Henning escorted and introduced USDA Secretary Vilsack for a keynote address. ECOP met during Galaxy. Action included approval of the 2014 budget, acceptance of the Cooperative Extension vote to continue the SNAP-Ed assessment for three more years, and a discussion of next steps for eXtension following release of the external review. 

Executive Director Search – The Northeast Extension Directors ask your help in identifying qualified candidates for executive director, replacing Linda Kay Benning who retires this year. In the national Cooperative Extension Director and Administrator structure, this position dedicates 25 percent full-time equivalent to national goals of ECOP and other time on regional priorities. The job announcement is available here with review of applications beginning 10.4.13. 

FY 2013 Capacity Funds – USDA-NIFA has an updated website providing final allocations for capacity/formula funds. See http://www.nifa.usda.gov/business/awards/formula.html and here for a summary of how the agency calculated the final total funding levels for various FY 2013 programs. 

Household Food Security – USDA Economic Research Service has a new release on food security in the United States. Seehttp://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/err-economic-research-report/err155.aspx#.UkBo57zlUUs. "Ensuring an abundant and safe food supply for all" is a strategic priority for Cooperative Extension. See http://www.aplu.org/document.doc?id=4096.  

ECOP Monday Minute 4.8.2013

SNAP-Ed Updates – 1) FY2014 Guidance and FY2014 estimates for the state SNAP-Ed allocations are now available here:  http://snap.nal.usda.gov/national-snap-ed/snap-ed-plan-guidance-and-templates  2) Regulations that amend Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to implement Section 28 of the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, to award grants to States for provision of nutrition education and obesity prevention programs is available here:  http://www.fns.usda.gov/SNAP/rules/Memo/pdfs/SNAP-Ed_Interim_Rule.pdf 3) The SNAP-Ed assessment invoices from APLU have been calculated and sent to the universities by regular mail.

Strategic Opportunities and Measuring Excellence Website and Database Now Open -- As demonstrated in San Antonio at the NEDA meeting, this website and database have been redesigned and rebranded as a joint ECOP effort between the Strategic Opportunities and Measuring Excellence efforts. Updates at http://www.excellenceinextension.org include expanded salary data, the ability to input and retrieve impact statements, and new options for charting data.

ECOP National Task Force on Health Navigator Fact Sheet Now Available -- The ECOP National Task Force on Health would like to share a Navigator Fact Sheet from University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Health Insurance Literacy Initiative. The fact sheet outlines several potential roles of Cooperative Extension related to recent health reform legislation. The document was highlighted at the recent National Extension Directors and Administrators meeting held in San Antonio (see full presentation here).

NAREEE Board Releases Extension Report -- The National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education and Economics (NAREEE) Advisory Board, which makes recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture and Congress has released its August 27, 2012 report and recommendations about Cooperative Extension. This is based on presentations and discussions at the Spring 2012 meeting of the NAREEE Advisory Board in College Station, TX. The NAREEE Board is authorized through the farm bill. The report is posted at http://nareeeab.ree.usda.gov/reports-and-recommendations-0.

Local Food Systems Dialogue -- Go to http://glennschool.osu.edu/web-dialogue/ to sign up as a participant in the National Extension Web Dialogue on Local Food Systems. All opportunities are in May 2013. The Ohio State University is guiding this work in partnership with the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development.

FEMA Youth Preparedness Council -- Please alert 4-H Program Leaders about this nomination process. Participants, age 12-17, are expected to represent the youth perspective on emergency preparedness and relay information within their communities. Nominations and applications are due April 19, 2013. For details, see www.ready.gov/youth-preparedness.

Webinar on 'Energy 101' course developed by APLU & U.S. Department of Energy 4.10.13 -- The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities joined the U.S. Department of Energy, the University of Maryland and the Environment and Energy Study Institute to unveil an interdisciplinary model curricular framework called 'Energy 101' designed to challenge college students at two and four-year schools to systematically explore the science and social science behind sound energy decision-making. It will also introduce students at an early point in their college experience to a variety of energy careers. The full press release can be found here. A webinar will be held April 10 from 2-4 p.m. (ET) to describe the model framework and its use in the development of a pilot course now being taught at the University of Maryland. Sign up for the webinar here.