Vice President Glenda Humiston announced on May 24 the approval of new University of California Cooperative Extension Advisor and Specialist positions for recruitment in 2024-25. The list includes 29 UC Cooperative Extension advisor positions and 20 UCCE specialist positions.
The new positions are listed below.
UCCE Advisors:
Discipline/Specialty |
Counties Served |
Office Location |
4-H Youth Development: College and Career Readiness |
Lake and Mendocino |
TBD |
4-H Youth Development: College and Career Readiness |
Alameda and Contra Costa |
Alameda
|
4-H Youth Development: College and Career Readiness |
San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura |
TBD |
4-H Youth Development: Leadership and Civic Engagement |
Modoc, Lassen, Plumas, and Sierra |
Lassen |
Agricultural Workforce Development |
San Joaquin Valley |
TBD |
Agronomy |
Sacramento, Solano, and Yolo |
Yolo |
Avocado, Citrus, and Subtropical Fruits |
Riverside and San Diego |
San Diego |
Citrus and Pistachio |
Kern, Kings, and Tulare |
Tulare |
Commensal Rodents & Urban Wildlife Integrated Pest Management |
Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, San Francisco, and Santa Clara |
Santa Clara |
Disaster Preparedness, Response, and Resiliency |
Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz |
TBD |
Environmental Horticulture |
Riverside and San Bernardino |
TBD |
Environmental Horticulture & Controlled Environment Agriculture |
Monterey, San Benito, San Mateo, and Santa Cruz |
TBD |
Field and Vegetable Crops Integrated Pest Management |
Fresno, Kings, Madera, and Tulare |
West Side REC |
Food Systems |
Los Angeles and Ventura |
Ventura |
Fruit Postharvest Handling |
Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, and Tulare |
Lindcove REC |
Horticulture and Small Farms |
Nevada and Placer |
Placer |
Livestock and Natural Resources |
Lake and Mendocino |
Mendocino |
Livestock and Natural Resources |
Marin and Sonoma |
Sonoma |
Livestock and Natural Resources |
Shasta and Trinity |
Shasta |
Low Desert Weed Management |
Imperial and Riverside |
Imperial |
Nutrient Management & Forage Systems |
Merced, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus |
Stanislaus |
One Health Integrated Produce Safety |
Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz |
TBD |
Orchard Systems: Almond, Apricots, Peaches, and Pistachio |
San Joaquin and Stanislaus |
Stanislaus |
Orchard Systems: Apples, Cherries, Olives, and Walnuts |
San Joaquin and Stanislaus |
San Joaquin |
Outdoor Recreation/Connected Communities |
Lassen, Plumas, and Sierra |
Plumas |
Vegetable Crops |
Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Sutter, and Yuba |
Colusa |
Vegetable Crop and Weed Science |
Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz |
Monterey |
Viticulture and Tree Fruit |
Sacramento, Solano, and Yolo |
Sacramento |
Weed Science |
Marin, Napa, and Sonoma |
Sonoma |
Specialists:
Discipline/Specialty |
Host / Location |
Agricultural Acarologist |
UC Riverside Dept. of Entomology / Kearney REC |
Agricultural Economics: Small Farms and Rural Economic Development |
UC Santa Cruz Department of Economics; Center for Agroecology |
Agricultural, Food and Natural Resources Computational Data Science |
UC San Diego Supercomputer Center |
Agricultural Waste Management and Bioenergy Production |
UC Merced Dept. of Mechanical Engineering |
Agricultural Policy |
UC ANR / California Dept. of Food and Agriculture |
Agricultural Technology Workforce Development |
UC ANR / TBD |
Beef Cattle Production Systems |
UC Davis Dept. of Animal Science |
Climate Resilient Orchard Systems |
UC Davis Dept. of Plant Sciences |
Climate Resilient Rural Community Development |
UC Berkeley ESPM |
Coastal Hydrology Agriculture and Water Resilience |
UC Santa Cruz Dept. of Earth and Planetary Sciences; Center for Agroecology |
Coastal Produce Safety Systems |
UC ANR / USDA ARS Salinas |
Field Trials and Testbeds Design and Operation |
UC ANR VINE / Kearney and Westside RECs |
Food Safety/Drones/Remote Sensing |
UC Santa Cruz / Monterey Bay Education, Science and Technology Center (MBEST) |
Groundwater Quantity and Quality |
UC Merced Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering / West Side REC |
Mental and Emotional Health in Youth Families and Communities |
UC Davis Dept. of Human Ecology |
Oak Woodland Management and Conservation |
UC ANR / Hopland REC |
Organic Production: ANR OAI Academic Director |
UC Merced Dept. of Life and Environmental Sciences |
Outdoor Recreation |
UC ANR / CA Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development |
Recycled Water Reuse and Brackish Water Desalination |
UC Davis Dept. of Land, Air and Water Resources; Biological and Agricultural Engineering |
Sustainable Dairy Cattle Nutrition |
UC Davis Dept. of Animal Science |
TheUCCEAdvisor positions will be released for recruitment in small batches over the next several months to facilitate engagement of various selection committees. TheUCCE Specialist positions will be released to campuses for recruitment upon completion of the Memorandums of Agreement (MOAs) currently being renewed between UC ANR and the campuses and host sites.
