Training during Economically Challenging Times is Even More Critical

There is no argument that there is a direct correlation between quality of on-boarding and agent retention. “Effective onboarding is one of the keys to employee retention,” says Dr. Michael Wesson, Department of Management, Mays Business School, at Texas A&M University. Dr. Wesson emphasized that, “The more quickly employees adapt to your culture and become fully productive, the better chance you have that they will become long-term employees.”

During the past few months it has become easy to get sidetracked regarding some of Extension fundamental needs such as providing high quality onboarding for our new employees.

This systematic approach involves various Extension professionals in the on-boarding process. The involvement of District Extension Administrators, First-Step host agents, mentors, coworkers, Specialists and Regional Program Directors certainly has great advantages in terms of mobilizing resources to address on-boarding needs.

As Texas AgriLife Extension faces challenging times it becomes even more critical that I along with RPD's and most importantly you buy into the process. While there a number of the on-boarding components that our Organizational Development Group provides leadership to, it is important that we serve as the catalyst for all on-boarding functions in District 11.  I will be looking forward to working with our new agents and mentors in addressing our onboarding process again. The following premises are being embraced in making the new on-boarding system successful;

* All members of Regional Teams are responsible for new agent on-boarding.

* New agent on-boarding is a timed learning process where one event establishes the knowledge base for future learning activities that provides progressively more complex training.

* All on-boarding experiences have specific teaching points that are designed to increase knowledge, develop skills, encourage adoption of best practices or lead to the refinement of best practices.

* All on-boarding experiences are designed to give agents “early wins”!

County 4-H Participation Plans
As you know , your county 4-H participation plans are due on August 2nd, 2010. We discussed your expectations at our May 4-H scheduling in La Grange. Some of the plans have already started coming in and they are excellent.  I know that many of you have been giving this process much thought. I look forward to reviewing your plans. It will also be expected for you to incorporate these plans in your plan of work for 2011. If you need a reminder please refer back to my previous post at:

http://coastalbendagrilifeextension.blogspot.com/2010/05/district-11-personal-contribuition.html

New District 11 and 12 Extension Range Specialist
Dr. Megan Dominguez has accepted the position of Assistant Professor and Extension Range Specialist effective September 1, 2010. Dr. Dominguez will be stationed at the Center in Corpus Christi and will cover most of Districts 11 and 12. I know that you will assit me in welcoming her to her new role. We realize that Dr. Dominguez has some huge shoes to fill but I am confident that she will develop into an excellent Extension Specialist.

Monthly Reports
I want to commend most of your for your commitment to reporting and also for your consistency with conducting your office conferences. Just in case you were wondering, I do read the reports and office conference minuets and do appreciate you sending them in on time.

As a reminder : your monthly Texas reports and county commissioners court reports are due on August 6th, please make sure you complete these reports prior to going to any association meetings and or scheduled leave. Thanks DM

"Staying Focused During Challenging Times"

By now every County Extension Agent in the state knows that Texas AgriLife Extension Service is currently facing some challenging economic times which has necessitated a staffing realignment.

This past week has certainly been challenging as I carried out the difficult task of informing those agents, staff members and commissioners courts of the realignment of their Extension positions. It is extremely hard to inform four highly productive agents of the elimination of their position due to no fault of their own. I understand that the morale of agents is very low, but we must work together to continue to provide assistance to our clientele of District 11. During challenging times, agents need to be confident in their leadership, that shows a clear and concise plan for the future!

The following are strategies that we have previously discussed but are certainly worth revisiting as we think about dealing with challenging times;

- Prioritize or re-prioritize. Agents should establish clearly defined goals and ensure that they are  focused with  priorities that align with Texas AgriLife Extension’s Strategic Plan.

-Develop the leaders. During economically challenging times leaders are critical at every level of the organization. These are volunteers in your program that you should invest in their capabilities and leadership. Developing volunteer leaders and cooperators, within your county has a positive impact on morale and productivity. It will also keep your volunteers looking forward with a futuristic focus.

- Don’t reconsider whether you will conduct training; rather, reconsider the method of training delivery. Contemporary methods for delivery provides an alternative way to eliminate costs. Delivery methods such as teleconferences, virtual or remote classrooms, e-learning and podcasts can help to optimize training while avoiding the costs of travel and accommodation.

-Focus on Program Outcomes. Ensuring that programmatic efforts result in measurable programmatic outcomes is critical during economically challenging times.

