Ever wonder how Extension and Ag Experiment Directors share information? The Western Extension Directors Association (WEDA) and Western Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors (WAAESD) met in Denver last week. Vice President Humiston attended and WAAESD meetings and I attended the WEDA meetings. It was an information filled week with much sharing of ideas and needs for the west. Yes, we all face similar challenges with crumbling facilities, fire, management of government owned lands, water scarcity, changing climate, mental health, the need for rural economic development, invasive pests, nutrition education, educating youth, and so much more. It's nice to talk with others to see how they manage resources to make work impactful. More information is available about the organizational structure of the Land Grant University System if you're interested. We had a fantastic presentation by Trent Teegerstrom, University of Arizona. He is Associate Director for Tribal Extension Programs and provided insightful lessons on how we can better serve to meet Tribal needs.
We were at the SPUR Center in Denver. The Center is by the old stockyards and SPUR literally got its name from a SPUR off the railroad. This new Center for Colorado State University system brings Fort Collins, Pueblo, and Global campuses to the people of Colorado. They have tours and activities daily. If you're in the neighborhood give it a look. We enjoyed a super tour including a virtual (3-D) animal anatomy experience. The buildings are topical: terra (land), hydro (water), and vita (life—animals).
Also attending the meetings were Keith Nathaniel one of two CA representatives on Western Program & Organizational Leadership Committee (WPOLC) and Vikram Koundinya Western Region Evaluation Network (WREN). Each of these are committees of WEDA. It was nice to have time to catch up with Keith and Vikram and know their time invested in the meetings will be useful here at home.
Meanwhile, Katherine Webb-Martinez and her team put the finishing touches on our annual report to USDA. There are some new due dates for next year's report. That translates to project board deadlines being sooner so Katherine and her team can pull information together.
Rounding out our remaining hires in February Katherine Kilbane transferred to Human Resources, Vanya Woodward is the Executive Assistant for Daniel Obrist and myself, and Harold Tabios and Jennifer Lewellen both promoted (Resource Planning and Management and Business Operations Center). Shelby Motley started at Lindcove REC as a Blank Assistant 2. We also hired students Adam Yandel and Alana Logie (Sutter/Yuba), and Rboert Vergara and Sophia Benefiel (IPM) as well as Christiana Spencer (internship). All total, we had 29 positions filled in February. THANK YOU everyone who served on search committees.