Volume 22, Number 5 – March 5, 2007
Registration Open for Country Roads Tour
Institute to Help Camp Planners Mix
Kids, Fun, Learning
eXtension Launches Financial Information Content on Web Site
Gifts Help Extension Put Practical Learning to Work
Meeting Notes
People and Places
Important Program Planning and Reporting Dates for 2007
Faculty who would like to participate in this year’s West Virginia Country Roads Scholars Tour should register by the priority deadline of March 16. This year, the WVU faculty development program will explore Lewis, Ritchie, and Wood counties May 8 to May 10.
The tour is open to full-time faculty, with preference given to new faculty and first-time participants. The program is personally hosted by Provost Gerald Lang and Associate Provost Larry Cote. This year’s tour will include visits to WVU Jackson’s Mill, Blennerhassett Island, Smoot Theater, Fenton Art Glass, Coldwater Creek, WVU Parkersburg, Simonton Windows, North Bend State Park, Ritchie County High School, and R.C. Marshall Hardware (opened in 1902).
The free tour, which is limited to 25 participants, is a good way for new Extension faculty to get to know other faculty and administrators from across the University. To register, fill out the form on the Web (www.wvu.edu/~acadaff/countryroads.htm) and send it to Jessica Thomas via e-mail (jessica.thomas@mail.wvu.edu) or mail (210 Stewart Hall, PO Box 6203, WVU, Morgantown WV 26506-6203). For more information, contact Jessica (304-293-4813). Registration will close April 13.
More than 100 camping professionals and volunteers from throughout West Virginia and surrounding states will be “Taking Camp to New Heights” after they complete the Mountaineer Camping Institute (MCI) being held March 13-15 at WVU Jackson’s Mill State 4-H Camp, Weston.
MCI is organized by WVU Extension Service in cooperation with the American Camp Association (ACA). In addition to WVU Extension agents and volunteers, MCI is attracting camp directors, program directors, camp managers, program staff, and volunteers from public and private camping programs.
Drawing on more than 85 years of practical experience and research, MCI leaders have designed sessions to help new and veteran camp directors and counselors improve their skills for creating safe, healthful, educational, and fun youth camps.
The workshops reflect the leaders’ belief that youth camps should be
summer fun packaged with summer learning. Among the workshops are Reading Partners;
Hiking for Health; CSI (Crime Scene Investigation) Camp; and Hot, Hot, Hot … Off
the Grill.
There also will be managerial skill-building sessions on such topics as insurance,
volunteer supervision, positive youth development, and camping objectives.
A preconference session March 12-13 will offer the ACA Standards Course, ACA Visitors Update, and ACA New Directors Orientation.
Check the Web (www.ext.wvu.edu/mountaineer_camping/index.htm) for more details about MCI.
People needing to make good money-management decisions now have a new Internet tool to use. eXtension, a collaborative of 70 U.S. land-grant universities, recently launched “Financial Security for All” on its Web site (www.extension.org).
Financial Security for All provides Internet visitors with reliable, research-based, and up-to-date financial information covering such topics as investing, making retirement and estate plans, using credit, buying insurance, organizing records, and teaching young people about money.
Financial Security for All is like having a personal financial educator, but even better. Publications and answers to frequently asked questions are available to consumers at anytime and at no cost.
Financial Security for All features:
Financial Security for All was developed by Cooperative Extension Service professionals from throughout the nation. eXtension’s interactive Web site also includes university-researched information on horses and wildlife damage management. Information on other topics will be posted as it is developed. eXtension’s site provides links to county Cooperative Extension Web sites.
Education is “academic,” you say? Of course it is! But often it’s practical, too. And that’s exactly the role of the WVU Extension Service—making West Virginia better in a practical way for all its citizens.