- Renew focus on communication. Our programs need agents that are confident during challenging times to communicate to clientele that there is a plan for the future.

-Explore methods to increase and diversifying funding sources such as grants for county programs.

-Focus on clientele satisfaction. Clientele talk to each other, elected officials, donors, foundation directors etc. The most effective interpretation is provided by satisfied clientele who voluntarily communicate how Extension has impacted them in a positive manner.

-Focus on program interpretation. The formula for support of elected officials includes good programming, program visibility, and effective interpretation.

As an agent told me yesterday, what concerns me most is the loss of one of my Extension family members. I too am concerned for those four agents, however, their is always a place for good hard working people, I am confidant that these individuals will be able to find another position within our agency or in another area of their choosing. If you have any questions please give me a call.  DM

Monthly Hot Topic Centra Agent Training

Our Regional Program Directors put together a Hot Topic Centra Training each month. This month the training will consist of the Organizational Development Centra scheduled for 10 am this morning July 12th, as a public event on "Identifying Issues with the Leadership Advisory Board"conducted by Dr. Jeff Ripley. Go to Public events on our Web Conferencing Site. There are many good centra programs on the public events calender that you can attend. These trainings can also assit in developing your dossier and curriculum vitae as you look toward applying for promotion. I encourage you to take a look each week at the public events calender and attend the trainings that will benefit you in your job responsibilities.

District 11 Junior Leader Lab is being rescheduled for Thursday, July 22, 2010

The event will still be held at Rockport Beach Saltwater Pavilion on Thursday, July 22, 2010.

If families have a conflict with the new date, the family or the county office will need to email Jodi directly

(j-mcmanus@tamu.edu) NO LATER THAN July 19 to request a refund. Please include the county name and list of registered participants requesting refunds.

All information regarding Jr. Leader Lab including the schedule, map, medical forms, etc can be downloaded from the district 4-H website at:

http://d114-h.tamu.edu/events/jrleadlab.html

Registration for Jr. Leader Lab has been re-opened until midnight on Friday, July 16, 2010. Some families that were not available for the original date are interested in attending now that the event has been rescheduled for July 22.

Multi County 4-H Council Officer Training

We received great reports form this past weeks Muti-County Council Officer Training held at the Coleto Creek Park 10 counties were represented - Aransas, Victoria, Nueces, Goliad, Bee, DeWitt, Calhoun, Matagorda, Jackson, and Refugio....over 70 4-H members and 20 leaders participated.

Thanks to all the agents that promoted participation in this event, and especially to Becky , Sarah B., and Kyle for your leadership in organizing this event, Jodi for your support and to Brian for cooking!

Better Living For Texans Reminders

The deadline for match reports for the 3rd quarter (April 1 - June 30) is July 30th. Please remind all co-workers on the proposal of the deadline.

Teacher match hours, for those county's submitting, will also need to be entered by July 30th and forms due to the Regional office by the 30th as well.

The last day to request a PO for educational supplies is also July 30th. All items will need to be ordered by July 31st and must be delivered on or before August 31st. If items are not received by August 31st, any items on back order or the PO will need to be canceled. Contact Norma for more information.

County Emergency Publication Management Plan

Those coastal and next tier counties that received and email last week concerning your “County Publications Management Plan” need to complete the plan and submit a request for publications to the district office by the end of the week. Thanks to those counties that have replied with your prompt attention to this matter.

Coastal Bend Classic

District 11 agents will provide a new district wide oppertunity for our 4-H livestock project members and leaders . This event is an educational opportunity for youth livestock exhibitors and their families to learn more about caring for and exhibiting livestock.  All 4-H youth in AgriLife Extension District 11 will receive an invitation. However the event will be open to any 4-H and FFA members in our area. Cattle,Goats and Lambs will be the projects featured in the clinics and shows. The event will be held on Saturday December 4, 2010 at the San Patricio County Fairgrounds & Event Center, Sinton, Texas.

A planning meeting of the agents committee will be held during lunch at this weeks recodbook judging in Refugio on Thursday.  Agents on the original planning committe and any other Ag and 4-H agents are welcome to participate in the meeting. Topics of discussion will be programs topics, judges, and sponsorships.

