Tag: fellowship

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eXtension RFP for Climate/Extreme Weather Fellowship

Cooperative Extension is positioned to be the leading national resource with the most experience with on-the-ground implementation of conservation-based programming. The eXtension Climate Coalition proposes creating a Fellowship effort as a short-term project dedicated to the compilation of program data across the Cooperative Extension System (CES).  The fellow(s), which could be one or two, will identify programming that is currently being implemented that aligns with Project Drawdown, other frameworks, and generally accepted conservation practices. Using eXtension support, the Fellow(s) will develop a repository for this information that can help the CES develop a narrative around the work being performed across the US. The repository will be dynamic, accessible, and easy for specialists, program leaders, agents and educators to update and add to. Information will include programs, success factors, and adoption rates. It will be used to help: 

  • Identify gaps in conservation/climate programming
  • Identify areas of greatest impact (or identify trends)
  • Help us identify measurements of acceleration
  • Focus CES interests on identified climate/extreme weather actions (solutions)
  • Help us tell our story around climate/extreme weather action (we will have an opportunity to seek funding and partners based on our current and future capacity)
  • Help identify where we are accelerating our impact the most
  • Empower CES Educators to align with these actions and their strengths
  • Allow for some longitudinal analysis
  • Create some continuity in our programming across the country

Deliverables: 

The Fellow(s) will lead: 

  • Offering of at least one synchronous online professional development opportunity and use of the connect.eXtension.org social intranet platform. 
  • Development and population of the Climate/Extreme Weather repository
  • Documenting current CES programs and practices in Climate/Extreme Weather and
  • Serve as the editor of Version 1 of the Real-Time Programmatic Inventory in Extension Education ePub to be published with eXtension no later than September 1, 2020. The eXtension ePub plus Connect.extension.org is a digital platform for aggregating content, tools and engagement available to all professionals in Cooperative Extension.

Responsibilities:

  • Serve in the role of editor of the ePub Version 1 and identify a review group and authors/contributors and follow the publication guidelines of eXtension. eXtension provides technical assistance and serves as publisher of the ePub. 
  • Work with eXtension to establish a 6-8 person working group of professionals within and outside Cooperative Extension to serve as an advisory committee/editorial board. Schedule the working group to help gather and curate existing research, programs and best practices using eXtension technologies.
  • Develop a timeline with milestones for the project. A suggested time frame for this project is May through August. Aiming to have the final draft completed by September 1 for broader sharing and feedback. 
  • Report on progress to eXtension regularly.
  • Offer at least 1 online professional development opportunity in the form of a webinar for Extension professionals.
  • Establish a group in Connect Extension and use it to keep in touch with the working group, the Advisory Committee and eFieldbook contributors.
  • eXtension provides technical assistance and serves as the publisher of the ePub, and data repository development and implementation. eXtension also provides technical support and marketing for professional development offerings.  

 

Compensation:   Proposals should address how they will utilize $20,000 in the Climate/Extreme Weather Fellowship effort to support the overall work.  The $20K will be to accomplish the deliverables.  Examples of possibilities include two faculty/specialists applying together and receiving stipends of $10K each to share the effort (this could be faculty at one or two institutions); one faculty/specialist receiving a stipend of 5K to oversee and guide the work of a doctoral or master’s candidate who would receive a $15K stipend. 

Reporting: The Fellow(s) will report to Megan Hirschman, eXtension Partnership and Development Specialist.  eXtension will provide $20,000 in total to support this work to the Fellow or the Fellow’s institution, depending on the best way to handle the funds for the institution. 

Timeline: 

Deadline for proposals: May 6, 2020

Start Date: May 20, 2020.

Project End Date: September 30, 2020.  This project is not static, and the philosophy will be to have 80-90% completion by September 1, and have an opportunity to introduce it to the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP) at that time.  

Submit proposals (500 words or less)  and supporting documentation (resume) to:

Megan Hirschman
Partnership and Development Specialist
eXtension Foundation
Cell: 989-330-1265
meganhirschman@extension.org

 

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Dr. Rose Hayden-Smith named eXtension’s Educational Technology Fellow

Dr. Rose Hayden-Smith has been appointed as eXtension’s Educational Technology Fellow. This fellowship is made possible by the New Technologies for Agricultural Extension (NTAE) Cooperative Agreement with USDA-NIFA. The purpose of this Fellowship is to catalyze adoption and awareness of new educational technologies and practices among professionals in the U.S. Cooperative Extension Service.

