“The appointment
gives UK a
representative
to the inner circle
of USDA and
a chance to
interact with
leaders of all
parts of the
agency.”
—Nancy Cox
Camps Glam Up
4-Her's Ride Again
A Tiny Card, a Big Award
Advising the President's Advisor
Georgia's Been on Our Mind
Preserving Our Farms
New Job for Palmer
In a Dry Season, a Career Was Born
Camps Glam Up
Kentucky’s 4-H camps are looking cleaner, brighter, and spiffier for the 2008 season, and that’s just the beginning. Even more improvements are planned.
“There’s a need after nearly 40 years to perform much-needed repairs on our buildings and modernize facilities,” said Jimmy Henning, associate director of the Cooperative Extension Service. All four camps were built in the 1960s, and most of the buildings are the original structures.
The camps include West Kentucky camp in Dawson Springs, North Central Camp in Carlisle, Lake Cumberland Camp in Nancy, and J.M. Feltner camp in London. Last year, the camps provided more than 31,000 camping experiences for kids ages 9 to 14.
Henning said the need for improvements became clear as he talked with agents across the state.
Spruce-up days were held in April, with agents, staff, and administrators volunteering their time to work on bathhouses, clear trails and brush, and clean up the waterfront.
The broader plan to upgrade the camps has been dubbed the “Cooperative Camp Challenge”—cooperative because it is to involve the broad range of people in extension, from leaders to administrators. All those people will help set priorities for specific improvements.
Among projects that could be funded through such a campaign are new dining halls and cabins, renovation or replacement of swimming pools, and paving of heavily-trafficked areas.
The Kentucky 4-H Foundation will be planning a capital campaign to pay for those improvements.
Purchase a signed, numbered print of a painting of a Kentucky 4-H camp by John Ward and contribute to the Cooperative Camp Challenge. Lake Cumberland 4-H Camp is shown here.
For more information, go to Camp Improvement under Quick Links at www.kentucky4h.org/camp.
.
4-Her's Ride Again
The horse program at West Kentucky 4-H Camp in Dawson Springs has undergone some refinements as it heads into its second full season.
“We’ve learned better how to structure the classes with one full summer under our belt,” said Donna Fox, extension specialist for 4-H camps.
Last year, some 350 to 400 campers enjoyed the horses at the camp, Fox said.
The program is a joint effort of the UK Cooperative Extension Service and Murray State University’s School of Agriculture. It was initially funded through grant money from the Kentucky 4-H Foundation, the Kentucky Equine Education Project, and the Kentucky Horse Council. So far, an outdoor working area, a covered arena, and a storage facility have been built.
Murray State supplies the instructor and the horses, and UK supplies the camp and maintenance staff.
“It’s a win-win situation,” Fox said. “It keeps Murray State’s horses active during the summer, gives one of its equine students experience as an instructor, and it provides our campers an option they didn’t have before.”
More is being planned.
“We’re looking at grant monies to develop basic, simple riding trails that the campers could use with proper supervision,” Fox said. “We also hope to get the facility to the point that people coming to weekend and family camps could bring their own horses,” she said.
The long-range goal is to expand the West Kentucky camp model to develop horse programs at the three other 4-H camps.
. .
A Tiny Card, A Big Award
One mild and breezy day in March 2007, some 700 to 800 UK students stopped long enough on their way to class, the dorm, or lunch for one of the College’s Ag Ambassadors to hand them a folded card about the size of an iPOD.
“Each American eats 299 tortillas every year,” one card said. And inside: “It takes 6.4 billion pounds of corn meal and wheat flour to make those 84 billion tortillas. You can thank America’s 90,000 corn farmers and 243,568 wheat farmers.”
That card and others were prepared by the Agriculture Council of America and were the Ag Ambassadors’ way of acquainting UK’s students with how agriculture makes a difference in their lives.