Far from being an “ivory tower,” WVU Extension works in the everyday life of our state’s parents, children, farmers, businesses, workers, and communities. More than 56,000 youths and 7,200 adults participate in 4-H. Agriculture and forestry industries grow while the environment is protected. Community leaders receive training and tools to better the lives of local citizens. Those in the state’s workforce access training to enhance their lives and the state’s economy. Healthy lifestyles are promoted to all age groups—from toddlers through seniors.
You can enhance Extension’s capability to do all this—and more—by directing your attorney to include a gift provision in your will or revocable trust directed to the “West Virginia University Foundation, Inc. for the benefit of the Extension Service.”
Your gift allows you to touch the lives of West Virginians in all walks of life and in all areas of the state. And, you can even focus your gift on an Extension program that holds a truly special place in your life.
Julie Cryser (304-293-5691) will be a good source of information when you want to learn more.
Extension puts learning to work in the everyday lives of West Virginians. Your generous help will make lives that much more satisfying and better for generations to come.
(This article was provided by Deborah Miller, director of planned giving for the West Virginia University Foundation Inc.)
… A workshop on forest taxation and estate planning will be held Friday, March 16, in Kearneysville. The workshop will provide practical information about income taxes related to timber harvesting and issues associated with forestland estate transfers. Topics will include land basis, passive losses, capital gains, cost-share expenses, inheritance taxes, and conservation easements. The $30 fee covers materials, lunch, and other refreshments. The session will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the WVU Tree Fruit Research and Education Center. Registration deadline is March 12. Sponsors are the WVU Division of Forestry and Natural Resources and the West Virginia Division of Forestry’s Forest Stewardship Program. For more information, contact Robin Maille (304-293-2941, ext. 2401; robin.maille@mail.wvu.edu).
… The second annual Lawn, Garden and Forestry Expo will be held March 31 and April 1 at the West Virginia Interstate Fairgrounds in Mineral Wells. New this year are timber competitions featuring lumberjack events. The competitions will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 31. A wood chopping demonstration, sponsored by the WVU Woodsman Team, will be held at 1 p.m. Sunday, April 1. “Spring Fever” is the theme of this year’s flower show. For contest rules contact Dina Braniff (304-422-4597). The fashion show will be sponsored by Friends of Blennerhassett at 1 p.m. Saturday. WVU Extension faculty and Master Gardeners will present educational sessions on such topics as caring for trees and shrubs, building a retaining wall, attracting wildlife, working with potted plants, and caring for lawns. For more information, contact the Buckeye Hills Resource Conservation & Development (740-373-7926) or Little Kanawha Resource Conservation & Development (304-679-3639).
… Faculty and Staff Changes
Aine Slabaugh joined the organization Feb. 20 as the secretary in the Braxton County WVU Extension Office. In 1993, Aine received an associate’s degree from Manatee Community College in Florida. She was a Master Gardener volunteer in Sarasota County (Fla.) for several years, working on the help desk, assisting with community projects, coordinating special events, and serving as vice chair of the advisory board. Aine also has experience as an art instructor, gourmet market manager, and Web site designer. For 12 years, she and her husband have owned Naturally Inclined Building and Design, a business specializing in designing interiors, landscapes, and water features.
… Have You Heard?
Jeff Yokum, a longtime 4-H volunteer, has been elected chief of the West Virginia 4-H All Stars. Jeff is a sergeant with the U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division in Washington, D.C. The Petersburg native has been involved with 4-H for more than 20 years as a member and volunteer. He created “OutSpoken for 4-H,” a fund-raising bicycle ride now in its fourth year. The 250-mile ride passes through 11 counties, ending at WVU Jackson’s Mill near Weston for the start of Older 4-H Members’ Conference. Jeff volunteers as a staff member at that conference each year. He attended WVU Potomac State College and served in the first Persian Gulf War during his nine-year stint in the U.S. Army. Other 4-H All Star officers are Barbara Teter of Elkins, first lesser chief; Sandy Simms of Martinsburg, second lesser chief; Bob Frankenberry of Inwood, medicine man; and Kathy Anderson of New Cumberland, scribe. The All Stars is an honorary organization made up of older 4-H members and local 4-H leaders selected for membership in recognition of their 4-H achievement and service.
