TUESDAY MORNING NOTES - June 4, 2013

Tue Jun 4 12:08:22 MST 2013

TMN submittal:
http://cals.arizona.edu/extension/tuesday/form/submittal_form.html 

Tuesday Morning Notes 

June 4, 2013

FROM THE DIRECTOR:

In review of our overall operational structure in CALS Cooperative
Extension, it is apparent that we have two rather distinct and common areas
of concern among all units (departments/schools, county offices, and
centers): 1) the limited capacity for strong and effective program delivery
and 2) the ability to provide effective administrative and business
support/function in all units.  In an effort to address these common
concerns in our organization, we have to consider the fact that we have two
basic types of units in CALS:  1) on-campus units (departments and schools)
and 2) external units (county offices and centers).  

We have two fundamental constraints to deal with in addressing these needs
in CALS Cooperative Extension:  1) we are working with 60% of the allocated
base funding (federal and state allocated for staff and faculty support) in
relation to what was available to CALS Cooperative Extension in 2008, and 2)
we have a non-strategically oriented asymmetric distribution of personnel
and resources across the organization.  This latter constraint is most
clearly accentuated in our external units, particularly the county Extension
offices.  Considering the needs and objectives in relation to our
constraints in the system, it seems reasonable to consider alternate
organizational structures that might better facilitate more effective
program delivery and stronger administrative/business support and function
in all units.

Through a series of deliberations over the past several months with the
Extension Administration Team (EAT), we have developed an outline for
consideration regarding our organizational structure in external units in
CALS Cooperative Extension.  In a recent meeting with CEDs and departmental,
school and center unit administrators from CALS, and of course always trying
to keep the conversation lively, I offered a proposal for a new
organizational structure for CALS Cooperative Extension county units.  In
this proposal, I presented seven regional units that are outlined with the
following structure:

CALS-Cooperative Extension Regions (Administrative - Business) - (PROPOSED,
May 2013) *

.        Northern - Apache, Coconino, Mohave, Navajo

.        North Central  - Gila, Yavapai

.        Central  - Maricopa

.        South Central - Pinal

.        Southwest -Yuma/La Paz

.        Southern - Pima/Santa Cruz

.        Southeast - Cochise, Graham, Greenlee

Administrative Leadership

.        Director for each Region 

.        Chair in each county where there is no Regional Director located

* A county office will be maintained in all counties.

This organizational proposal was presented to the County Extension Directors
(CEDs) on 22 May.  It was emphasized then and must continue to be emphasized
that this is a proposed organizational plan.  Following review and
consideration, the CEDs offered a rather energetic discussion and they
presented many good suggestions and recommendations.  What I have asked the
CEDs to do at this point is to continue the discussion with the faculty and
staff in each of their county units, to solicit review and commentary, and
to develop any other suggestions relative to proposed organizational
structures that might help us provide a better capacity to deliver programs
and administrative/business support in each of the units.  It is also
important to point out with this regional structure that I am proposing,
that we would have a director for each of the regions and for each of the
counties where there is no "regional director" located we would maintain a
"county chair."  The intention would be to provide the county chairs with a
greater portion of their FTE (and therefore their professional time)
directed towards the delivery of programs in their area of expertise.
Accordingly, the regional directors would have greater administrative
responsibilities that very likely would need to be complemented with
additional programmatic staff in those respective regions.  However, if we
were to implement this type of organizational structure, I would turn to
each of the regional directors and the county chairs and ask them to help
define the programmatic and administrative unit needs that would best
address the priorities in each of those counties and regions.

I fully recognize that this proposal for a reorganization of Cooperative
Extension units across the state is significantly different than what anyone
in this organization has been used to in the past.  I do, however, want to
emphasize that the intention is to try to improve our ability to deliver
programs across the state and to provide better administrative support
within each of the units.  The purpose of a regionalization structure would
be to help provide the regions the capacity to marshal the resources
necessary among the related counties to best facilitate both the program
delivery and the business/administrative support structure necessary in each
of those regions.  