“We wanted students to know that agriculture is cows and plows, but it’s a lot more, too,” said Jason Headrick, the Ambassadors’ advisor and director of student relations in the Office of Academic Programs.
Giving out those cards was the Ag Ambassadors’ way of recognizing National Agriculture Day, and it won them the National Agricultural Literacy and Communications Award.
In January, 10 Ag Ambassadors and Headrick traveled to North Carolina State University to receive the honor.
The College’s Ag Ambassadors were organized in the late 1980s, and they are among the earliest such groups in the nation. They lead campus tours, communicate by phone with prospective students, and speak to high school and alumni groups.
The College currently has 25 Ag Ambassadors. They are chosen from the sophomore, junior, and senior classes through a nomination/interview process.
. . .
Advising the President's Advisor
Nancy Cox, who is associate dean for research and director of the Kentucky Agricultural Experiment Station, is now among members of the National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education, and Economics Advisory Board.
Cox, whose training and research is in animal science, represents the National Food Animal Societies on the board, which represents a broad range of agricultural interest groups.
“I’m very appreciative, very grateful for the opportunity,” said Cox. She said that “given that 68 percent of Kentucky‘s agriculture is animal-based, according to the latest census figures, it’s appropriate for Kentucky to have a representative for that sector.”
Cox said “the appointment gives UK a representative to the inner circle of USDA and a chance to interact with leaders of all parts of the agency. This position enables me to represent all phases of Kentucky’s agricultural enterprises.”
Because the agriculture secretary reports directly to the President, this board has the opportunity to influence agricultural policy at the highest level as well as through federal agency policy and legislation, she said.
Cox sees two issues of top importance right now: “One is how the food animal industry and the biofuel industry are going to ‘co-exist’ as the increasing use of some grains for biofuel decreases what’s available for feed and also raises its cost,” she said.
She said another major issue is “the need to balance food animal production with protection of the environment.”
Cox joins Marianne Smith Edge ’77 on the board. Smith Edge, a Human Environmental Sciences alumna and former member of the UK Board of Trustees, is a past president of the American Dietetics Association and runs a nutrition marketing and communications firm.
. . . .
Georgia's Been on Our Mind
This summer, members of the College community will travel for the last time to the Republic of Georgia as part of a USDA project to help the country improve its agricultural education.
Georgia, about the size of South Carolina, is bordered by Russia, Turkey, and Iran. It became independent of the Soviet Union in 1991 and is a democracy. Much of Georgia’s rugged landscape is given over to agriculture.
College faculty, staff and students have traveled there under a three-year, $450,000 grant to work with technical colleges in three Georgian cities.
They have helped improve teaching and evaluation methods, shared information about how to network, taught animal health management, introduced the idea of extension, and provided course materials and extension publications.
Undergraduate and graduate students have been a big part of the project, too. They have provided the hands-on administration of first-ever field days, for example.
Among those who have worked in Georgia have been Mike Reed, director of International Programs; Larry Grabau, professor, Plant and Soil Sciences; Rick Costin, a farm business management specialist; Terry Hutchens, extension associate for goat management; John Johns, extension professor in Animal and Food Sciences; Steve Moore, Henry County extension agent for agriculture and natural resources; Rod Grusy, now-retired agriculture and natural resources agent in Hardin County; and Jay Jackman, executive director of the National Association of Agricultural Educators, which is based at UK.
In November of last year, a delegation of Georgian government and school officials visited UK and toured the College‘s agricultural facilities.
. . . . .
Preserving
Our Farms
The diminutive woman proffering samples in a grocery store has one enormous goal—to save the family farm.
Rebekah Grace ’74 is spearheading a budding company that bears her name. She also is the marketing voice for Kentucky farm families, finding outlets for their homemade relishes, jams, and milk, all of which she sells under her label, Rebekah Grace.
She’s proud of her products. “Have you seen my milk?” she asks customers. “This is fresh off the farm, five hours from the cow to the bottle.”
