ECOP Resources for Directors and Administrators

The ECOP Monday Minute will be on hiatus until July 12^th. Have a safe holiday weekend.

The ECOP National Office staff tracks all Cooperative Extension Section and ECOP activities and resulting outcomes, notes, organizational documents, operating guidelines, strategic efforts, calendars, professional development resources, and archives for Directors and Administrators. Visit www.extension.org/ecop often and engage in all that ECOP offers in support of the Cooperative Extension System.



Supporting the Ag Research Infrastructure, Research, and Extension in Comprehensive Infrastructure Package - This is a request for assistance in garnering signatures by members of the House of Representative for a letter by close of business June 29, 2021. In addition to supporting the APLU's Agricultural Research Infrastructure Advocacy (ARIA) request of at least $11.5 billion over 5 years for agricultural research infrastructure at USDA-NIFA which the Cooperative Extension Section endorses, this letter in particular states support for Cooperative Extension System funding. 

Communication & Marketing Executive Starts 7/15/2021 - Karla Trautman, Extension Director, South Dakota State University, Chair of the Communications and Marketing Committee, is pleased to announce that Andrea Putman has accepted the position as the APLU Assistant Vice President for Communications and External Partnerships. Currently, Andrea is Senior Vice President at Supporters of Agricultural Research (SoAR) Foundation and has an extensive professional career in communications, outreach, and building partnerships to advance agricultural, climate, renewable and energy efficiency issues. Andrea is known at APLU Board on Agriculture Assembly (BAA) through her work on FedByScience, a collaboration of universities focused on “storytelling” to highlight the value of scientists’ research. To assist in identifying research programs to highlight, Andrea recruited 20 universities and an Advisory Committee of 9 chancellors, vice presidents, and deans. She also writes and oversees Retaking the Field. The Cooperative Extension Section with Experiment Station and Administrative Heads Sections equally funds the position and respective operations through calendar year 2022.



Capitol Hill Event Recording Available - Strengthening Climate Change Adaption, Mitigation, and Resilience through Cooperative Extension: ECOP sponsored a virtual event on Capitol Hill with NCFAR on Thursday, June 3rd on Strengthening Climate Change Adaption, Mitigation, and Resilience through Cooperative Extension. Moderated by Jason Henderson, Purdue University Extension and presented by Roslynn Brain McCann, Utah State University, Moab, Utah, the event had 124 participants, including members of the House and Senate. Extension Directors and Administrators my view the recording and share as appropriate.



National Program Registry Invitation - As was previously reported in the ECOP Monday Minute, to respond to specific requests in regional meetings and through various projects including the CDC funded Immunization Ed project EXCITE, the Extension Foundation has developed a National Registry of Cooperative Extension Programs and Assets. All Cooperative Extension professionals are invited to voluntarily enrich the resource by adding their programs. Please share widely. 

2021 NEDA Registration Begins

Last week the 2021 NEDA Planning Committee announced registration for the 2021 National Meeting, Envisioning the Future of Cooperative Extension - A System Without Borders, to be held October 12-14. For a second consecutive year, the meeting will be held virtually. The purpose of the annual event is to conduct important national dialogue and business by the Cooperative Extension Section. Registration is open exclusively to Cooperative Extension Administrators and Directors of 1862, 1890 and 1994 land-grant institutions and details are found at neda.extension.org. Space is limited to attending leaders, 1 or 2 members of their leadership team, the EDA Team, ECOP Liaisons, and officials of meeting sponsors - USDA-NIFA, Extension Foundation, APLU, and National 4-H Council. The deadline to register is by close of business September 21, 2021. Direct questions about registration to Assistant Director Sandy Ruble, sandyruble@extension.org. Stay tuned to email and the ECOP Monday Minute for the announcements of guest speakers and more details.




Explore New Toolkit - Health Equity & Well-Being Focus: A Resource by and for Extension Directors and Administrators - ECOP’s Budget and Legislative Committee has developed an Advocacy and Education Toolkit - advocacy.extension.org - to provide ECOP leadership and Cooperative Extension System Directors and Administrators with consistent messaging and resources focused on System advocacy and education priorities. These resources include priority language, talking points, and background information for consistency in land-grant university science-to-application messaging. Take a few moments this week to check out the talking points on Health Equity & Well-Being found here. Direct questions and comments to advocacy@extension.org.

 

Extension's Climate Change Forum Recordings Now Available - The recordings from the April 2021, 3-day the Climate Change in Extension: Elevating and Amplifying Action, is now available at https://nationalextensionclimateinitiative.net/events. Extension faculty, staff­, federal representatives, administrators, interested partners and constituents met to address the question: What can/should the Cooperative Extension System do to advance climate change programming? Share this information as appropriate.

New Grant Program to Help Expand Regional Economies and Create High Wage Jobs in Distressed Rural Communities - USDA’s Rural Development Rural Business-Cooperative Service Administrator Karama Neal recently unveiled a new grant program to help rural communities create good-paying jobs and support new business opportunities in high-growth fields. Rural Innovation Stronger Economy is intended to help rural communities identify and maximize local assets and connect to networks and industry clusters within their region. The new grant program encourages a regional, innovation-driven approach to economic development. For more information, see the USDA press release.

NIFA’s Upcoming AFRI RFA Calendar - As requested by stakeholders in NIFA’s Project CAFÉ feedback, NIFA is working to create a more streamlined process. The calendar provides target dates that are subject to change until the RFAs are published in Grants.gov. The current list, now targeted in the May/June 2021 timeframe, applies to continuations, directed and second year RFAs of a multi-year solicitation. Bookmark this https://nifa.usda.gov/upcoming-rfa-calendar and check back often for updates as target dates draw near. Questions regarding this timeline can be directed to either the National Program Leader (NPL) with the associated program or email policy@usda.gov.

