CALS had a great new faculty tour the first week of January. Twenty new
faculty, four legislative aides, three central administrative executives and
the CALS Executive Council visited Yuma, MAC, Boyce Thompson Arboretum,
Graham, Cochise, and Santa Cruz counties and many places in between. My
thanks to Barry Bequette who chaired the 4-H alumni event of 350 people in
Yuma and Carol Willis who coordinated activities with about 80 friends in
Graham and Greenlee counties. A special thanks to Merle Jensen and Judy
Smith who did a lot of the hard background work. Overall, a wonderful
experience.
Extension agents and specialists from all over the state met in Tucson on
December 16 - 17, 2003. The conference, organized by water quality
specialist Kitt Farrell-Poe, addressed the wide variety of extension
outreach programs that address water quality, water quantity, and watershed
issues. Participants plan on making this an annual event, to better
coordinate the diverse programs on this important issue.
Effective Thursday, January 15, the Yavapai County Extension Office in
Prescott will move into their new offices. Their new address is 840 Rodeo
Drive, Building C, Prescott, AZ, 86305-2300 and this will be both their
mailing and shipping address (since their PO box will be closed down). All
telephone numbers will remain the same.
TCAI Grants for Cooperative Extension: As a follow-up activity of the recent
TCA Financial Fitness Academy, the TCAI has funded the following agents for
their financial program proposals (for $1,500 each): 1) Sharon Hoelscher
Day, Maricopa County, for refugees and low income families; 2) Linda Block,
Pima County, in collaboration with Pio Decimo and PHASE; 3) Evelyn
Markee/Caroline Hotaling, Cochise County, the G.R.A.P.E. project; 4)
Kimberly Sierra/Marge Carpenter, Pima County, for the Money Savvy Kids
project with the House of Neighborly Service and Pima County 4-H; and 5)
Esther Peterson, Navajo County, for a Native American community project. We
hope to be able to provide financial resources and opportunities to the
county programs, as the TCAI develops further.
UPCOMING DATES:
January 20 - Hands-on Computer Workshop, Maricopa Agricultural Center 37860
W. Smith-Enke Road Maricopa, AZ. 9:00 a.m. - noon. For more information
contact Steve Husman (husman@ag.arizona.edu).
January 21 - Drought Workshop, Holiday Inn, Casa Grande, 9:00am-3pm. For
more information contact Ed Martin (edmartin@ag.arizona.edu).
January 22 - Hands-on Computer Workshop Meeting, either at the Pima or Pinal
County Cooperative Extension Office, 9:00 a.m. - noon. For more information
contact Steve Husman (husman@ag.arizona.edu).