"We wish to thank the UC ANR program teams, county and REC directors, leadership from the UC campuses, the Program Council, and all of our collaborative partners who assisted with this position call, submissions and reviews," Humiston said. "We truly could not be successful without your engagement and expertise."
- Author: Saoimanu Sope
In late April, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources hosted its first regional meeting for UC Cooperative Extension advisors and specialists based in Southern California. The meeting, hosted by Daniel Obrist, vice provost, and Lynn Schmitt-McQuitty, director for county Cooperative Extension, brought together 50 participants over two days for networking and collaboration.
Based on feedback collected from ANR's Statewide Conference in April 2023, academics indicated a desire to meet more frequently opposed to waiting for the conference that occurs every five years. As a result, ANR is hosting regional meetings throughout California to provide an in-person opportunity for academics to discuss their research projects, interact with senior leadership, gain clarity related to merit and promotion, strengthen communication skills and network.
On the first day, academics had the option to attend an Impact and Outcome Writing Workshop presented by Martin Smith, Emeritus Professor of Cooperative Extension at UC Davis. The session also included an interactive segment, facilitated by Katherine Webb-Martinez, director of program planning and evaluation, and Christina Becker, program policy analyst for PPE, that broke down impact reporting into theory and application.
To end the day on a social note, attendees were invited to dinner where they could continue informal discussions and networking. During that time, academics got to interact with senior leaders, including Obrist and Schmitt-McQuitty, county and Research and Extension Center (REC) directors such as Rita Clemens for Riverside, San Bernardino and Orange counties, and Jairo Diaz of Desert REC, as well as statewide support staff like News and Information Outreach in Spanish (NOS).
“A key opportunity of these meetings is to build peer networks with colleagues and collaboration opportunities in the regions. So many of our academics are new to ANR, and the regional meetings allow us to welcome and onboard new colleagues and get to know each other,” Obrist said.
The meetings are also beneficial for those transitioning into a new academic role within ANR. Natalie Levy who currently works as a specialist for water resources at South Coast REC, participated in the meeting with her new position, soil health and organic materials management advisor, which begins June 3, in mind.
“It was helpful to have senior leadership present. I spoke to Lynn the most and she gave me good feedback about developing a new program and my research interests,” Levy said. “I also liked the session discussing merit and promotion because it gave me a framework to use as I step into a new role.”
The morning of the second day, academics participated in a poster session to share their research with colleagues. Attendees also engaged in discussions to understand and address regional needs, build new partnerships and engage senior leadership for support.
“I learned a lot about my colleagues from the poster session. I felt more connected to their work because I could visualize how we can collaborate,” said Ashley Hooper, urban community resiliency advisor for Los Angeles County. “It can be isolating for advisors who don't have counterparts in other counties or in ANR. Seeing how others are managing their programs during the poster session gave me reassurance that I'm on the right track in my position.”
In the afternoon, academics heard from Vice President Glenda Humiston, who addressed ANR's budget and career pathways for academics. Niamh Quinn, human-wildlife interactions advisor for Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, presented on the merit and promotion process to remind academics that “swallowing the eBook” (Guidelines for UC ANR Academics Preparing the Thematic Program Review Dossier) is the best way to learn how merit and promotions work within ANR.
Finally, Saoimanu Sope, digital communications specialist, showed academics how to leverage social media as an extension tool. Ricardo Vela, program manager for News and Information Outreach in Spanish, and Miguel Sanchez, broadcast communications specialist for NOS, described how to produce videos using a smartphone.