Community Development Extension Library Webinar

On, June 15, 2021 at 2:00 PM ET join the North Central Region Center for Rural Development (NCRCRD), Purdue Extension, and University of Illinois Extension for the release of the new Community Development Extension Library website. Participants will be introduced to the site and will learn how to navigate as well as how to submit a resource. There will also be a Q&A session. Register for the event here.

Envisioning the Future of a Cooperative Extension System Without Borders - The ECOP National Office and 2021 National Extension Director and Administrator (NEDA) Meeting Planning Committee led by ECOP Past Chair Mark Latimore, Fort Valley State University, will release the registration for the 2021 NEDA Meeting this week! Watch for official email invitation in the few days or contact Sandy Ruble, Assistant Director, sandyruble@extension.org for details.

The FREE virtual meeting highlights:

• October 12, 2021, 6:00-7:00 p.m. ET, - Virtual Reception 
• October 13, 2:00-6:00 p.m. ET, - Peer-based sharing and leadership learning to create productive environments around tomorrow’s challenges and contribute to a resource document of discussion themes, opportunities and best practices for Director and Administrator reference and future use. 
• October 14, 12:30-5:00 p.m. ET - All voting members may contribute to the business of the Cooperative Extension Section and ECOP actionable items and celebrate the accomplishments in 2020-2021.

NIFA Virtual Stakeholder Listening Session Opportunity - NIFA will conduct a virtual listening session from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. (Eastern) on Thursday, June 17, 2021. The purpose of the virtual listening session is to seek stakeholder input on future priorities for NIFA research, education, and extension programs. Each participant may provide input by speaking for up to 3 minutes. Register online in advance to attend this virtual listening session. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing details about joining the webinar. Send written comments (1-page limit) to: NIFAlistens@nifa.usda.gov by June 24, 2021.

USDA to Strengthen Food System - The USDA will invest more than $4 billion to strengthen critical supply chains, citing lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and recent supply chain disruptions. The new effort will strengthen the food system, create new market opportunities, tackle the climate crisis, help communities that have been left behind, and support good-paying jobs throughout the supply chain. Funding is provided by the American Rescue Plan Act and earlier pandemic assistance such as the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. How the USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways has direct correlation with the success of the mission of Cooperative Extension. ECOP is devoted to "strengthen Cooperative Extension at national, state and local levels". For more information, read the USDA press release.

Urban Extension Session Review

Last Friday, 50 individuals participated ECOP's Learning for Leaders Event, Distinguishing Urban Extension in the System Landscape – Thought leaders’ exchange for future planning and policy. To review the video and companion materials go to:

--> Video link

--> Poll Summaries and Slides

--> Recent article in the Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

Please email us at ecopblog@gmail.com to ask questions or provide further comment. Thank you.

EXCITE Announces Funding Recipients for Activities 1 and 2 - The Extension Foundation, in cooperation with ECOP, through an Interagency Agreement with USDA-NIFA and the CDC are funding the Cooperative Extension System to address health disparities among rural and other underserved communities. The EXCITE program serves all Land-grant universities through two sets of activities: system-wide engagement with the CDC’s Vaccinate with Confidence communication campaign and selected adult immunization education pilot projects. 73 applications for non-competitive Activity 1 funding were received from institutions representing all regions of Cooperative Extension. 30 applications were received for competitive Activity 2 funding involving 38 institutions representing five regions of Cooperative Extension; 24 were selected for funding. Read the full news release here.

ECOP Health Innovation Task Force Hosts National “Big Idea Leadership Summit” - On June 22, 2021, 12 pm-5pm ET, the ECOP Health Innovation Task Force, with support from the APLU Colleges of Human Sciences and Public Health and members of the community health, economic vitality, and workforce development sectors, are hosting a national virtual summit titled: “A Big Idea to Support Thriving Communities: Connecting the Dots of Business, Education, and Health with the Cooperative Extension System”. The goal of this Summit is to convene diverse leaders across the sectors listed above to explore existing initiatives, best practices, partnerships, and programs that bring urban and rural community stakeholders and residents together to concurrently advance community health, education, and economic outcomes. Invitations to participate in the Summit have been sent to each Extension Health Point of Contact and their Associated Extension Director or Administrator. Check out the event flyer for additional information and to register. Please direct questions to the Summit’s leadership – Erik Porfeli (Chair of Human Sciences, Ohio State University) and Michelle Rodgers (Director of Extension, University of Delaware) by clicking here.

Update on the NIFA Reporting System - The first iteration of the research initiation module for Hatch, Hatch Multistate, and Evans-Allen funded projects was successfully deployed on May 28, 2021. This is a significant step in the development of the NIFA Reporting System (NRS) and toward the goal of delivering a fully integrated reporting system for research and Extension projects and programs. NIFA appreciates the input and support provided by the research and Extension working groups and look forward to continued collaboration with our Land-Grant University partners on this project. Resources on how to access and use NRS are located here: https://nifa.usda.gov/tool/pow-nifa-reporting-system. Sign-up to receive invitations to webinars and other updates by sending an email to POW@usda.gov.

Farm Resilience Training Series Opportunity - The University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, the University of Maryland Extension and the Extension Foundation invite Extension Professionals to a unique action-oriented training entitled Engaging Strategically to Build Farm and Farm Family Resilience. This training series will help participants understand the theory-based risk and resilience concepts and explore the resources in two new e-publications: Building Farm and Farm Family Resilience in our Communities - A Guide for Extension Professionals to Engage Strategically and the How to Conduct a Community Forum for Strategic Engagement. Planners of the event ask Extension Directors and Administrators to share this announcement with Extension professionals across all program areas.