Shrinking budgets and increased demands for services and programs are the norm for today's Extension professional. The tasks of procuring grants, developing fund raisers, and pursuing donors require a large investment of time and can lead to mission drift in the pursuit of funding. Implementing a collaborative fee-based program initiative can fund…

Free tax programs, such as Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA), allow recipients of the earned income tax credit (EITC) to have their returns filed for free. VITA and other free tax programs are nationwide. However, each program is distinct, and the services provided by these programs differ. This article discusses a successful and unique…

The Extension services of Washington State University, Oregon State University, and the University of Idaho established Pacific Northwest Extension Publishing (PNW Publishing) in 1946 as a mechanism of regional cooperation and cost savings. Other regions followed suit in the decades that followed. Today, PNW Publishing is the last standing…

The income tax-filing process creates teachable moments for learning about taxes and other financial matters. Educators and volunteers from Penn State Cooperative Extension helped taxpayers file 2008 returns under Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program (VITA). Nearly 600 filers (588) completed and simultaneously received educational information…

Our complex and rapidly changing world demands a more nimble, responsive, and flexible Extension organization. The findings from a study involving interviews across a state Cooperative Extension Service paint a picture of organizational learning in Extension. Four key dimensions of learning surfaced. Of particular importance are the application of…

Perceptions of 4-H youth development personnel regarding interorganizational cooperation were studied between the perceived and desired levels of cooperative activities between 4-H youth development personnel and secondary agriculture teachers. Results indicated that 4-H youth development personnel wanted higher levels of coordinated efforts…

Partnering with private industry can empower Extension educators to enhance their educational outreach efforts. Since 2011, UF/IFAS has cooperated with the Florida Turfgrass Association in conducting a 1-day statewide Polycom® event for providing continuing education to licensed pesticide applicators employed primarily in the ornamental and…

The Cooperative Extension Service's Children, Youth, and Families at Risk initiative is being assessed by the Evaluation Collaboration's three projects: state-strengthening evaluation project (resources to help states evaluate community programs); NetCon (evaluation of electronic and other networks); and National Youth at Risk Sustainability Study…

In order for Extension programs of veterinary medicine to succeed, good relationships are needed among university veterinarians, practicing local veterinarians, county Extension agents and the clientele. This author attempts to define some roles and relationships and offer some suggestions for the improvement of relationships to increase…

U.S. Department of Agriculture-sponsored cooperative extension systems and university programs offered through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development may find themselves in collaboration or conflict as both expand urban outreach activities. A case study in Des Moines, Iowa, illustrates how collaboration can occur and redundancy…

To strengthen extension programs in the six-county Meramec area of Missouri, the University of Missouri extension staff used Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) funds to train people to survey area rural residents, to provide jobs for CETA workers, and to present extension programs to residents, meshing extension and CETA programs.…

Interviews with 10 principals of schools collaborating with cooperative extension on at-risk youth programs suggested the following elements of successful collaborations: local support from extension, elementary school targeting, community partners, little impact on budgets, flexibility to meet individual school needs, and schools having…

Cooperative Extension and community colleges have compatble areas in adult education. As they develop a coordinated program, other agencies will add to the area, such as libraries, secondary schools, and governmental agencies. (EB)

Since the passage of the Smith-Lever Act in 1914, Cooperative Extension has worked with faith-based organizations, such as congregations, to promote community renewal. Both Extension and congregations share a deep commitment to building community and social capital. (23 references) (SK)

A pilot project used the public library as an Extension information outlet and educational program site. Results determined that, by working with local libraries, county extension centers can disseminate useful information to rural clientele in facilities where they are more likely to look for it. (JOW)