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Extension News
Vol. 2 – No. 16
August 9, 2002
Current Events
Character Critters Crawls to the
Top: Cooperative Extension’s character
education program has exploded in popularity and widespread
effect. Currently, 38 counties are active in the program,
involving 7,360 children and 1,199 teachers. In 2001 there were
2,170 children and 153 teachers involved in the program.
Cooperative Extension Parenting Specialist Elaine Wilson says the
Character Critters take-home activities are helping parents spend
quality time with their children and get a better understanding
of what is being taught in their kids’ classrooms.
Additional information about the program is available on the
Internet by logging on to http://fcs.okstate.edu/parenting
and clicking on the Building Character link.
More Than an Egyptian Curse: West Nile
Virus is all over the news. Cooperative Extension Specialists
from Animal Science, Veterinary Medicine, Entomology and Plant
Pathology, and Agricultural Communications Services got together
in the spring with officials from various state agencies to
develop a cohesive plan of action for when WNV made an
appearance. Extension Educators who get questions about the virus
should refer people to the State Department of Health’s West
Nile Virus web site at http://www.health.state.ok.us.
It really is the best place to start, with links aplenty to
appropriate places of interest and information.
OSU Sends Nine to Capitol Hill: County
Extension Educators represented the Oklahoma Cooperative
Extension Service for its involvement with the Oklahoma Marriage
Initiative during the Smart Marriages Conference in Washington,
D.C., in July. The nine educators that attended the conference
spoke with people from all over the world about their attempts to
promote healthy relationships and decrease the number of divorces
in our state. Educators attending the conference included Sonya
Rickman and Cara Bigger, Pottawatomie County; Laverda Johnson,
Choctaw/Pushmataha County; Cindy Griffith, Rogers County; Pam
Varner, Cotton County; Janna Kelley, Pontotoc County; Amy
Armstrong, Washington County; Ranel Lasley, Caddo County and Lani
Vasconcellos, Southeast District Program Specialist.
Announcements
No More Free Tickets: Extension staff
will not receive complimentary passes for the Tulsa State Fair
this year. Only those individuals who are working official
activities such as shows, contests and Caring for Planet Earth,
will receive passes. Reduced-rate tickets are available for
purchase. A four-day pass is $5, and a 10-day pass is $15.
Extension staff may send in orders for the reduced-rate tickets
when entries are mailed, or you may purchase them at the
fairgrounds livestock office. More information about the
reduced-rate tickets will be mailed to Extension staff at a later
date.
Sustainable Agriculture Training Opportunity:
The Southern Region Sustainable Agriculture program is sponsoring
a national conference titled, “On the Road to Sustainable
Agriculture.” It is centered on two days of tours. Tours are
built around themes, including urban sprawl, organic production,
direct marketing, production systems in transition,
limited-resource farmer opportunities, and environmental issues.
The conference is scheduled for October 23-26 and will take place
in the Raleigh, North Carolina area. Through our Sustainable
Agriculture training project and special fund from the Southern
Region SARE PDP, we have the ability to send several producers or
growers, county Extension Educators, and Area or State
Specialists to the conference. Requests to attend or for more
information should be sent to Ross Love, 245 Ag Hall, or
405-744-6550. Ross is also asking Extension Educators for
nominations of producers, growers, or others who would be good
candidates to send to the conference.
New Things in Beef Buying: A bred and
open heifer sale is being added to the Oklahoma Beef,
Incorporated Performance-Tested Bull Sale on October 17. The sale
will kick off at noon. For more information, contact Cooperative
Extension Beef Breeding Specialist John Evans at 405-744-6060 or
via e-mail at jle@okstate.edu.
KOB Program Seeking Nominations: The
entry deadline for the 12th Annual Keep Oklahoma Beautiful
Competition has been extended from Aug. 1 to Aug. 21. Oklahoma
Cooperative Extension Service programs are eligible. The
Environmental Improvement category focuses on projects, programs
or campaigns designed to improve water or air quality, reduce
waste, or prevent environmental problems. Beautification and
Landscaping includes projects focusing on cleanup, planting,
landscaping, maintenance, and historical preservation or
restoration. The Education and Promotion category includes any
type of information or promotional campaign designed to enlighten
the public about the environment or recommended environmentally
friendly practices. Entry forms are available by contacting Keep
Oklahoma Beautiful, Inc., at 405-844-6543, or via the Internet at
http://www.keepoklahomabeautiful.com.
Personnel Actions
APPOINTMENTS
- Carla K. Ackley, Extension Educator, 4-H, Stephens County,
effective 8-15-02
- Jennifer D. Sconyers, Communications Specialist, Agricultural
Communications Services, effective 7-31-02
TITLE CHANGES
None to report
SEPARATION
- Greta L. Reasnor, Extension Educator, FCS/4-H, Haskell
County, effective 8-15-02
- Amy J. Wallace Hart, Extension Educator, Ag/4-H, Harmon County,
effective 8-9-02
Coming Events
August 9-10: Shooting Sports Training (Ada)
August 12-13: OHCE Planning Meeting (Oklahoma City)
August 12: Beef Quality Summit (Stillwater)
August 13: Western Oklahoma Woods, Wildlife and Pond Problems and
Opportunities (Enid)
August 14: Modern Method for Termite Control (Stillwater)
August 14: Poultry Waste Management Video Training (Poteau)
August 14: Beef Quality Summit (Stillwater)
August 14: Wheatland Stocker Conference (Woodward)
August 15: Wheatland Stocker Conference (Enid)
August 15: Facilitator/Training Session for the Oklahoma
Community Listening Sessions, Southwest District (TBA)
August 19: Facilitator/Training Session for the Oklahoma
Community Listening Sessions, Northwest District (TBA)
August 20: Northwest District Wheat Production Issues, Cow-Calf
and Stocker Management, and Wheat Merchandising (Woodward)
August 21: Facilitator/Training Session for the Oklahoma
Community Listening Sessions, Southeast District (TBA)
August 21: Southeast District CED Meeting (TBA)
August 21: Oklahoma Quality Beef Network and Cooperative
Marketing Efforts in the Beef Industry (Oklahoma City)
August 22: Facilitator/Training Session for the Oklahoma
Community Listening Sessions, Northeast District (TBA)
August 29: Improving Fertilizer-N Management and Potential Farmer
Profit Using N-Rich Field Strips (Stillwater)
August 31: 4-H Dog Show (Nowata)