She will lead the offering of online professional development opportunities and serve as editor of Version 1 of the Technology in Extension Education and Organization eFieldbook to be published with eXtension in 2020. The eXtension eFieldbook is a digital platform for aggregating content, tools and engagement available to all professionals in Cooperative Extension. The professional development will be delivered through eXtension’s upcoming FlexLearn social intranet platform, available to the entire Land-Grant university system beginning in 2020.  

Dr. Hayden-Smith will work in alignment with a new Futuring Panel for Technology in Extension Education and Organizations. This panel will be preparing a separate trend report of technology use in the practices of Extension professionals and in Extension organizations. 

Dr. Hayden-Smith has most recently served as a Cooperative Extension advisor in Digital Communications in Food Systems & Extension for the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources. She’s the editor of the UC Food Observer, a communications platform in support of UC’s Global Food Initiative.

She previously led the 4-H and Master Gardener programs in Ventura County, where she also served as the first female director of Extension. Hayden-Smith was also the leader for UC ANR’s statewide initiative in sustainable food systems. She is a practicing historian and has published extensively about gardens as a civic enterprise in America.  She was a Kellogg Food and Society Policy Fellow, advocating for a new Victory Garden movement.

Her book, “Sowing the Seeds of Victory: American Gardening Programs of World War 1”, published by McFarland, was released in spring 2014.

About the eXtension Foundation

The eXtension Foundation is a membership-based non-profit designed to be the engine fueling U.S. Cooperative Extension’s advancement in making a more visible and measurable impact in support of education outreach from land-grant universities/colleges located in every state and territory. eXtension provides an array of opportunities for Extension professionals that foster innovation creation, the adoption of innovations at member institutions, and increased impact of Extension programs.

USDA NIFA logo

This work is supported by New Technologies for Agriculture Extension grant no. 2015-41595-24254 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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eXtension Announces New Fellowship Opportunity: Technology in Extension Education and Organizations Fellow Funded by the New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE) Project

The purpose of this Fellowship is to catalyze adoption and awareness of new educational technologies and practices among professionals in the U.S. Cooperative Extension Service. The Fellow will serve as editor of a peer-reviewed publication and leader of related professional development offerings with production and technical assistance of the eXtension Foundation. The Fellow will work in alignment with a new Futuring Panel for Technology in Extension Education and Organizations. This panel will be preparing a separate trend report of technology use in the practices of Extension professionals and in Extension organizations.

The Fellow will lead the offering of at least 4 synchronous online professional development opportunities and serve as editor of Version 1 of the Technology in Extension Education and Organization eFieldbook to be published with eXtension no later than June 1, 2020. The eXtension eFieldbook is a digital platform for aggregating content, tools and engagement available to all professionals in Cooperative Extension. The professional development will use the eXtension social intranet platform called FlexLearn.

Responsibilities:

  • Serve in the role of editor of the eFieldbook Version 1 and identify a review group and authors/contributors and follow the publication guidelines of eXtension.
  • Identify and offer 4 online professional development opportunities in the form of learning circles, webinars or other synchronous, online awareness-building and skill-building experiences for Extension professionals using eXtension’s FlexLearn platform. 
  • eXtension provides technical assistance and serves as publisher of the eFieldbook. The Journal of Extension provides peer review. eXtension also provides technical support and marketing for the 4 professional development offerings.  

Reporting and Stipend:

  • The Fellow will report to the eXtension Foundation COO. eXtension will provide $5,000 to support this work to the Fellow or the Fellow’s institution, depending on the best way to handle the funds for the institution. 

Duration:

  • Beginning on, our near November 1, 2019 to August 1, 2019.

Apply

To apply for this fellowship, please submit the following information to Brenna Kotar, Assistant to the CEO, eXtension Foundation, ceoassistant@extension.org:

  • Cover Letter
  • Resume
  • Three professional references, including email and phone number contact

 

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Teresa McCoy named eXtension’s 2019 NAEPSDP Fellow

For Immediate Release
May 30th, 2019
Contact: Aaron Weibe, aaronweibe@eXtension.org

The eXtension Foundation has named Teresa McCoy, University of Maryland Extension (UME), as the 2019 National Association of Extension Program & Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP) Fellow. She will create a pathway for new work in high-priority topic areas for Cooperative Extension to be developed, disseminated and used across the Cooperative Extension System. 

The focus of this fellowship is to develop the first version of an Evaluation eFieldbook. The new eXtension eFieldbook format is a digital platform for aggregating content, tools and engagement available to all professionals in Cooperative Extension, and used in eXtension’s Impact Collaborative. eFieldbooks are an interactive resource for Extension professionals and project/program teams to begin discussion, help establish processes, and assist with the delivery of new programs.