One customer shouts “It’s really good milk!” then gets a thank-you and an immediate plug for soon-to-be-released skim milk and butter.
Born in Hazard, Rebekah Grace and her family moved to Boyle County in the 1960s to farm. After graduating from UK in forestry, she worked for the U.S. Forestry Service, leading the first women’s tree planting crew out of Morehead. She worked for a lumber company and in mine reclamation, following in the footsteps of her favorite forestry professor, now-retired Don Graves, whom she affectionately calls “Daddy Don.”
But she’s always had a love for food and farm life. Two years ago, with funding from the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board, she retooled an earlier business idea to focus on natural products produced exclusively by small Kentucky growers and manufacturers.
With gross sales in 2007 reaching approximately $500,000, neither Rebekah Grace the company nor Rebekah Grace the person shows any signs of slowing down.
“I don’t know why we do it,” she says. “I always say you gotta be a little bit crazy, but you also gotta be Kentucky Proud.”
. . . . . .
New Job for Palmer
Gary Palmer, an extension specialist in tobacco for 23 years, has been named assistant extension director for agriculture and natural resources.
Palmer is now the administrative team member working directly with agriculture and natural resource agents across the state.
“I see my job as being an advocate for agriculture and horticulture agents so that we can provide the best support possible,” Palmer said.
Probably nobody has more respect for county agents than Palmer. “Agents are still our biggest resource for interacting with the people of Kentucky,” he said. “They have a difficult, broad job. We want to make sure they’re well prepared.”
He has the same kind of respect for the extension system, calling it “unique,” for the way agents work with specialists, and for the UK-based faculty members who provide agent support in specific areas.
Palmer came to UK in 1984 after earning his undergraduate degree, master’s degree, and doctorate from the University of Tennessee. He holds the faculty rank of associate extension professor and also has served as agronomy extension coordinator.
One of his objectives in his new position is to make sure the College’s web resources for agents and clientele are both comprehensive and accessible.
He also wants to make it easier for agents to get the training they need by increasing web-based learning opportunities.
“I want to make sure our agents are still sought after for their information, their knowledge base,” Palmer said. “We want to keep the trust that our clientele have in us.”
. . . . . . .
In a Dry Season, a Career Was Born
If the rain had not ended in Costa Rica, Ron Hustedde might have never begun the career path that led him to the UK Cooperative Extension Service and two national awards.
Years ago, Hustedde, who is an extension professor in Community and Leadership Development, was a rice researcher in Costa Rica as a Peace Corps volunteer. Rice grows in the rainy season, so when dry weather came, Hustedde used his time to work with Costa Rican youth, helping them learn to be leaders. That’s when he knew he had begun to find his niche.
Once back in the states, Hustedde began to acquire more education (three master’s degrees and a doctorate) and more experience, including five years as an extension agent in community development.
He has been at UK since 1990. His extension work here initially focused on training extension agents and other community leaders to lead discussion of public issues. It was a natural move from that work into public conflict resolution. Hustedde began to develop a state and national reputation in helping groups resolve controversial issues and training others to do the same.
In recent years, Hustedde’s focus has been on fostering an entrepreneurial culture in Kentucky through his brainchild, the Kentucky Entrepreneurial Coaches Institute. It is a training ground for people who provide the psychological and social support for entrepreneurs.
The institute has been funded by the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund under the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy. It has graduated two classes of coaches so far in northeastern Kentucky and earlier this year expanded into 22 counties in the south-central part of the state. Larry Jones in Agricultural Economics is co-principal investigator for the project.
Hustedde received the 2007 National Excellence in Extension Award, the highest award presented by U.S. Cooperative Extension Service and the National Association of Public Universities and Land Grant Colleges. The award presentation noted his “visionary leadership on emerging issues, high program impact, commitment to diversity, and partnerships with university colleagues and outside clientele.”
Hustedde also received the Rural Sociological Society’s 2007 Excellence in Extension and Public Service Award.
. . . . . . . .
