Posts Tagged: Hansen Agricultural Research and Extension Center

UC ANR seeks new, larger property for Hansen Agricultural REC

After many years of discussion and on the recommendation of the Hansen Advisory Board, UC ANR has decided to sell the 27-acre historic Faulkner Farm in Santa Paula, the home of the Hansen Agricultural Research and Extension Center (HAREC) since 1997. The property went up for sale on Sept. 21, 2020. Bids are due in a closed bid process, as required by the Stull Act, by Nov. 17, 2020.

The mission of HAREC is to support and maintain University research and extension activities for the sustainability and benefit of agriculture and natural resources in Ventura County. To continue and expand efforts in support of the mission, proceeds from the sale will be used toward the purchase of a new property. UC is actively seeking 40 to 70 acres on the Oxnard Plain that will lend itself to the types of research most relevant for our area. We are also exploring potential areas of collaboration with California State University Channel Islands, which is expected to lead to synergies and long-term sustainability of education and research programs. An internal strategic planning process and expert panel review of the UC ANR Research and Extension Centers as well as local stakeholder surveys will inform the direction and scope of the future HAREC facility.

During the transition, UC Cooperative Extension will continue to operate out of the county government building on 669 County Square Drive in Ventura and critical research and education projects will continue.  

The main impetus of the move is that acreage is limited on the Hansen REC site and the microclimate is not representative of the Oxnard plain, home to the highest-value agricultural commodities in Ventura County. Additionally, over time the costs of maintaining the historic buildings – the house is 126 years old and the large barn is 134 years old – became more of a financial burden than anticipated. Repairs are costly and modifications are difficult due to the restrictions for historic properties. These expenses reduce HAREC's ability to best serve Ventura County's agricultural sector and fulfill the wishes of Saticoy farmer Thelma Hansen, who left the University a sizable endowment to support research and extension for the benefit of Ventura County agriculture. 

For many years, the HAREC site has supported a wide variety of agricultural and horticultural research projects, extension meetings, agricultural literacy programs and field trips for K-12 youth, and training of Master Gardener volunteers who maintain a beautiful demonstration garden as well as gardens around the historic home. The farm also has an extensive collection of avocado, citrus and cherimoya varieties as well as other tropical and subtropical fruit trees, such as mangoes, figs, bananas, guavas and papayas. 

Despite the upheaval a move will create, UC ANR is committed to expanding and enhancing programs and opportunities for community participation at a new site.

Read more at https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=43716. 

Thank you, and looking ahead for a great 2017!

Dear Colleagues,

As we wrap up 2016, I want to take a moment to thank you for everything you've done on behalf of UC ANR this year. Whether you are conducting research, organizing extension programs, teaching nutrition, leading volunteers or quietly working behind the scenes to support our various activities, your work makes a huge difference in the lives of all Californians.

In addition to those activities, many of you also took the time to give feedback to the recent strategic planning exercise, gathered to exchange ideas at the Research to Policy conference, or contributed to enhancing the UC ANR mission in many other ways.  A special thanks to the folks who chaired a committee, led a program team or served as county director – having strong, passionate leaders at every level of this organization is what makes us effective.

We are continuing to grow in numbers as hiring outpaces retirements. In 2016, 29 academics joined UC ANR and three more are poised to start in 2017. We also established four new endowed chairs with matching funds from UC President Janet Napolitano, the California Rice Research Board, the California Pistachio Research Board and, recently, the Orange County Farm Bureau. Thanks to the hard work of many stakeholders – both internal and external – we identified 26 academic positions (http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/253192.pdf) for a new round of hiring priorities over the next two years. 

At the request of President Napolitano, we've submitted a five-year plan for UC ANR that will help us operationalize the Strategic Vision 2025 in a very thoughtful and timely manner. The next step is to further develop specific action plans for implementation and ensure the financial stability to support our vision. After the winter break, we will share the plan with the UC ANR community, as well as external stakeholders, and invite additional input as we move forward.

I'm very excited about 2017!  Some great groundwork has been laid this past year to further enhance our ability to deliver the UC ANR mission and enjoy new partnerships. I hope you will have a chance to relax and enjoy the holidays with friends and family and return refreshed to tackle the challenges that await us in the new year.

Happy Holidays!

Glenda

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

 

DANRIS-X launches into Project Board with webinar trainings

DANRIS-X has been updated and will eventually be replaced with the newly created Project Board for UCCE specialists and advisors. When DANRIS-X opens for reporting, users will see a reduced number of data fields and an aesthetic refresh.