Teresa was hired as the Assistant Director, UME, Evaluation & Assessment, in August 2008. She came to UME with a long-term commitment to higher education outreach and Cooperative Extension. Teresa is a member of the UME leadership team with responsibilities in program development and evaluation, situational analysis, strategic planning, and organization development.  Teresa works with Maryland Extension educators to teach them evaluation practices on applied research projects that demonstrate the outcomes and impacts of UME.

Teresa’s specific expertise in evaluation include survey design and development, writing survey questions, logic models and goal clarity, interviewing, and facilitating group discussion about the purpose and goals of a program evaluation. She uses both qualitative and quantitative methods in her work and is well-versed in Institutional Board Requirements (IRB). Teresa is often called upon to develop and write evaluation plans for grant projects and then to oversee the evaluation implementation. She finds her work extremely satisfying!

Teresa earned her B.A. and  Master’s in Public Administration(MPA) from Virginia Tech. She completed her Doctorate in Public Administration (DPA) at the University of Baltimore.

 

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Cuthbertson and Dellifield Named Program Fellows for the Behavioral Health Impact Collaborative

Contact the fellows: Jami Dellifield – dellifield.2@osu.edu and Courtney Cuthbertson – cuthbe16@anr.msu.edu

Courtney Cuthbertson

Dr. Courtney Cuthbertson is a Community Behavioral Health Specialist for Michigan State University Extension.  Trained as a sociologist of mental health, Dr. Cuthbertson conducts research and provides programming in the areas of mental health and substance use.  She earned her BS in Psychology and Sociology, MA in Sociology, and Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Illinois.

Before working for MSU Extension, she served as a postdoctoral fellow for the North Central Regional Center for Rural Development on the CAPE Project to better understand and develop ways for communities to use behavioral health data to inform timely interventions. She is a certified instructor for adult and youth Mental Health First Aid, and does volunteer therapy dog work with her Newfoundland, Onyxx, in her spare time.

“I am excited for the opportunity through eXtension and the Impact Collaborative process to work with Extension colleagues around the country to develop more projects and programs for behavioral health.  The Cooperative Extension system is well-situated to be responsive to communities facing increasing rates of youth suicide, opioid overdoses, and other behavioral health issues, and I look forward to seeing how Extension can continue impactful work by expanding efforts in this emerging area.”

Jami Dellifield

Jami Dellifield is an Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences, at Ohio State University, Hardin County. Her specialty areas are “Healthy Relationships” and “Healthy People”.  She has presented at the local, state, and national levels on Mental Health Awareness. Jami is a co-author of the 2018 Ohio 4-H Project Book, “Your Thoughts Matter, Navigating Mental Health”.

She is currently the co-Leader for the Ohio State University Extension’s Healthy Relationships Team. She is also a graduate of the 2017 North Central Region NELD (National Extension Leadership Development). She is a member of the Live Healthy, Live Well team (including writer/reviewer for the Live Healthy OSU blog and text message challenges), a writer/reviewer for the Live Smart Ohio blog, a member of the Dining with Diabetes team, teaches Successful Co-Parenting and Active Parenting, is a co-superintendent for the Ohio State Fair 4-H Clothing Judging, is a member of the OSU Extension Opioid Work Group, and was a part of the “WeGrill” CYFAR grant team. She was a member of the NCRCRD pilot program for CAPE training and one of the instructors for the Ohio CAPE project.

Jami has BA in Psychology with a minor in Communication from Ohio Northern University and an MA in Christian Education with a specialization in Youth Ministry from the Methodist Theological School of Ohio.

“I am thrilled to work with eXtension and Courtney as we further the efforts around Behavioral Health in the USA and in Extension.  Being chosen to do this work and to support others who are working within their communities is a great honor and opportunity.  I look forward to hearing about the amazing strides Extension Professionals are making to work with community partners and to help change the way each of us works in Extension locally, regionally, and nationally as our work applies to behavioral health needs.”

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Shatomi Luster-Edward Named Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Program Fellow

Shatomi Luster EdwardeXtension has named Dr. Shatomi Luster-Edward as the Program Fellow for the upcoming Diversity and Inclusion Impact Collaborative. She will devote the majority of her time in 2018 to setting up an organizing committee, recruiting participants, and mobilizing support networks for Impact Collaborative participants.

