Presentations primer

As school gets ready to start and the need to make presentations increases, click here for tips on how to make a powerful Power Point presentation.

Posted 6:37 PM | Comments (0)

Back to school specials

Dean Alton Thompson and the rest of the SAES administrative team will be hosting the annual academic year kickoff meeting on Thursday, Aug. 11, from 3-5 p.m. in the Webb Hall Auditorium [.pdf]. The SAES meeting will put the finishing touches on an entire day of academic year kickoff activities. Provost & Vice Chancellor Meyers will be introducing new faculty and staff at the university-wide opening day program that begins at 11:30 a.m. in Stallings Ballroom, and there will be a faculty and staff cookout on the lawn in front of the Dudley Building at 12:30 p.m. The complete opening day agenda at A&T is here. For the first time, all A&T Extension field faculty have been invited to attend the Aug. 11 opening day sessions.

Posted 5:10 PM | Comments (0)

Quilting time

Two groups of youths from the Smith and Ray Warren communities in Greensboro were SAES guests on a quest in July. Dr. Geraldine Ray coordinates a special “Fabric and Thread Camp that brings youngsters to the SAES for weeklong introductions to textiles and fashion merchandising and design. This year the emphasis was on machine quilting and embroidery.

Funding for the Fabric and Thread Art Camp came from the Greensboro Arts Council, the United Institutional Baptist Church, the Greensboro Club of the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women's Clubs, and the Department of Human Environment and Family Sciences at A&T.

Posted 5:09 PM | Comments (1)

Range on the homes

Dr. Carolyn S. Turner, associate dean for Agricultural Research, was invited by Shirley Baum, director of Family & Consumer Sciences for the Nebraska Department of Education, to give a presentation on "Housing Issues: Integrating Housing into the FCS [Family and Consumer Sciences] Curriculum" at the 2005 Nebraska Career Education Conference in Kearney, NE, in June. Turner’s presentation collaborator was Dr. Shirley Niemeyer, a housing specialist, with Nebraska Cooperative Extension Service.

Posted 5:08 PM | Comments (0)

Training trainers to lead leaders

Dr. Michelle Eley, Extension’s community and economic development specialist, has put together a one-day training program for members of county Extension staffs interested in using the “Community Voices leadership development curriculum with local groups. Eley’s “Building a Base of Trained Leaders program will give Extension personnel the tools and background information for passing along the self-directed “Community Voices training modules to community-action groups and grassroots organizations. “Community Voices has often been a starting point for groups eager to have their opinions heard on local issues.

Eley will be offering “Building a Base of Trained Leaders at the:
• Vernon James Research and Extension Center in Plymouth, on Tuesday, Aug. 23, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Guilford County Extension Center on Monday, Aug. 29, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Broyhill Conference Center in Boone on Tuesday, Sept. 6, from 9 a.m.-4 p.m.

To register for any of the three “Community Voices training programs via Extension’s interim Learning Management (iLS) system, start at
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/pods/. For additional information on the training, contact Eley at mleley@ncat.edu.

Posted 5:00 PM | Comments (2)

Economists count McDowell in

Dr. Donald McDowell, SAES associate dean for Academic Programs, was one of 10 economists honored for contributions to the Committee on the Opportunities and Status of Blacks in Agricultural Economics (COSBAE) at the 2005 Annual Meeting of the American Association of Agricultural Economics (AAEA) in Providence, RI, in late July. McDowell and the other COSBAE honorees were cited for creating new professional development opportunities for young economists, recognition for accomplishments in the field, and for heightening cultural sensitivity in the AAEA.

One of the AAEA’s main objectives is to serve as a forum for scholarship and breaking news in agricultural economics, and the organization’s Web site does a great job of living up to this commitment. The AAEA newsletter, “The Exchange, is online at http://www.aaea.org/fund/pubs/newsletter/, and the bi-monthly publication provides comprehensive coverage of professional development opportunities, research publications, and what’s unfolding at colleges and universities. The Web site has a breaking news section at http://www.aaea.org/info/news/ that puts an international eye on agricultural news and global economics.

Posted 4:59 PM | Comments (0)

Fungal affair

The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T and the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences are coordinating a meeting for growers of edible and medicinal mushrooms who are interested in establishing a producers’ organization. The meeting will be Thursday, Aug. 11, at 6:30 p.m. at the Guilford County Extension Center. For more information, contact Theresa Nartea at tjnartea@ncat.edu.