Project Board will open for 2018 reporting and will have an improved user experience and simplified data entry. Special thanks to the Project Board Academic Advisory Committee and Project Team for their continued involvement. More information can be found at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/Divisionwide_Planning/Program_Planning_and_Evaluation/DANRIS-X/.

Upcoming dates and action items:

CE Specialists

• DANRIS-X opens Jan. 9
• All CE specialists are invited to the Zoom webinar trainings offered on Jan. 20, from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., or Jan. 24, from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Topics include an overview of the reporting system, what and why we report, etc.
• Actions: Complete Annual Report for FY 2016 and Annual Plan for FY 2017 by March 6, 2017, at midnight.

CE Advisors

• DANRIS-X opens on Feb. 2
• All CE advisors are invited to the Zoom webinar trainings offered on Feb. 6, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., or Feb. 7, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. Topics include an overview of the reporting system, what and why we report, etc.
• Actions: Complete Annual Report & CASA for FY 2017 and Annual Plan for FY 2018 by Oct. 30, 2017, at midnight.

If you have questions or comments, please contact Kit Alviz, Program Planning and Evaluation, at kit.alviz@ucop.edu or (510) 987-0027.

 

 

Names in the News

Ciricillo named director of Annual Giving

Mary Maffly Ciricillo brings more than 20 years of professional experience to her new role as the director of Annual Giving for UC ANR. She comes to ANR from the UC Davis Graduate School of Management, where she was director of Development & Alumni Relations, steward of the Business Partnership Program and point person on building connections, community and involvement of the school's alumni.

Ciricillo has spent the last 10 years in diverse roles at UC Davis, creating and growing programs that help further university goals. She launched UC Davis goClub, the campus alternative and sustainable transportation program. To get goClub rolling, Ciricillo signed on sponsors, built new relationships across campus and the business community, and revved up the marketing plan to encourage campus commuting options, such as carpool, vanpool, bike, walk, bus and train.

Before joining UC Davis, Ciricillo was an account executive in the communications industry, developing branding and marketing solutions. Her clients included The Gap, Oracle, Knight Ridder Newspapers, the San Francisco Ballet and the Tech Museum of Innovation in Silicon Valley.

She earned a B.A. in history with a minor in business from San Francisco State University.

Based in Davis, Ciricillo can be reached at (530) 750-1302, cell (530) 219-1085 and mciricillo@ucanr.edu.

Karle and Lightle on team honored for conservation innovation

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and California Association of Resource Conservation Districts presented its prestigious Excellence in Innovation award to the Glenn County Soil Partnership, which includes the Glenn County Resource Conservation District, UC Cooperative Extension in Glenn County and the NRCS field office in Willows.

Betsy Karle, UCCE county director and dairy advisor, and Dani Lightle, UCCE orchard systems advisor, both based in Glenn County, are among the partners working together to promote and encourage healthy soils and greatly increased local interest among farmers. Their goal is to increase awareness of the importance of soil health and to create a forum for farmers to share information and learn from each other. To ensure a locally led process, the partners created a farmer-led Steering and Technical Advisory Committee made up of farmers and local experts.

“Dani Lightle was a key player in the process and she has taken the opportunity to tackle some very interesting questions about cover cropping in orchards,” said Karle. “UCCE specialist Jeff Mitchell has also been a key motivator and has logged hundreds of miles and countless hours to support the effort.”

“Your partnership is bringing back a focus on conservation planning, technical assistance and management change motivated by the desire to enhance the health of the soil resource,” said NRCS state conservationist Carlos Suarez, who presented the award.

“You wisely chose to root your leadership in local farmers and agencies, combining agency and university technical knowledge with private business skills and real world know-how. This makes your partnership credible and inspiring to local farmers who are open to improving the health of their soil.”

“This is the best way to engage our customers in conservation planning that results in regenerative agriculture and ecological benefits,” Suarez said.

The Soil Partnership received the award on Nov. 17 during the 71st annual California Association of Resource Conservation Districts' conference in Ontario.

UC CalNat associate director named to national organization board

UC Cooperative Extension natural resources advisor Sabrina Drill has been elected to the board of the Alliance of Natural Resource Outreach Service Programs (ANROSP). Drill is associate director of the UC California Naturalist Program.

ANROSP is the national organization in which master naturalist programs from around the country share methods and information to train naturalists, build local and statewide communities, and support their efforts to protect, enhance, understand, and teach the public about each state's unique natural history.