Dr. Shatomi Luster-Edward is a Financial Education Specialist with the University of Missouri (MU) Extension. She focuses on various aspects of financial education that include the following initiatives and programs: economic development, rapid response for dislocated workers, payday lending, small dollar loans, tax assistance, renting and housing initiatives, to name a few.

Serving as a consultant in the areas of organizational development, staff development, and program/project management, Shatomi serves communities in both Kansas and Missouri.  Nationally, Mrs. Luster-Edward serves on the Prosperity Now (formerly CFED) executive board, that focuses to make financial security a possibility for people of color and those with limited incomes. Shatomi serves on the executive board of EXCEL (Expanding College for Exceptional Learners), that focuses on young adults/students with disabilities. In addition, Shatomi, co-founded GiRL Inc. (Gifted Intelligent Respectable Ladies), building and implementing life skills for K-12 learners.

She has also traveled abroad on vocational group study exchanges and to present in Romania and Nairobi, Kenya. These exchanges provided an opportunity of understanding that emphasized the importance of cultural awareness, educational acumen, and socioeconomic acuteness.

A graduate from the University of Missouri (MU) and Ottawa University (OU), she received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in Business Administration (OU) and her doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis (MU).

“Throughout my life and life lessons I have always valued people.  That value was guided by The Golden Rule, ‘treat others as one would wish to be treated.’  My hope is, with the help of others, that I (preferably “we”), can make a substantial community impact and provide program solutions that incorporate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).  I’m excited about the DEI Collaborative/Fellowship as it allows me to substantiate the value of individuals.”

You can contact Dr. Luster-Edward at shatomile@extension.org.

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Success Stories

eXtension NAEPSDP Fellowship Provides Opportunity to Work Differently In Program Evaluation

As long as we are in the realm of ‘I finished my program, now I need to evaluate it’ we are not serving diverse, or really any, audiences as well as we could.

When Julie Huetteman saw the call for applications for a joint eXtension/National Association for Extension Program and Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP) fellowship, she was intrigued.

In her role as Strategic Initiatives Coordinator at Purdue University, Julie tracks metrics, reads every impact report, and analyzes the impact of Purdue Extension and how it fits with the University strategic plan. She interacts with people in many different positions, all the way from individual consultations on program evaluation to system-wide reporting. As she puts it, she gets to see both the forest and the trees.

It was also because of these many roles, that she has a unique perspective on the “busy-ness” experienced by most Extension professionals.

The busy-ness of Extension has created a reality in which we ‘add-on’ evaluation. It is something we have to get done. We don’t take the time to engage the stakeholder and fully consider their perspectives.

Huetteman applied for the Fellowship because she saw a moment where she could step forward and focus on the most important part of her job, evaluation. The Fellowship gave her the permission and the time to pursue additional knowledge and skills and focus on something she is passionate about, program evaluation that is responsive and inclusive. She not only saw the opportunity to apply a new approach to her own program but also a platform to influence other Extension professionals’ approaches to evaluation.

As she read literature and connected with colleagues for recommended resources, she soon gravitated toward an emerging approach known as Culturally Responsive Evaluation or CRE. CRE requires engaging the stakeholders at the beginning so that the program evaluation uses culturally appropriate ways to collect, interpret, and share data that is valuable to the audience. It is a way for data and information to serve the culture and not the evaluation itself.

Instead of ‘I’m the evaluation specialist and we need to do this’, we need their perspectives from the beginning to learn what is of value to them and so we can adjust our approach as needed.

This seems self-evident, but it is not how many Extension professionals have traditionally evaluated their programs. During her fellowship, Huetteman served as a key informant for the Diversity & Inclusion Issue Corps (now known as the Impact Collaborative). Through her interactions with different projects, she found herself repeating the same question….”Have you asked them?” She was surprised to hear how often the answer was “No.”

She suspects one reason for this, beyond the busy-ness of Extension, is that Extension has served a fairly traditional audience that is somewhat homogeneous (at a system-scale). This is changing in many areas and has caused some Extension professionals to rethink their approach. She recently toured an Extension office whose 4-H program largely serves a diverse, urban audience. “They are completely changing their way of thinking and considering new ways to serve their audience differently.”

The hard part of CRE, according to Huetteman, is that every program evaluation effort will be different. Every audience, every program, and every change in context requires a different approach.

What’s next? Huetteman plans to use what she learned and created during her Fellowship to help Extension professionals at Purdue approach program evaluation in a new way. She is also part of a network in the North Central. Each person holds a unique program evaluation role at their respective institutions, and by working together they hope to share resources, consult, mentor, and form a critical mass that can advocate for an engaged and responsive approach to program evaluation as the norm for Extension.

