Extension Advisory Council Meeting

Conference Room

January 20, 2011

The Extension Advisory Council Meeting was called to order by Chairman Julie Folwick. Those board members in attendance were: Julie Folwick, Josh Bass, Monica Bass, Barbara Snowden, Woody Gardner, Joan West, Patricia Rippin, and Ann McNamee. Cameron Lowe was in attendance representing Extension Staff. No vote was made on old minutes.

Old Business

East Carolina Bank-Foundation Update: Cameron Lowe gave an update on the bank accounts.

Program Observation: Julie reported that she was present at the Holiday Festival and Master Gardener Recognition Dinner. Suggestion was made for next year’s Holiday Festival to include photos with Santa. Joan attended the Farm City Banquet and commented that it was a great affair. Patricia also attended the Master Gardener Recognition Dinner and reported that it was very educational. Ann attended the Composting Seminar and commented that it was very well attended. Cameron explained that the purpose of the program review is to evaluate and improve the quality of Extension programs. It is helpful to have a written evaluation to reference for documentation purposes. She will revise and distribute new Program Assessment Tool Worksheet in the near future.

Rural Farm Festival: The festival will be held at the center on Saturday, May 14th. Volunteers will be needed for the day. Please call Donna at the Extension office to sign up. Patricia’s club will be talking with Terry Temple about possibly constructing a ramp at the Rural Center for therapeutic riding.

New Business

CES Priorities for 2011: No new needs assessment since 2008. Cameron reported that Extension’s three big pushes are:

1. Healthy Eating

2. Environmental Stewardship

3. Family Financial Management

Antique Appraisal Fair: Cooperative Extension will be partnering again this year with The Whalehead Club and Outer Banks History Center to host the Antique Appraisal Fair at the Extension facility on Saturday, March 26th. This is a good opportunity for Advisory Members to volunteer. Call Sherry at the Extension office to sign up. Extension will use this as a fundraising opportunity for CRD – staff development. Julia Jordan with The Whalehead Club, Doug Stover with Outer Banks History Center and Cameron Lowe with Extension will be overseeing event.

Cost will be $10 per item or 3 for $25. Advertising will begin soon. Suggestion was made about the credentials of people evaluating and possibly posting credentials. Success was reported by the Outer Banks History Center with 27 new members joining. It was noted that it would be an asset to clubs to put out information tables to advertise their clubs. There will be a fee to rent tables and to sell merchandise but no fee for affiliated groups to display information.

New Members: Membership terms for Harvey and Elaine Roberts, Barbara Snowden, David Palmer and Tom Jones have expired. New members will need to be recruited. Some suggestions were John Wright (AG), Teresa Dozier (CRD), one County Commissioner (attending member) Butch Petrey, Joe Dzwonek (AG), and Frieda Harris (FCS). Georgia Kight is not eligible to volunteer for six months from retirement date.

Program Updates: Cooperative Extension has lost sixty years of experience since September 2009. Staff participated in 144 trainings and made over 13,000 contacts with over 10,000 hours contributed by volunteers. Environmental stewardship was a big push and we focused on recycling, composting, pesticide recycling, and FCS food demonstrations that included composting lessons. Revising newsletter policies to allow for electronic versions saved over $1400 per month in printing supplies and postage on one newsletter alone.

The road to the Rural Center has been paved and the office, bathrooms, porch and handicap ramps are all in. 200 people attended the Ride For Hunger event held on Jan. 15th and $1800 was raised for the Food Bank. There are many upcoming events planned at the Rural Center

Budget Updates: We have been informed that the state is dealing with a 4 billion dollar short fall. 15% will be cut at the University level, tuitions will be raised to help offset that cut, however Extension cannot benefit from the raising of tuition. There have been and will continue to be many retirements which will help absorb the cut without job losses or cuts. We had 13 applicants for Georgia’s FCS Extension Agent position and several were interviewed. The candidate selected is from North Carolina and we hope to have the position filled February 1st.

Meeting Dates for 2011: Members agreed to stay with same meeting schedule, third Thursday of each quarter. Meeting dates will be April 21st, July 21st, Oct. 20th and Jan.19th.

Report To The People: March 14th was decided on as the date for the event and it will be held at the Extension Center instead of the Rural Center due to possible weather issues. Saint Patrick’s Day is a possible theme. Discussion followed about planning now for next year’s Report To The People which will focus on showcasing local foods, farms, wild game, wine and fruit juice.

Announcements: Next meeting will be held on April 21, 2011.

Donations were collected for Tom Jones to help with costs involved with his illness. Extension staff will also have the opportunity to donate. Master Gardeners donated a $100 gift card. Tom has been involved with Extension for a long time.

Barbara Snowden announced the Historical Society will meet on Feb. 7th, program to include the Knapp’s connection to show dogs.

4-H Achievement Night will be held on Feb. 3rd at the Extension facility.

Adjourn: Ann McNamee made a motion to adjourn and Joan West seconded.