FOCUS ON FACULTY & ADMINISTRATION:
- I would like to thank Colin Kaltenbach for his double duty as Dean and Director of the Experiment Station office for CALS while Gene Sander was Provost and also thank Jennifer Smith for all her support and leadership.
- Congratulations to Chris Jones who received a Fulbright for his 2009 sabbatic in Guatemala .
- Patty Merk ( Maricopa County ) and Evelyn Whitmer ( Cochise County ) have been selected by the Arizona Early Development and Health Board to serve on First Things First Regional Councils in their counties. The regional councils were created by Proposition 203 in 2006 as decision-making entities regarding the $150 million endowment created for early childhood from tobacco taxes.
- Congratulations to Cynthia Flynn who was presented with the FISH Award (Fresh Ideas Start Here) at last week's County Extension Director's meeting. Cynthia received the award for her acumen in the transition of leadership in Maricopa County and her role as Special Assistant to the Director for Leadership Development.
- Congratulations to the following faculty who received promotions and/or tenure or continuing status effective July 1: Lynne Borden (FCS) and Ursula Schuch (Plant Sciences) – promotion to Specialist; Marta Stuart (Yavapai County) – promotion to Agent; and Evelyn Whitmer (Cochise County) -- promotion to Associate Agent and continuing status.
- Effective immediately, Darcy Dixon is chair of the County Extension Directors, with Kurt Nolte as chair elect. I would also like to thank Jim Sprinkle for his work as the CED elected chair for the past year.
FOCUS ON STAFF:
- I would like to welcome Jenni Perez , Office Assistant, to the Extension Administration offices. After Tony Stevens moved on to another position on campus in the Eller Business College, Jenni became the successful candidate and began working part time for us while she finished off some obligations in her previous position. As of yesterday, May 5, she is with us full time at our front desk and taking calls on our main line. So, if you call in, please welcome her aboard.
- Sheila Merrigan (Program Coordinator, Extension Administration) has been elected president-elect for USAIN (United States Agricultural Information Network) and Carla Casler (Principal Research Specialist, OALS) was awarded the Special Achievement Award "in recognition of her leadership in developing the USAIN website into a major stop on the Agricultural Information Highway and for her long record of outstanding service". USAIN is a national organization for information professionals that provide a forum for discussion of agricultural issues, takes a leadership role in the formation of a national information policy as related to agriculture, makes recommendations to the National Agricultural Library on agricultural information matters, and promotes cooperation and communication among its members. Congratulations to both of them!
WATER SUMMIT REPORT:
I want to thank Ed Martin , Sharon Megdal , Jeff Schalau , Kitt Farrell-Poe and Channah Rock for coordinating and facilitating the Water Summit held at the Swede Johnson Building last week. Over 40 Extension professionals attended the workshop, sharing ideas and planning future collaborations and programming for water issues in Extension. Presenters also included Mike Proctor , Susan Pater , Monica Pastor , Kurt Nolte , Chuck Hutchinson and Lisa Graumlich .
O'BRIEN ENDOWMENT AWARD CALL FOR PROPOSALS:
In our continued support of diversity efforts within the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and Cooperative Extension, I am announcing the Call for Proposals for the College of Agriculture & Life Sciences (CALS) James P. & Shirley J. O'Brien Endowment. Proposal guidelines and instructions, information on the endowment gift agreement, and examples of previous award proposals and reports are available at the following links: Proposal Guidelines and Instructions , Endowment Gift Agreement, Previous Award Proposals and Reports . Proposals are due by May 30, 2008 . Please note that this award differs from the Shirley O'Brien Diversity Award (administered through the Dean's Office) that was designed to honor individuals who have contributed significantly to the advancement of diversity within CALS. If you have any questions, contact Jim Christenson or Steven Crofts (520.621.7145).
POSTAGE INCREASE, METERS AND MORE:
A reminder that the price of First Class postage will increase to 42 cents on Monday, May 12. Additional info (including information on the Forever Stamp and a chart of the new rates) is available at http://www.usps.com/prices/welcome.htm. With current postage meters being decertified by the end of this year, options for our county offices range from replacing current equipment and meters with simple scales and label printers (for about $400) to replacing all equipment and meters (in the thousands). We will soon begin some investigation into these options to share with all county offices.
PUBLICATIONS:
Two publications have been updated and are available online: 1) Weed Control for Wheat and Barley in the Low Deserts of Arizonaand 2) Alfalfa Weed Control in the Low Deserts ofArizona – both by Barry Tickes and Michael Ottman .
A new publication is available online: Well Owners' Guide to Ground Water Resources in Yavapai County by Kristine Uhlman and Rachel Hill.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
- The CALS 2007-2008 Retirees' Reception will take place on Tuesday, May 13 at 3:30pm in the Forbes Building lobby. Light refreshments will be served. Retirees who will be honored are: Amir Ismail Ajami (CALS International Program), Kimberly Barkman (Norton School of Family & Consumer Sciences), Margareta Berggren (Nutritional Sciences), Carolyn Bonner (Maricopa County Cooperative Extension), Lyle Browning (La Paz County Cooperative Extension), Timothy Dennehy (Entomology), Lynne Durrant (Mohave County Cooperative Extension), William Hanekamp (Agricultural Education), Theresa Hanley (Pima County Cooperative Extension), Kathryn Hatch (Agricultural & Biosystems Engineering), Lynn Joens (Veterinary Science & Microbiology), Carol Knowles (CALS Development & Alumni Office), Joanne Littlefield (Educational Communications & Technology), Phyllis Reid (Nutritional Sciences), Marguerite Santucci (CALS Administrative Services), Victoria Steinfelt (Yuma County Cooperative Extension). If we have missed someone or you have any questions, contact Maria-Elena Moreno (520.626.2013).
- Mastering Organic Certification Workshop , May 30 , Pima County Extension Office, 10:00am-3:00pm. This workshop will be presented by Joan Quinn who is the Marketing and Education Coordinator for the New Mexico Organic Commodity Commission. She will discuss the step-by-step procedures to obtain organic certification for farms, ranches and orchards. Backyard gardeners are also encouraged to attend if they are interested in organic gardening. The State of Arizona does not have an organic certification program. The cost is $10 for lunch and a large binder with all the information needed to become organically certified. To attend, contact Rob Call (520.384.3594). The cost of this workshop is being defrayed with a grant from Western SARE .
- UA Water Resources Research Center 's Annual Conference: “The Importance of the Colorado River to Arizona 's Future”, Tuesday, June 24 , Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, Phoenix . The last day for early bird registration is Thursday, May 15 . You can register and view the updated agenda at: http://ag.arizona.edu/AZWATER/events.php?rcd_id=65. For more information or questions, contact Jane Cripps (520.792.9591).