Considering the polarized political climate we all live in, taking time to listen and adapt our approaches and appreciate the perspectives of other people is more important than ever.

You can contact Dr. Huetteman at jhuettem@purdue.edu and visit her fellowship page for links to webinars and blog posts developed during her Fellowship.

Learn more about the National Association of Extension Program and Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP)

Learn more about eXtension

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Fellowships Food Systems

Digital Green Helps Solve Food System Challenges with Digital Technology

digital green mobile appDigital Green is a global non-profit development organization that empowers smallholder farmers to lift themselves out of poverty by harnessing the collective power of technology and grassroots-level partnerships. They partner with extension actors in developing countries to solve problems like market access, farmer training, and rural nutrition education using digital technology. Digital Green developers build cutting-edge software, such as mobile apps and online data collection and analysis, to benefit farmers worldwide.

After much success working in developing countries, Digital Green now seeks to partner with United States Cooperative Extension to pilot digital solutions in our local food systems. This is an exciting opportunity for Extension professionals looking for a strong partner to help implement local solutions through technology!

With sponsors like Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development, and a focus on grassroots change through Extension, Digital Green is poised to be fruitful partners with Extension in the US. All they need are your ideas, vision, and partnership!

Jennifer Cook, the Digital Green eXtension Fellow, is looking for your local ideas and wants to help you implement a pilot project, partnering with Digital Green to develop digital solutions in your local food system. “We want to help you and your community develop efficient and practical digital solutions. You know the local challenges in farm production, market access, nutrition, food waste, and education. A partnership with Digital Green can help you transform obstacles into solutions.”

The video below is a recorded webinar on this opportunity.

jennifer cookIf a project meets the above criteria, Digital Green will partner to develop, implement, and evaluate the pilot project. Total estimated costs are $100,000. A portion of the costs will be contributed by Digital Green, securing outside funding may be needed.

Interested? Get involved by participating in the Impact Collaborative and contact Jennifer Cook, < Jennifer.cook@colostate.edu> the Digital Green Fellow, to discuss the opportunity to pilot your ideas for digital solutions in your food system!

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Fellowships Information

Perspectives: Avoiding Stereotypes in Program Evaluation

Julie Huetteman, Ph.D., is the Strategic Initiatives Coordinator at Purdue Extension. She is serving as the National Association of Extension Program and Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP) eXtension Fellow for 2017.

As the 2017 eXtension NAEPSDP Fellow for Program Evaluation, I have been on a journey to expand my awareness and understanding relating to inclusion, and to look at evaluation from this perspective, since participating in the Diversity and Inclusion Corps in Cincinnati.

Quality versus Quantity

I often ponder the busy-ness of those working in Extension. We wear a lot of hats and have many roles, but in providing education to our county or state residents, we want to be sure we are doing the best we can. To help us think about the quality of programming, not just the quantity, I share these thoughts that put stakeholders first.

Another thoughtful and thought-provoking reading recommendation from my colleague, Dr. Pamala Morris, Assistant Dean/Director of Multicultural Programs at the College of Agriculture at Purdue University, led me to Whistling Vivaldi by Claude M. Steele.

This book on “how stereotypes affect us and what we can do” is based on our human perception of identity. It shares the ways in which stereotyping defines groups and characteristics, how pervasive it is, and how it can influence performance. When individuals experience identity threat from associated restrictive characteristics, their performance is negatively affected. Stereotype threats occur from many perspectives and affect how people perform in education settings, as well as personal and professional situations.

What can we do?

In an education setting, researchers share a two-part explanation:

  • Self-affirmation or sense of competence and worth.
  • Accomplished challenges may create a mindset to interrupt negative restrictions of stereotypes.

For example, think of the message that women are not as good as men in math or science, and the resulting performance by women in STEM. Programming that affirms abilities in science — in combination with instruction and challenging STEM opportunities for accomplishment — can help in addressing the gap in performance associated with the stereotype.

Applying these concepts to our Extension setting, we can be deliberate in efforts to maintain keener awareness of our communities, to explore how we might affirm our stakeholders’ senses of self, and provide quality instruction and challenges to encourage achievement in learning.

This awareness can help direct our program evaluation activities to address the participants’ experience and perspective, not our own as program deliverers. Consider asking stakeholders about their experiences, comforts, barriers, challenges, benefits, values, and accomplishments from participating in programs. Here is where we find the quality in our work!

