SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Betsy Graham, program analyst, Office of Family Policy/Children & Youth, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Military Community & Family Policy in the Office of the Secretary of Defense was named an eXtension Champion for 2014. The award was presented here at the National eXtension Conference/National Extension Directors & Administrators joint meeting, March 26.
The eXtension Champion Award is presented by the organization’s Governing Committee to individuals instrumental in the creation and development of Cooperative Extension’s eXtension initiative.
“Betsy Graham has been referred to as a ‘champion’ for not only the Military Families Learning Network (MFLN), but also eXtension for as long as there has been an MFLN. Not a day goes by when someone, in the early days, at the Pentagon and now the Mark Center in Alexandria doesn’t hear about the MFLN and eXtension as one of the greatest “finds” DoD has discovered,” said Kyle Kostelecky, National Project Leader eXtension Military Families Learning Network.
“There is broad and strong support for eXtension at DoD because of Betsy Graham. She is innovative, tireless, flexible, transparent, interdisciplinary in perspective, and certainly in our corner. These are some of the very principles that eXtension champions as well,” he said.
“The MFLN has been fortunate and enjoyed success along the way. The key component to that success has been the people involved. All of this couldn’t happen if there wasn’t the support of key people in the roles of Federal partners to the project. Betsy Graham, our Department of Defense/Military Family & Community Policy partner is just such a key person,” said Elbert Dickey, eXtension Executive Director.