“It was useful to see colleagues from other counties, especially those who work in different disciplines,” said Quinn, who, like Hooper, is programmatically isolated given her program niche. As someone who uses social media for her program, Quinn described the social media presentation as informative. “I felt better educated and equipped to make improvements afterwards,” she said.
The regional meeting schedule is as follows:
Region 3: May 30-31, at UCCE San Joaquin County Building in Stockton
- Counties: San Joaquin, Stanislaus, Merced, Mariposa, Mono, Inyo, Madera, Fresno, Tulare, Kings and Kern
- RECs: Kearney, Westside and Lindcove
Region 5: June 10-11, at UC Santa Cruz
- Counties: Sonoma, Napa, Marin, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey
Region 2: Sept. 12-13, Central/Northern Sierras, specific location TBD
- Counties: Tehama, Glenn, Butte, Colusa, Sutter, Yuba, Nevada, Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, Solano, Sacramento, Amador, Calaveras and Tuolumne
- REC: Sierra Foothills
Region 1: Feb. 26-27, 2025, Redding, specific location TBD
- Counties: Del Norte, Siskiyou, Modoc, Humboldt, Trinity, Shasta, Lassen, Mendocino, Lake and Plumas-Sierra
- RECs: Intermountain and Hopland
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
I am pleased to announce the new 2023-24 Call for UC Cooperative Extension (CE) Advisor and Specialist positions. Building on the more than 100 CE positions released over the last couple of years, we continue to prioritize growing our academic footprint to provide the expertise needed to improve the lives of all Californians and address emerging and future needs. We plan to release 20 new priority CE Advisor positions and 10 new priority CE Specialist positions.
There are several phases with the same timeline for CE Advisor and CE Specialist positions:
- Identifying priority positions/connecting interested groups – until Dec. 18, 2023
- Proposal co-creation and submission – by Feb. 19, 2024
- Program Council reviews and develops recommendations – March 2024
- UC ANR Vice President makes final decision and releases positions – May/June 2024
Please see the 2023-24 CE Position Call webpage for more detailed process information and important documents, such as the required proposal template.
The processes for new CE Advisor and CE Specialist positions take a similar approach, but have different groups working together and submitting. As always, UC ANR strongly encourages engaging both internal and external stakeholders in identifying and developing proposals for priority positions. The process has been improved in response to feedback. The UC ANR Program Teams have an important role given they engage and represent the CE and AES (Agricultural Experiment Station) network including statewide programs and institutes.
- For CE Advisor positions, County Directors and the Research and Extension (REC) System will prioritize in their regional teams and work closely with UC ANR Program Teams.
- For CE Specialist positions, UC ANR Program Teams and the REC system will identity their top priority needs and campuses will select the position ideas that align with their academic planning. Working together, they will develop the proposals.
I look forward to seeing the proposals developed through this collaborative prioritization.
Regards,
Glenda Humiston
Vice President
- Author: Mike Hsu
Reposted from UC ANR News
UC ANR hires more fire advisors to address growing threat to California communities
Bringing more expertise to more places across the state, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources continues to hire fire advisors to help communities prepare for one of the most devastating climate-fueled threats.
With wildfires a constant danger as drought grips California, three highly skilled UC Cooperative Extension advisors have joined the organization since early May: Luca Carmignani, serving Los Angeles and Orange counties; Barb Satink Wolfson, serving Monterey, San Benito, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties; and Tori Norville, serving Sonoma, Napa and Marin counties.
These positions – as well as other recent additions in agriculture and natural resources fields – are made possible by California's commitment, as reflected in the state budget, to improve the lives of residents in the face of a changing climate.
Two more fire advisors are slated to be announced in the coming weeks, further broadening the knowledge and practical advice that UC ANR academics can share on a wide range of topics, including fire hazard mitigation, fire ecology, prescribed fire, wildland fire research, forest and wildlife management, and climate change effects. Together, they form a robust team of fire experts.
Although their specific areas of expertise vary, all the new fire advisors are dedicated to helping residents and community groups across California become more fire-aware, adapted and resilient. They share vital information on how Californians can prepare homes, landscapes and property for wildfire.
Luca Carmignani
Luca Carmignani joined UCCE as a fire advisor for Orange and Los Angeles counties May 2. His research interests include image analysis, computer programming and scientific outreach.