Thanks again to Pamala Morris for sharing and recommending this book on the human situation we live and face every day.

For More Information

You can contact Julie at jhuettem@purdue.edu

Steele, C.M. (2010). Whistling Vivaldi. New York, NY: W.W. Norton. http://books.wwnorton.com/books/Whistling-Vivaldi/

 

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Newsroom

eXtension Welcomes Program Manager, Instructional Technologist, and Two Fellows

eXtension is thrilled to welcome three new faces (and one familiar face in a new role) to staff meetings.

Impact Collaborative Program Manager

After serving and guiding communities and professional development for the eXtension Foundation for many years, Ashley Griffin has accepted a new role as the Impact Collaborative Program Manager to design the process of the 2017-2018 Impact Collaboratives. Ashley has devoted her career to the work of the Cooperative Extension Service beginning as an Extension Associate coordinating equine youth activities for Kentucky and national programs then later as a Communications Specialist for the University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture, Food and Environment.

“I am especially excited about the new direction of the Impact Collaborative and the potential impact it has for all Extension professionals to create innovative approaches to local programming. These new strategies have impressive potential for professionals who are willing to embrace design thinking by uplifting and energizing the work they do every day. What an amazing time to be an Extension professional and for me to personally have the opportunity to be a part of this process. Every element of my background will be drawn upon to make the new Impact Collaborative an exciting and valuable experience to our eXtension Foundation members and the Cooperative Extension Service.”

You can contact Ashley at ashley.griffin@extension.org

Instructional Technologist

molly immendorfMolly is joining eXtension after almost 19 years working for the University of Wisconsin-Extension, Cooperative Extension as an Instructional Design and Technology Specialist. She holds an M.S. In Curriculum and Instruction, concentrating in Educational Communications and Technology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin with her husband, one of their two sons, and two very fat cats.

I am excited to join eXtension as the new Instructional Technologist for the Impact Collaborative because I will be able to work with a visionary, future-oriented team that supports Extension colleagues to make a difference on local issues across the country. I anticipate the breath of issues and projects will be varied. I enjoy finding solutions together that will meet the unique needs of you, your learners, and programs.

I am passionate about learning and enhancing learning through the use of technology solutions. I will share my enthusiasm, tips and techniques to help colleagues grow professionally. I’m also curious about gadgets- both tech and cooking. Ask me what’s the latest gadget I’m having fun with. I’m always experimenting with a new one.

You can contact Molly at mollyimmendorf@extension.org

Food Systems Fellow

melanie weirAs a creative designer and food system researcher, Melanie focuses on artistic expression, community leadership, diversity in entrepreneurship, and urban food system growth and development. As a strategic advisor, Melanie has worked on projects that inspire her and that are aligned with creating a better Earth and better communities in a world value system focused on people and planet.

She is passionate about the intersection of innovation, technology, design, research and emerging markets. Melanie has spent her last decade collaborating on community-focused projects. Her most recent work has been bridging her love of design and improvisation in ‘collaborative platform development for social impact’ including work with organizations such as the North American Food System Network, CropMobster and Open IDEO’s Food Waste Alliance, Sirolli Institute, the International Food Blogger’s Association, Sacramento’s Urban Ag Coalition and UC ANR’s Innovation Vine Collaborative.

“What excites me most about joining the Impact Collaborative is working with a creative team, exploring ways to amplify the social impact of Extension professionals by expanding on their knowledge of design thinking and building on a pre-tested program that provides skills, training and that provides creative license to explore new ideas with creative confidence in a team setting. As a Food System Impact Fellow, I get to study, explore and work with creatives shaping ideas that can impact the future. I can’t imagine a better way to spend my time.”

You can contact Melanie at melanieweir@extension.org

Digital Green Fellow

jennifer cookJennifer Cook will serve as the eXtension Digital Green Fellow and will work to pilot the innovative technology platform of Digital Green with selected Impact Collaborative projects.

She holds an MS in Agriculture from Colorado State University. Inspired by traveling and trying new ideas, Jennifer has developed innovative programming and education for her clients in Colorado. She hopes to foster a partnership with US Extension agents and Digital Green in developing a few pilot programs that use software to streamline food system market linkages.

“I am really excited to expand Extension engagement and develop programming ideas in food systems and explore the connections with an innovative technology platform.”

You can contact Jennifer at jennifer.cook@colostate.edu

What’s Next?

We are close to announcing the Behavioral Health and Diversity & Inclusion Fellows for the Impact Collaborative. Stay tuned!