Posted 4:58 PM | Comments (0)

Pettiness aside

Now that departmental procurement cards are available for unforeseeable small expenditures (under $100) for research projects, the Agricultural Research Program (ARP) is no longer maintaining a petty cash fund. When there is unexpected need for small expenditure, principal investigators and research associates can apply for reimbursement for out-of-pocket purchases by starting with the Petty Cash Form at http://businessfinance.ncat.edu/FORMS%20LIST.htm. Once this form has been signed by the project principal investigator and the appropriate department head, the form and documenting receipt should be brought to Shirl Hines at C. H. Moore for a final OK before the form is ready to present at the University Cashier’s Office.

Posted 4:57 PM | Comments (0)

It’s all a few clicks away

The North Carolina Association of Extension Program Assistants, Associates and Technicians has its annual conference set for Winston-Salem Aug. 22-24. For a look at the conference workshop agenda, download the .pdf. If you like what you see, move on to http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/assn/ncaepaat/ConferenceAgenda.htm for a registration form. Once your registration is ready to go, the final stop is http://www.hawthorneinn.com/ to make a reservation at the Hawthorne Inn and Conference Center.

Posted 4:49 PM | Comments (0)

Extension gets mentions

In the past month The Cooperative Extension Program at A&T received some insightful accolades from newspapers in Reidsville, Winston-Salem, Clarksville, TN, and Lexington, KY. The Reidsville Review did a story on the youth development program Mini-Society, “[which] trains community volunteers on how to teach children ages 8-12 entrepreneurial concepts such as citizenship, economics and government. The Winston-Salem Journal’s gardening columnist, David Bare, did a feature-length article on community gardens on July 16, and the work of two members of the A&T field staff, Don Mebane and Stephen Greer, played a prominent role. Up in the Bluegrass State, business page coverage of an award winning Kentucky State curriculum on "The Risk-Assessed Business Planning for Small Producers" noted that Dr. Daniel Lyons, Extension coordinator for the Piedmont District, was also part of the multi-state team that developed the curriculum. And over in Clarksville, TN, a newspaper that bills itself as “Tennessee's oldest newspaper, ran a laudatory article on small farm programs coordinated by Tennessee State University, which acknowledges that one of the most successful of these programs, was “inspired by a similar program Dr. Clyde Chesney brought with him from North Carolina. Now the administrator of the Cooperative Extension Program at Tennessee State, Chesney began his North Carolina Extension career at A&T, and his inspiration for the Small Farm Expos is undoubtedly A&T Extension’s Small Farms Week.

For the complete Reidsville Review article on Mini-Society, visit this link. The article on community gardens in Winston-Salem is here. The risk management award is at http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/business/12153271.htm. The newspaper coverage of Tennessee State’s small farm programs is at http://www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050723/BUSINESS/507230302/1046.

Posted 4:46 PM | Comments (0)

Last call

The deadline for the A&T State University Employee of the Year nominations is Friday, Aug. 5. The five categories for nominations this year are: “Outstanding State Government Service,? “Innovations,? “Public Service,? “Safety and Heroism,? and “Human Relations.? Nomination forms are here.

Posted 4:43 PM | Comments (0)

Staff update

Dr. Ralph Noble has been named chairman of the Department of Animal Sciences. He comes to the SAES from Tuskegee University, where he was co-coordinator of the animal, poultry and veterinary Sciences teaching, research and outreach programs. Noble received his bachelor’s degree in agricultural sciences and master’s degree in animal sciences from Tuskegee University, and his Ph.D. in reproductive physiology in animal sciences from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana. Noble’s research focus has been on improving reproductive performance of goats and cattle. His work has primarily been with small farmers in the Black Belt area of the southeastern United States. He has also been involved in a number of projects in East and West Africa, as well as Egypt, China and the Caribbean.

Teresa McRae has joined the Department of Agricultural Communications and Technology (ACT) as officer manager. Her desk is at the north wing of the C. H. Moore Agricultural Research Station; her phone number is 334-7636; and her e-mail is tamcrae@ncat.edu. McRae comes to ACT from the Office of the Registrar.

Posted 4:42 PM | Comments (3)