As we move forward in this process of review and consideration, I am
requesting input from all faculty and staff in CALS Cooperative Extension
relative to this proposed plan and emphasizing the fact that I am open to
other relevant recommended options.  I also ask that all faculty and staff
direct those recommendations through their local unit administrator (CED,
center director, department head, or school director).  I will be returning
to this discussion with the EAT group and all unit administrators in CALS
Cooperative Extension, particularly the CEDs.  In fact, I am expecting to
have a very direct and productive discussion with the CEDs in just a few
weeks after we have had time to further review input to the initial proposed
plan.

I appreciate the open and constructive commentary recently generated by the
CEDs in relation to this initial proposed plan.  As we engage in these
discussions we all need to be open to a range of options regarding the best
use of the resources we have to most effectively deliver programs and
provide the best administrative/business support that we can for each of our
operational units.

SOCIAL MEDIA NEEDS UPDATING:

We are trying to get an accurate listing of all social media efforts taking
place in UA CALS Cooperative Extension.  If you have any form of social
media for your program or county please take a look at the social media page
<https://extension.arizona.edu/social-media>  to be sure we have you listed.
If you use a social media tool that we do not list (i.e., Pinterest,
LinkedIn), we need to know.  Some of the social media we have listed has
had very limited activity so you may wish to have them removed.  Some of the
blogs are especially outdated and many have broken links.  If you have a
corrected url, please provide that; otherwise they will be removed.  If you
have a video, make sure we have it linked from our YouTube channel.  Please
send updated information to Sheila Merrigan
<mailto:merrigan at cals.arizona.edu>  by June 12.   

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT:

Professional Development is an important aspect in the career of every
faculty and staff member in CALS.  Extension Administration annually makes
support funds available to support the professional career development
through attendance or training for specific educational experiences or
materials or professional meetings/events.  Faculty with 100% Extension
appointments are eligible for a maximum of $1,000 per fiscal year, adjusted
based on Extension appointment percentage.  There is no carryover of funds
between fiscal years.  To request professional development funds, Extension
faculty should submit a Professional Development Travel Request Form
<https://extension.arizona.edu/sites/extension.arizona.edu/files/resourcefil
e/resource/scrofts/Professional%20Development%20Travel%20Request%20Form.pdf>
to the appropriate Program Leader (Associate Director) via pattiB. a minimum
of 30 days prior to the conference/meeting or purchase of materials.

4-H CENTENNIAL TREE PLANTED:

We are pleased to announce that an Arizona 4-H Centennial tree has now been
planted between Herring Hall and Yavapai dorm on campus near the Forbes
Building - a Sonoran Kidneywood; this tree is thornless and produces white
blossoms in summer that smell like vanilla.  While small, the tree should
grow quickly and well in the spot selected.  A plaque will be installed soon
signifying that this is the Arizona 4-H Centennial tree.

ANDROID VERSION OF DUST STORM APP NOW AVAILABLE:

Just in time for summer, an Android version of the popular UA/CALS Dust
Storm app will be available starting June 5 from the Google Play Store.
Please feel free to download this version onto your Android-based phone and
stay safe during the dust storm season.  The app also works throughout the
country and provides weather alerts wherever you are-tornadoes, hurricanes,
snow storms, floods, etc. 

UPCOMING EVENTS:

SmartScape is hosting a training session for the Turning Technologies
Audience Response System on Thursday, June 13 from 3:30-5:00pm (or earlier)
in Tucson (exact time and location will be determined by number of
attendees).  Tim Gordon, West Coast Account Executive for Turning
Technologies, is flying in from Ohio for this training and the SmartScape
program would like to open the training to others in CALS who are
interested.  If you are, please RSVP to Karen Hanshaw
<mailto:khanshaw at cals.arizona.edu>  (520.626.5161, ext. 120) by Friday, June
7.

Jeffrey C. Silvertooth
Associate Dean

Director for Economic Development & Extension
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
PO Box 210036
Tucson, AZ  85721-0036
520.621.7205
520.621.1314 (fax)

To submit tips, suggestions, ideas for changes and anything that could help
us be more effective, use  the "Director
<http://extension.arizona.edu/state/directors-suggestion-box> 's Suggestion
Box" - all submissions are anonymous.  

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://list.cals.arizona.edu/pipermail/ace_astf/attachments/20130604/bf846650/attachment.htm>
-------------- next part --------------

_______________________________________________
ACE mailing list
ACE at CALS.arizona.edu
http://CALSmail.arizona.edu/mailman/listinfo/ace