“As a board member, the things I am most keen to work on are strengthening efforts to professionalize participatory citizen science, and build bonds with groups like the new Citizen Science Association and communities of practice like SciStarter,” Drill said. “In addition, I want to build on our individual efforts to increase the demographic diversity of naturalists.”

Drill's role in the national organization will support the continued growth and development of the California Naturalist program, which was established in 2012.

“Working across states, I think we'd like to again see how we might garner national support to grow our programs, and see where we can use nationally developed educational and evaluation tools,” Drill said. “For example, we recently published a paper in Conservation Biology with Virginia Master Naturalist looking at how our training programs enhanced individuals' experiences as citizen scientists, and the opportunity to compare programs was very enlightening. Being an active part of ANROSP leadership can enhance these efforts.”

ANROSP holds a national conference each year in September, where it presents awards in five categories: program of the year, outstanding educational materials, outstanding team, outstanding volunteer project and outstanding program evaluation. In 2015, the UC ANR California Naturalist program was named the “program of the year” by ANROSP

VP Humiston releases 26 UCCE positions for recruitment

VP Humiston announced on Dec. 14 the release of 26 new academic UC Cooperative Extension positions (see list below) for hiring over the next two years. 

The positions from the 2016 process will be released for recruitment in phases as Human Resources continues recruiting for more than 25 specialist and advisor positions yet unfilled from the 2014 process.

“This new release continues our commitment for hiring to exceed projected turnover, thus achieving our goal of academic growth. And, as funding becomes available, we will consider additional positions,” Humiston said.

“At present, we are also exploring the opportunities to expand academic numbers using non-traditional funding models, such as sharing positions and leveraging resources with public and private partners,” she said. “Furthermore, given that needs change and new challenges emerge that must be addressed quickly, we are optimistic we have some flexibility to react to new needs.”

Humiston thanked Program Council, UC ANR academics, county and REC directors, program directors and ANR stakeholders for the time and effort they put into the 2016 positions process, identifying position needs for the future and helping to prioritize those needs.

UC ANR Cooperative Extension positions approved for release FY2017-2018 (If more than one county is listed, the position is headquartered in the first county.)

Round 1 (Winter 2017)

CE Advisor - 4-H Youth Development: Orange County

CE Advisor - Area 4-H Youth Development: San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties

CE Advisor  - Area Forestry/County Director: Mendocino, Lake and Sonoma counties

CE Advisor - Area IPM: Sonoma, Napa, Lake and Mendocino counties

CE Advisor - Nutrition, Family & Consumer Sciences: Kern County

CE Specialist - Antimicrobial Stewardship: UCD

CE Specialist - Pathology of Vines, Berries & Fruit Trees: UC Davis

CE Specialist - Small Scale Fruit and Vegetable Processing: UC Davis

CE Specialist - Subtropical Fruit Crop IPM:UC Riverside

Round 2 (Spring/Summer 2017)

CE Advisor - Area Agronomy and Weed Management: Merced and Madera counties

CE Advisor - Area Forestry/Natural Resources: Plumas, Sierra and Lassen counties

CE Specialist - Forest Ecology/Silviculture: UC Berkeley

CE Specialist - Soil-Plant-Water Relations/Deficit Irrigation: UC Davis

Round 3 (Fall 2017)

CE Advisor - Area Urban Forestry/Natural Resources: Los Angeles and Orange counties

CE Advisor - Area 4-H Youth Development: Shasta, Trinity and Tehama counties

CE Specialist - Water Resources Economics and Policy: UC Riverside

CE Specialist - Citrus Horticulture: UC Riverside/Lindcove REC

Round 4 (Winter 2018)

CE Advisor - Area Orchard Systems: San Joaquin County and Northern San Joaquin Valley

CE Advisor - Vegetable Crops: Kern County

CE Specialist - Orchard Systems, Southern San Joaquin Valley: UC Davis/Kearney REC

CE Specialist - Sheep and Goat Herd Health and Production: UC Davis

Round 5 (Spring/Summer 2018)

CE Advisor - Area Livestock/Natural Resources: Tuolumne, El Dorado, Amador and Calaveras counties

CE Advisor - Area Rice Farming Systems: Butte and Glenn counties

CE Advisor - Area Specialty Crops: Contra Costa, Alameda and west San Joaquin counties

CE Specialist - Feedlot Management: UC Davis/Desert REC

CE Specialist - Economics of Sustainable Agriculture Management: UC Davis

 

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