A reminder that there will be a Breeze conference call today at 10:00am for some general discussion about the latest budget announcements (and to dismiss the many rumors going around). To participate, go to breeze.ltc.arizona.edu/aabo/ and sign in as a guest. This is open to all county and on-campus faculty and staff, as well as any other interested parties.
"QBQ! The Question Behind the Question: Practicing Personal Accountability in Work and in Life" by John Miller. Whether you have read this book or not, you will benefit from this Professional Development opportunity brought to you via eXtension in a presentation by Floyd Davenport of Iowa State University. When faced with challenges and change we sometimes ask questions about why these things are happening. Bad questions result in bad answers. If we ask better questions, we will get better answers. Go to connect.extension.iastate.edu/p31823095/ to view the presentation (approximately 50 minutes). Provided by the Professional Development Working Group.
Arizona 4-H was recently awarded a planning grant from CSREES to convene a national think tank to identify three new 4-H initiatives to help address the growing awareness of "nature deficit-disorder" and connect young people with the outdoors. From January 13-15th, 35 national experts (10 from Arizona) from a wide variety of fields and affiliations came together at the Biosphere II to engage in some deep thinking to identify some innovative ways to engage and connect young people with their immediate environment. Three initiatives were identified by the group—(1) 4-H adventure family camp (in partnership with the American Camp Association); (2) sustainable food systems program for youth and families; and (3) a 4-H nature explorations program. Members of the think tank will continue to work on refining these ideas so that they can be developed into proposals for funding. Participants have agreed to work over the next year to make these ideas come to life.
Extension will now be using a Web-based program for peer review of our CALS Extension publications. Because we need a placeholder in the CALS publication database, the process starts the same — the author still fills out the Publications Planning Form (cals.arizona.edu/ecat/pubs/pubplanning); however, the Publication Approval Sheet and 4 copies are NO longer used. After you fill out the Publications Planning Form you will be given directions to go to FastTrack (ace.expressacademic.org) where you will submit your publication electronically. The first time you go into FastTrack you will need to register. Department Heads/School Directors (called Associate Editors in this system) will then electronically send the publication out for review. Contact Ed Martin (edmartin@cals.arizona.edu) or Sheila Merrigan (merrigan@cals.arizona.edu) if you have questions.
Scholarship applications for the Arizona 4-H Youth Foundation are now available on the Foundation's Web site (cals.arizona.edu/4-h_foundation/). Click on the "4-H Scholarships" (cals.arizona.edu/4-h_foundation/2008%204-h%20scholarships.htm) link on the left. Applications are due in the Foundation office by Monday, February 26. Counties have earlier deadlines for their processing, so plan accordingly. For any questions, contact Peggy Beaston (pbeaston@cals.arizona.edu) (520.621.7211).
The Summer Agricultural Institute is a five-day program designed to teach K-12 educators about food and fiber production and to help them incorporate that knowledge in the classroom. The Institute combines hands-on learning about agriculture with practical curriculum development. The institute will run from June 15-19 and the tuition fee is $85. Participants must provide their own transportation to and from Phoenix. Accommodations, meals and travel during the Institute are paid for by the Arizona Foundation for Agricultural Literacy. The UA offers up to 3 graduate level credits for completing the Institute and teachers can receive 48 CEU's. For application or questions, contact Gerry Parker (parkerg@cals.arizona.edu) (602.827.8200, ext. 389) or write to PO Box 61682, Phoenix, AZ, 85082-1682. You can download the application at http://cals.arizona.edu/agliteracy/summer.htm. Registration deadline is May 1. The Summer Agricultural Institute provides participants with free classroom materials to help educate students about agriculture and participants will visit a variety of agricultural operations, spend an entire day at the UA's research farm, visit schools with active agriculture education programs, and spend one night on a working farm.
James A. Christenson, Ph.D.
(jimc@cals.arizona.edu)
Associate Dean and Director
Arizona Cooperative Extension
Forbes, Room 301
Tucson, Arizona 85721
520/621-7205
520/621-1314 FAX
TMN submittal: http://cals.arizona.edu/extension/tuesday/submittal_form.html