HOLIDAY REMINDERS:
The University of Arizona and our offices will be closed for the holidays and the annual campus closure from Monday, December 24, 2007 through Tuesday, January 1, 2008. Normal business hours will resume on Wednesday, January 2. In addition, this is the last issue of Tuesday Morning Notes for 2007. The first 2008 issue will be on January 8. Have a wonderful and safe holiday season!
FOCUS ON FACULTY:
- Rick Gibson, Pinal County Extension Agent and CED, recently participated in the “Trade Talk” section of the annual meeting (“Dwindling Consumer Confidence in the Nation's Food Supply is a New Challenge for Extension”) of the National Farm Broadcasters Association in Kansas City, Missouri. As President-Elect of the National Association of County Agricultural Agents, Rick was assigned to attend the session and make contact with regular NACAA Donors and attempt to make contact with potential new donors. In visiting with the representatives of national farm-related corporations, he often asked the question, “If you had the chance to give feedback to Cooperative Extension agents and specialists, good or bad, what would you tell them?” Rick says that he received different answers, but the one that made the most impact on him came from a representative of an animal health corporation. He said, “I would tell Extension people that their traditional programs are all well and good, but a critical issue currently needing to be addressed is consumer confidence in the food supply. People are just not sure that the food that they are eating is safe, and that is going to be a major issue for some time to come.” “I wouldn’t use the term ‘food safety’,” he said, “that carries a negative image.” “Use the term ‘consumer confidence’, which carries a positive image.” Later, at a meeting of concerned consumers in Pinal County, Rick said that after talking about all of the safeguards that ensure a wonderfully safe food supply on supermarket shelves here in this country, the last question of the night was this, “But Rick, you haven’t told us which food products to buy and what not to buy, in order to be safe?” Apparently the agriculture business person in Kansas City was not far off in his assessment.
- Thanks to Eric Norton who emceed the Arizona Agriculture Extension Association Winter In-Service Meetings, December 13-14, at MAC. Special thanks to Dave Langston who chaired the auction. Good presentations and good fun.
ANNUAL PERFORMANCE REVIEWS:
APRs for county agents are due on Tuesday, January 15, 2008. For evaluation and other purposes, please make sure your position description is also up to date. If you have any questions, contact Patti B. (520.621.5308) or Robert Armstrong (520.621.3872).
TECHNOLOGY AND INFORMATION NEEDS SURVEY:
Tomorrow is the last day to complete the Technology and Information Needs survey originally announced on December 3-4. This survey is for ALL Extension personnel (administrators, faculty & staff) and is anonymous. We very much appreciate your time and feedback for this survey! We are hoping that results of this survey will help us serve you better. Results of the survey will be used to: 1) provide better tools and trainings to meet your needs, 2) identify needs and allocate funding, and 3) provide the basis for scholarly works. You may access the survey by going to: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=0KnQmGAew4JReWKLdOk5rQ_3d_3d.
We estimate that it will take approximately 15 minutes to complete the survey. Please complete the survey by TOMORROW, December 19. If you have questions, please contact Sheila Merrigan (520.626.6543).
2007-2008 FACULTY SMALL GRANTS PROGRAM:
The Office of the Vice President for Research, Graduate Studies, and Economic Development and the University of Arizona Foundation continue to support the Faculty Small Grants Program. Awards of up to $10,000 are made on a competitive basis for projects involving research or other creative scholarly activity. The Program is intended to provide short-term, one-time support that will "jump start" worthwhile projects and result in data or work products that can be used in developing major proposals for submission to extramural funding agencies or private contributors. Proposals must be submitted online by the submission deadline of 5:00pm on Friday, January 24, 2008. For more information, instructions, grant proposal workshops and the online application form, go to http://vpr.arizona.edu/smallgrants or contact Linda Nultemeier (520.621.3512).
NEW PUBLICATION:
As part of its ongoing effort to serve the water education needs of Arizona citizens, the Water Resources Research Center teamed up with the Water Education Foundation of Sacramento to produce the Layperson's Guide to Arizona Water. The guide meets a longstanding need, offering information about state water issues in a single, reader-friendly publication and is aimed at a wide audience including new arrivals to our rapidly growing state who need to learn about our water ways; long-time residents seeking an up-to-date refresher on current water issues; water professionals wanting a quick reference; policy makers looking for a reliable summary of water facts and information; and the water-interested citizen desiring to learn more about this important topic. Collaboration between the Water Education Foundation and the WRRC enabled the WRRC to offer the Layperson's Guide to Arizona Water free online, as a public service. A free copy can be downloaded in PDF format from the WRRC website (or from the direct link above) or purchased in hard copy format from the Water Education Foundation for $10 per copy (or $7 for ten or more copies). If you have any questions, contact Cas Sprout (520.792.9591, x55)