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UPCOMING
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Click here to visit Extension's Upcoming Events Web page.
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USU Extension Professional Receives National Diversity Award
Hector Mendiola, Utah State
University Extension Director of the
program for Latino communities, received
the 2009 National Extension Diversity Award at the 122nd annual
meeting for the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities Nov. 15 in
Washington, D.C.
Mendiola's award was in recognition
of his work as project coordinator for the USU Extension Hispanic/Latino
Families Education Network. The network is a highly collaborative program for
Hispanic/Latino populations focusing on building life skills, English/Spanish
language acquisition and computer technology.
"I am pleased to receive this award
because it represents the recognition of an integrated program that enriches our
community by improving education," said Mendiola.
Mendiola was nominated for the award by Charles W. Gay, associate vice
president and associate director for USU Extension and Dallas L. Holmes,
institutional research, diversity and civil rights program specialist for USU
Extension.
"In the great tradition of
Cooperative Extension, Dr. Mendiola has taken a simple idea to help people
improve their lives through educational assistance," said Gay. "Through many
partnerships and volunteers, he has grown it into one of the top programs in
the country. Through his perseverance and dedication and our joint efforts,
he has made a significant difference in the quality of life of many Latino
families in Utah. It is our hope to continue to expand this program to all
areas of the state."
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USU Extension Helps Nutrition Program Celebrate 40 Years
The federal Expanded Food and
Nutrition Education Program, also known as EFNEP, celebrates 40 years of
nutrition assistance this year. In Utah, the program is in partnership with
Utah State University Extension and others.
EFNEP is designed to assist limited-resource audiences in acquiring the
knowledge, skills, attitudes and changed behavior necessary for nutritionally
sound diets. The program also contributes to personal development and the
improvement of the total family diet and nutritional well-being.
"County Extension family and
consumer science professionals provide training and supervise peer educators
and volunteers who teach EFNEP in their local communities," said Paula Scott,
Utah EFNEP Northern Region coordinator. "They provide nutrition lessons, free
of charge, to families and youths to help improve their quality of life. They
teach basic concepts of food and nutrition, shopping skills, meal planning,
food safety and food resource management."
According to Siew Sun Wong, state
director of Utah EFNEP, the strong and steady impact EFNEP has made in Utah is
above the national EFNEP average. This impact is measured through entry and
exit comparisons.
Outreach locations for the program
are in Davis, Salt Lake, Weber and Morgan counties. Contact a local county
Extension office for further information, or visit http://utahefnep.org/htm/.
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USU Extension Specialist Receives National Award for Contributions to Family Life
Brian Higginbotham, Family Life
Extension Specialist, received the Early Career Achievement Award Nov. 11, 2009,
at the Annual Meeting of the National Council on Family Relations in San
Francisco. The national award honors a Cooperative Extension State Specialist
in Family Life and Human Development who has made a significant impact in the
field within the first seven years of his/her career.
Higginbotham
was recognized for his research and work in several critical family and human
development areas, including adolescent development, marital relations,  and
stepfamily dynamics, particularly among low-resource and ethnically diverse
populations.
Higginbotham has
secured nearly $5 million in external funding to support this work in just the
last four years and was appointed to serve on the Utah Commission on Marriage. He has generated numerous research-based
resources focused on healthy relationships, family dynamics and parenting that
are accessible to educators and families nationwide.
Linda Skogrand, USU
associate professor and Extension Specialist nominated Higginbotham for the
award.
"Brian exhibits
the true spirit of Extension by conducting high quality research and also
having a passion for using this research to help people in communities."
Skogrand said. "He is extremely hard working and has secured federal grants to
provide programming which is cutting edge and evaluated the results of
the programming, all of which have national implications."
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USTAR Technology Commercialization
Grant Program at USU Accepting Applications for December 31, 2009, Deadline
The Utah Science Technology And Research Initiative recently made
available $800,000 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to
Utah State University for the specific purpose of funding the newly created
Technology Commercialization Grant Program.
The USTAR TCG program is designed to assist inventors and researchers in the
final stages of idea implementation; funds are intended to drive the
commercialization of technology forward. These  grants support transitional
research in all areas and novel technology development with commercialization
potential, and are committed to supporting research projects that are most
likely to generate patents, technology licenses and product commercialization
in the short term.
"Those working in Extension are encouraged to apply for Technology
Commercialization Grants," said Allan Wood, commercialization associate at
USU's Technology Commercialization Office. "We see great potential for
opportunities developed from Extension intellectual property as software and
other outreach systems."
Application deadlines for the Technology Commercialization Grant program are
Dec. 31, 2009, March 31, and June 30, 2010.
"USTAR was designed to have a role at
Utah's research universities and assist with economic development and
innovation," said Ned Weinshenker, vice president for Strategic Ventures and Economic
Development at USU. "The purpose of the program is to accelerate the movement
of innovative ideas and technologies out of USU and into commercial markets
quickly in order to create high paying jobs in the state of Utah."
Technology commercialization is a key component of USU's research and
outreach missions. It supports the University land-grant mandate to improve the
lives of Utah citizens and to disseminate research results to the state, the nation,
and the world.
Detailed information on the USTAR Technology Commercialization Program at
USU can be found by visiting this link.
Utah
State University's Technology Commercialization Office assists faculty and
staff in understanding the technology transfer process and extracting the fair
market value of university intellectual property for the benefit of the university, faculty, staff and community. Visit http://tco.usu.edu for more
information and news, or follow us on Twitter. The TCO is a
division of Strategic Ventures and Economic Development at USU.
Email Karen Boghossian, Karen.Boghossian@usu.edu, for more information regarding the USTAR
TCG program at USU.
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Tech Tips: Google Analytics From Dennis Hinkamp, USU Extension Communications
Should you use Google Analytics for your Web site? Probably. Google Analytics provides a highly-detailed look at how many times people visit a page, the length of time they
stay there, what search engines they use to find the page and many other
options completely free with a Google account.
Go to Google Analytics to sign up and get started. The program will walk you through the process
of analyzing your Web site.
If you have an Extension site that you would like to analyze,
email me, dennis.hinkamp@usu.edu, for access to Extension's analytics. Google Analytics will give you a better idea
of how people are using your site and give you information to start making
improvements. For an overview of the
Extension site, go here.
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Recent Extension Publications Please take a look at these recently posted Extension publications.
Fall-bearing Raspberries in High Tunnels
Easy Hot Pad
Rural Connections November 2009- Food Security
Enterprising Rural Families
Visit the USU Extension publication site by clicking here. |
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Help Spread the Word About Extension Career Opportunities Professional positions within Utah State Extension are currently open, and we would like your help in spreading the word. Below is a list of open positions. Please forward this list to anyone you know who might be interested in applying.
4-H and Youth Programs
Assistant/Associate Extension Professor - 4-H Volunteer Development
Northern Region
Southeast Region
Southwest Region
Co.Visit the USU Extension employment site by clicking here. | |
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