Texas Agrilife Extension Travel Vouchers
Occasionally you will have a need to submit Texas Agrilife Extension Service travel voucher. Please note that the instructions for completion of the travel voucher have been updated. Please pay attention to item 11 (regarding blank 9 on the form) which states that we can now use the UIN in place of the Social Security number for the payee identification number. This is a further move to protect confidentiality of Social Security numbers. More information is located at this link http://agservices.tamu.edu/forms/ag-801instructions.pdf

Agent Reports Due July 7th

Your reports are due by July 7th, complete your TExAS reports, county commissioners reports, and travel. You are reminded that your activity and travel reports are designed for your County Judge and county commissioners. Reports should be sent or hand delivered to your County Jjudge and commissioners on a timely schedule each month. Your monthly 4-H newsletter, timely Ag and FCS newsletters are great interpretation pieces please include copies of your informative materials to your local court members.

Please continue to inform me of contacts with your state representatives, state senator, and or county governmental officials. I want to thank those of you that have kept me informed of your legislative contacts. It is important to include your county and state funding partners in your showcase events.

Weekly Crop Reports

I have not had the opportunity to remind ANR agents of their responsibility to complete weekly crop reports. It is an expectation that you complete this short, timely reports every week. These reports must be completed by early Monday morning. These are very short reports that are used to complete state statistical data. In our recent experience with Hurricane Alex the weekly crop reports are used to gage the progress of agricultural production across our region. The situational reports that are completed prior to a hurricane can be used in conjunction with our weekly reports. If we are to have other disasters such as a tornado, and or fire, we wont have the lead time to complete situational reports. The only documentation of crop conditions we may have would be our weekly reports. I am monitoring your weekly crop reports, it is also important that comments are included in the report as we at the district office musts compile a summary for the state office.

Texas Section Society for Range Management Recognition

Texas Section Society for Range Management is seeking award nominations for outstanding County Agents involved with rangeland management. Winners will be recognized at the Texas Section Annual Meeting in October. The nomination form was sent to all D11 Ag and NR agents, The form is quite simple to prepare. The deadline for submitting nominations is July 15th. Completed nominations and any questions can be directed to:

Jason Hohlt
Grass Roots Awards Committee Chair
jason.hohlt@yahoo.com

D11 Agents in the Spotlight

Most of you have been to the Texas 4-H Center in Brownwood, and have seen the names of agents on the dormitories and plaque in the main building. These are considered Top Ten agents in the state by a nomination process conducted by the 4-H Center staff. We are extremely proud of Sarah Womble for her 4-H program support as she has will be honored as one of the Top Ten Agents. A sign will be placed on one of the dormitories at the Texas 4-H Center in Brownwood in her honor.

The National Association of Extension 4-H Agents has announced the award Excellence in Urban 4-H Programming for the Nueces County, La Armada Gardening and Nutrition project has been selected as a regional winner! The NAE4HA South Region consists of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and the Virgin Islands. This was the second of a three level judging process - it is now being forwarded to the National level for judging. The project has already been awarded 1st place in Texas. Great job and congratulations to Rusty Hohlt, Michael Potter, and Gloria Fernandez-Van Zante.

2010 Texas Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences state award winners. Communication Award Newsletter 2nd place Kathy Farrow, San Patricio County, 2nd Place Written Press Release, Kathy Farrow, Communication Award-Educational Curriculum Package, 1st place Rusty Hohlt, Nueces County. Educational Publication, 1st place Rusty Hohlt. Congratulation's to Kathy and Rusty, agents should follow their lead in applying for these association awards, We do great work in District 11 , agents take advantage of your association agent recognition award programs.

Being Prepared for Hurricanes

With a tropical storm Alex currently entering the Gulf of Mexico it is a reminder that we are in the midst of the Texas Gulf Coast Hurricane season. Extension agents should take steps to ensure that their county if impacted by tropical storms or Hurricanes have…

    * Updated emergency plans for the County Extension Office
    * Have personal plans to ensure the safety and well being of themselves and their families
    * Understand their professional roles and responsibilities during an emergency

I would also want to remind County Extension Agents of the resources related to Hurricane preparedness and recovery on the Texas Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN). This information can be viewed by clicking on the following link:

http://texashelp.tamu.edu/004-natural/hurricanes.php

Also here is an excellent tracking web site forwarded to me by one of our county Judges

http://www.stormpulse.com/fullscreen/current 

Annual and Sick Leave

During the summer time many of you may have an opportunity to take some annual leave as a vacation or personal time for various reasons. Recently, I have been getting many requests for annual leave.  I would like to remind agents that annual leave should not be taken until it is approved.  In requesting annual leave please submit your request at lease one day in advance of the first personal leave day requested.  I will not approve leave if requested after the date that has been requested, starting in July 2010.  Sick leave however can be requested after you become sick. If you are sick for more than two days a doctors excuse is required before leave can be approved. Please send in your doctor excuses to me a the district office.  If you have a doctors appointment for you or your family it is advised that you request these days in advance.  