Prior to joining UC ANR, Carmignani was a postdoctoral researcher in the Berkeley Fire Research Lab at UC Berkeley. His research has focused on fire and combustion applications, from wildland fires to material flammability.
He earned his Ph.D. in engineering sciences from the joint doctoral program between UC San Diego and San Diego State University after obtaining his bachelor's and master's degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Pisa in Italy.
Carmignani is based at South Coast Research and Extension Center in Irvine and can be reached at carmignani@ucanr.edu and (949) 237-2956. Follow him on Twitter @l_carmignani.
Barb Satink Wolfson
Barb Satink Wolfson began in her role as UC Cooperative Extension fire advisor for Monterey, San Benito, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties on June 30.
Her primary responsibilities include wildland fire-related research and outreach for the Central Coast region, while building trust, strong partnerships and collaborative relationships within both professional and non-professional communities.
Satink Wolfson earned her B.S. and M.S. in forestry from Northern Arizona University, and brings to UC ANR more than 20 years of fire-research and outreach experience in Arizona. Her favorite job, though, was working as a backcountry ranger in Yosemite National Park during her undergraduate years.
In her new role, Satink Wolfson hopes to address some of the questions behind the use of prescribed fire in a variety of ecosystems (such as coastal prairies and oak woodlands), and help all Central Coast communities build resilience to wildland fire so residents can live safely within fire-adapted landscapes.
Satink Wolfson, based at the UCCE office in Hollister, can be reached at bsatinkwolfson@ucanr.edu.
Tori Norville
Tori Norville started on Aug. 1 as the new UC Cooperative Extension fire advisor for Sonoma, Napa and Marin counties.
In this capacity, Norville will work with residents and organizations within the wildland-urban interface to encourage and cultivate fire-adapted communities. She aims to provide education and outreach on home hardening, defensible space and the importance of forest and fuel management on the landscape.
While pursuing her bachelor's degree in forestry and natural resources at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Norville became interested in “disturbance ecology” – how factors such as disease, insects and fire affect landscapes and environments.
“Many of the forest health problems we are seeing are stemming from a lack of disturbance, which traditionally was fire,” Norville said.
Her understanding of fire and its effects deepened during her master's degree studies in forestry science (also at Cal Poly SLO), as well as through her seven years with CAL FIRE at the Jackson Demonstration State Forest in Mendocino County. She worked as the Registered Professional Forester for its Timber Sales Program, and then the Research and Demonstration Program.
Norville's firsthand experiences from the past few fire seasons have helped shape her goals and approach. She hopes to “work holistically with disturbances” – specifically fire – on the landscape to foster healthy forests and ecosystems that are adaptable and resilient, while also researching the environmental and social aspects of fuel-reduction projects and prescribed fire.
“Hopefully, I can begin to change the perception of fire from something we need to fear, to something we respect,” she said.
Norville, based at the UCCE office in Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, can be reached at trnorville@ucanr.edu.
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- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
From Del Norte, Siskiyou, and Modoc counties south through San Diego and Imperial counties, Californians will be seeing more University of California Cooperative Extension advisors in their communities.
University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources has released 48 more UCCE Advisor positions for recruitment over the next 12 months thanks to increased 2021-22 state funding. This brings the total to 89 new UCCE Advisor positions since July 2021 when Gov. Newsom and the state Legislature provided a historic budget boost for UC ANR. During the last six months of 2021, UC ANR released 41 other UCCE positions that have been filled or are under recruitment. The full list of UCCE positions is posted online at https://bit.ly/CEpositions2021-22.
Additional UC Cooperative Extension Specialist positions will be announced for recruitment in early April 2022.
“We appreciate the people across the state who worked with UCANR to develop the UC Cooperative Extension advisor position proposals,” said Glenda Humiston, University of California vice president for agriculture and natural resources. “Input from community members and partnering agencies and organizations was critical to informing the prioritization of these UCCE positions. Now we hope our supporters will help us recruit the best scientists to work with California's communities.”
The new UCCE advisors will be providing research-based information to residents about nutrition, community development, crop production, forestry, pest management, water management, youth development, landscape management and wildfire.
In addition to traditional issues, some of the new UCCE advisors will be focusing on climate adaptation for Indigenous farmers, cultural burning and Indigenous land stewardship, repurposing green waste, and community development with Californians who are Black, Indigenous or speak English as a second language.