I have noticed that some of you request annual leave and or sick leave as your certify your leave at the beginning of the month.  This should not be done, since your leave has not been approved. Please

appropriately request your leave in advance so that your leave can be approved prior to you certifying your leave. Each agent must certify leave at the beginning of the month after each pay date.

Legislative Tour of Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Corpus Christi

I would like to personally thank all of the agents that participated in the tour and luncheon on June 23rd. I know that these events just add to your busy schedule and I appreciate the great posters, programs and support that you provided for the tour. We hosted State Representatives Yvonne Gonzalez-Toureilles from District 35, and Abel Herrero from District 34. Along with the State Representatives several of their aids also attended. The state representatives commented to me that they were very much aware of Extension and the role we play in meeting the needs of our clientele. By the end of the tour they new what an outcome program was and how Extension agents are engaged in local issues. My main focus was making these two state funding partners aware of how we partner with Texas Agrilife Research in disseminating research based knowledge out to producers ,consumers, and families. Again thank you for your help in making this interpretation event a success.

Getting Back in the Box During Challenging Times- Focusing on the basics

It is no question that today’s College Football is a different game than it was 5 or 10 years ago with all the high powered “spread offenses” that are being utilized.  However, when things don’t go well with this  “out of the box” offense,  the coach always focuses attention on getting “back in the box” focusing on the basics such as blocking, tackling, running good routes, and fundamental pass catching.  Extension today is very similar to the spread offense where we employ a lot of  “out of the box” thinking, but when times become challenging it is important  that we focus on the basics.

We all constantly talk about thinking “outside the box.” That’s fine, and we most certainly should think outside the box. But here’s another approach that we had better not ignore – get back inside the box and get better at the basics as it relates to Extension programming.  Sometimes Texas AgriLife Extension Services’ greatest returns on investment are realized when we invest in improving on our customers’ basic expectations.

Some of the basics that leads to success in Extension programming includes;
    * Volunteer Management.
    * Effective communication with clientele.
    * Effective internal communication
    * Effective utilization of the Program Development Process
    * Comprehensive reporting.
    * Effective utilization of Program Specialists.
    * Effective utilization of teaching methodologies (result demonstrations, newsletters, news articles, etc.).
    * Mastery of subject matter.
    * Responsiveness to clientele requests.
    * Effectively working with funding partners.
    * Effective interpretation strategies.

District 11 4-H Horse Show

I would like to thank all of the agents and volunteers that assisted with the management of this past weekends 4-H show.  I also would like to especially thank Jodi McManus for providing excellent coordination of the event. At this event there is always many times that agents need to be ready to provide leadership, and fair representation of the state horse show rules.  Mr. Shannon Deforest is to be commended for providing great leadership to our District 11 Horse Show for the past many years. I would like to recognize Shannon for his dedication as horse show chairman, and making the horse show and excellent opportunity for our members and leaders. His many years of service on the state horse committee has certainly paid dividends for our District horse program.

The Breckenridge Event Center is an excellent facility for our show and will again be our home for the 2011 show.  We will soon be evaluating our horse show evaluations and implementing a plan to make this event better next year. Thanks to the Jackson County 4-H program for their help and sponsorship of the event.

District 11 Leadership Lab-Texas 4-H Center

We had a great group of young people in Brownwood this past week for our leader lab. We teamed up with District 3 for a great three days of fun and leadership learning opportunities.  The highlight of the event was the parade of mascots for the leadership Olympics teams .  I wish I had pictures, I am sure they are on Face book. Our District 11 agents need to be commended for creating a great atmosphere for our young people. Your are certainly excellent role models as you continue to support your 4-H members in our District events. Agents need to remember that your4-H  members attending lab should come back to the county and implement leadership concepts learned at lab.

Developing Plan for Building Effective Relationships with New Commissioners and Judges

One of the prerequisites to effectively implementing any of the components related to our District 11 Interpretation Initiative is establishing effective working relationships with the elected officials. With upcoming elections at the county level which could potentially result in the election of new County Commissioners and/or a new County Judge it is important that agents have a plan that includes targeted interpretation for newly elected County Commissioners or County Judges.