The following UCCE Advisor positions will be staged for recruitment to avoid overwhelming UC ANR's Human Resources colleagues:
- 4-H Community Engagement & Development Youth Area Advisor for Tulare, Fresno and Kings counties
- 4-H Animal Science Youth Advisor for San Benito, Monterey and Santa Cruz counties
- 4-H Youth Development Area Advisor for San Diego and Orange counties
- Agronomy and Weed Management Area Advisor for Merced County
- Agronomy and Weed Science Area Advisor for Tehama, Glenn and Shasta counties
- Climate Resilient Indigenous Farming and Food Sovereignty Area Advisor for San Diego and Riverside counties
- Community Development BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and other people of color) Advisor for Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and San Francisco counties
- Community Health and Nutrition Advisor for San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Merced counties
- Community Health and Nutrition Advisor for Shasta, Trinity and Tehama counties
- Community Health, Nutrition and Food Security Area Advisor for Butte, Glenn, Colusa, Sutter and Yuba counties
- Community Health, Nutrition and Food Systems Area Advisor for Siskiyou, Modoc and Lassen counties
- Community Health and Nutrition Older Adult Area Advisor for Marin, Napa and Sonoma counties
- Cultural Burning and Indigenous Land Stewardship Advisor for Mendocino and Lake counties
- Dairy Area Advisor for Tulare and Kern counties
- Entomology Area Advisor for Ventura and Los Angeles counties
- Environmental Horticulture Area Advisor for Fresno, Madera, Tulare and Kings counties
- Environmental Horticulture and Forestry Area Advisor for Placer and Nevada counties
- Environmental Horticulture and Water Resource Management Area Advisor for Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, Santa Clara and San Francisco counties
- Food Safety and Organic Production Area Advisor for Imperial and Riverside counties
- Forestry Area Advisor for Santa Cruz, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties
- Forestry Area Advisor for Shasta, Trinity and Siskiyou counties
- Fruit and Almond Area Advisor for Fresno and Tulare counties
- Horticulture and Specialty Crops Advisor for Humboldt and Del Norte counties
- Indigenous Disaster Resilience Planning and Policy Area Advisor for Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and El Dorado counties
- IPM (Integrated Pest Management) Area Advisor for Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and El Dorado counties
- IPM Entomology Area Advisor based at Kearney Research and Extension Center
- IPM Entomology Farm Area Advisor for Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties
- Intermountain Irrigated Grass Systems Area Advisor for Modoc, Shasta and Lassen counties
- Irrigation and Soils Area Advisor for Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Merced counties
- Livestock and Natural Resources Area Advisor for Amador, Calaveras, Tuolumne and El Dorado counties
- Orchard Systems and Weed Ecology Area Advisor for Glenn, Tehama and Colusa counties
- Organic Materials Management Area Advisor for Orange, Los Angeles and San Diego counties
- Organic Materials Management and Agri-Food System Area Advisor for Santa Clara, Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and San Francisco counties
- Pathology Area Advisor for Imperial, Riverside and San Diego counties
- Production Horticulture Area Advisor for Ventura and Santa Barbara counties
- Restoration Ecology and Weed Science Area Advisor for Kern, Tulare and Kings counties
- Rice Farming Systems Area Advisor for Colusa and Yolo counties
- Sustainable Agriculture Systems Area Advisor for Mariposa, Merced and Stanislaus counties
- Sustainable Orchard Systems Area Advisor for Sutter, Yuba, Butte and Placer counties
- Urban Agriculture Food Systems and Environmental Issues Advisor for San Diego and Orange counties
- Urban IPM Area Advisor for Sacramento, Solano and Yolo counties
- Urban Watershed Resilience Area Advisor for Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Los Angeles counties
- Vegetable Crops Area Advisor for Sacramento, Solano and Yolo counties
- Water and Soil Resources Area Advisor for Sonoma, Marin, Napa and Mendocino counties
- Water Management Area Advisor for Tulare, Fresno, Kings and Madera counties
- Water Quality-Quantity-Climate Change Area Advisor for Mendocino and Lake counties
- Weed Ecology and Management Area Advisor for Fresno, Tulare and Kings counties
- Youth, Families and Communities Area Advisor for Kern, Inyo and Mono counties