We should work together this summer to ensure that there is a county strategy to implement the County Program’s interpretation initiative related to providing quality interpretative efforts for newly elected County Judges and Commissioners. The following are some suggestions to establish relationships with newly elected officials that should be considered by agents.

• Agents and myself can send a congratulatory letter to the new elected officials. This letter could provide an overview of Texas AgriLife Extension Service, and briefly outline their specific responsibilities related to working with Commissioners Court.
• Provide personal visit to newly elected officials to provide overview of Texas AgriLife Extension Service, and briefly outline the District Extension Administrator responsibilities related to working with Commissioners Court.
• Conduct formal meeting shortly after introductory meetings and letter is sent with County Extension Agent(s) to provide briefing of Extension programs in that county that are specifically of interest to newly elected official and specifically outlines measurable outcomes . For example, if the newly elected official has a high percentage of individuals in their precinct who are undeserved and at a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes and hypertension, focus of the conversation may be on the recent results and public value of Extension’s Do-Well-Be-Well with Diabetes or Walk Across Texas programs.
•  Agents in larger populated counties may provide information to newly elected officials that is specific to their precinct–such as Extension in Precinct #3.
• Conduct a reception for newly elected officials prior to District Judges and Commissioners Conference for the purpose of enhancing the newly elected official’s knowledge and understanding of Extension’s relationship.
• Showcase Extension Programs through educational exhibits on display at District County Commissioners Conference.  Commissioner Court members like to see programs from their counties highlighted through these exhibits.
• Conduct newly elected officials reception or Extension Open House for the purpose of enhancing the newly elected official’s knowledge and understanding of Extension’s relationship.

Every county in the district  should  must have a interpretation plan that includes formal interpretation events, involvement of elected officials in “show case” educational events and other appropriate interpretation methodologies for 2010.

State 4-H Round Up
I would like to congratulate our agents in District 11 for their excellent support of our 4-H members while at State 4-H Round up last week. Our district was well represented during the contests and many events last week in College Station. I also would like to especially congratulate Jodi McManus our District 11 4-H Specialist and the many agents in our district that have made a special effort in establishing District 11 as a major player in earning 4-H Foundation Scholarships. Our youth were awarded an amazing $282,000 at the 4-H Foundation Scholarship Assembly on Friday. The reviewing of scholarship and editing of applications, and the mock interviews certainly have reaped major rewards for our 4-H members as they transition to their next chapter in their life.

I was also especially honored to visit with the Schertz family from Nueces County. Sam, Matt and Jeff Schertz established a memorial scholarship with the Foundation on behalf of Sam's wife and Matt and Jeff's mother Dot Schertz. Mrs. Schertz passed away this year and the family honored her for her great service to Nueces County youth as a 4-H volunteer and leader. I was agent in Nueces County at the time when Mrs. Schertz was a leader and the boys were very involved.  It was great to see these young men give back to the 4-H program that means so much to them as well as remembering their mother in a very special way.

Legislative Interpretation request
I would like to remind agents in District 11 to notify me if you invite a state representative or senator to any event in your county. You are encouraged to invite your state rep and or senator to a special showcase event,however, it is important that our state leadership know of AgriLife events that our state funding partners may be attending.  Some of the events may be 4-H award banquets, field days, health fairs etc.
I also need to compile a report on a monthly bases on interpretation events, and or special interpretation methods that you conduct each month.

District Horse Show Assignments-Edna, Texas 2010
4-H agents and Ag agents by now you have reviewed you assignments for the upcoming horse show in Edna at the end of the week. I would like to remind agents that this event is an event that horse project members look forward to each year, as they qualify for state. We must strive to conduct the best horse show that we can provide for our horse project members, leaders, and parents. I know that many of you do not have a background in Equine events, however we must support our young people as we would in any other 4-H project. It is all about the experience, if it is a good one, we have succeeded.

Crop tours-Summer 2010
I continue to receive many great reports of your agricultural crop tours being held this month. It is great to see the diversity in programing on your agendas.  I also appreciate the way agents interpret to the local community of how agriculture plays a major role in the local economy. Our crop tours have also traditionally been a great venue for the local agricultural community to enjoy fellowship. Great job , and good luck to agents that will have upcomming crop tours the next few weeks.