WVU’s research program in agricultural and resource economics has been ranked eighth in the nation, according to a Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index generated by Academic Analytics and published in The Chronicle of Higher Education. The index rates faculty members’ scholarly output at nearly 7,300 doctoral programs around the country. It examines the number of book and journal articles published, as well as journal citations, awards, honors, and grants received by faculty. Several interdisciplinary research projects at WVU are examining the role of niche products in enhancing farm income, reducing risk, and diversifying income sources. Examples of such products include aquaculture, pasture-raised beef, and organic foods. Other efforts deal with economic development, marketing, and Extension programs.
If you’re planning an out-of-the-country trip, you may want to visit the WVU Student Health Service’s International Travel Clinic first. The travel clinic can provide the vaccinations necessary for making sure you stay healthy on a trip abroad. Available vaccinations include Hepatitis A and B, typhoid, and yellow fever. Anyone may use the clinic’s services. The clinic can also help you prepare for many other travel issues such as travel advisories, jet lag, and finding a physician abroad. To prepare for an appointment, visitors should bring their anticipated travel dates, itinerary, and accommodations plans. Past immunization records and a list of allergies and current medications will also help. Finally, a Questionnaire for International Travelers should be completed. The questionnaire may be downloaded from the Web (www.hsc.wvu.edu/shs/services/internationalTravel.asp). Visit that Web site or call 304-293-1379 to contact the clinic. It is located in the WVU Student Health Service (on the ground floor of the Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center) in Morgantown. For employees and other nonstudents, clinic visits cost between $45 and $80 in addition to the vaccinations.
National Environmental Education Week, April 15-22, seeks to increase the educational impact of Earth Day (April 22) and recognize American educators who implement environmental education in their classrooms or organizations. Persons who register for EE Week 2007 will have access to free environmental education resources, a monthly electronic newsletter, and the opportunity to apply for the Richard C. Bartlett Award for Environmental Education. The award recognizes outstanding environmental education programs by providing grants to the winning organizations. You may join the national efforts, promote environmental learning, and gain national exposure for your work by registering on the Web site (www.eeweek.org/register.htm). The week is sponsored by the National Environmental Education & Training Foundation.
… In the News
An 80-year-old retired Navy captain is making it his life’s work to make sure kids in Clay County have a great 4-H park, according to an article in the March 2 edition of the Charleston Daily Mail. Don Jarvis has spent 10 years on the 45-acre park. He and County Commissioner Jerry Linkinoggor applied for and received a grant for constructing the Howard Knotts Memorial Building, which houses the county’s agricultural fair and serves as a general purpose building. With the school board’s help, Don has built a baseball field. Clay County High School construction classes helped to build a concession stand and a press box. However, he has been unable to obtain grant funds to build a dining hall, which is needed before the park can be used for 4-H camps. Don is trying to find someone to donate money for the building. “If we have that building, everything would work out,” Mike Shamblin was quoted as saying. He believes more children would be able to attend camp if it were located in the county. About 70 of the county’s 270 4-H members attended last year’s Clay County 4-H camp held at Camp Shepherd in Roane County.
… In Memoriam
Alvin Clark Allison, 85, the husband of former WVU Extension agent Roberta
Larew Allison, died March1 in Charleston. He was a forester.
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. March 11 at the First Presbyterian
Church in Charleston. Memorial contributions may be made to Penn State Mont
Alto, 1 Campus Drive, Mont Alto PA 17237. Condolences may be sent to Roberta
at 709 Churchill Drive, Charleston WV 25314.
Bernardette “Joan” Mary Basden, mother of Tom Basden,
died March 2 at her home in Morgantown. She was 86. A native of England, she
was a registered nurse and certified midwife in London during World War II.
She moved to Morgantown in 1999 after living for 25 years in Elkins, where
she was a member of a Community Educational Outreach Service club. Other survivors
include a son, a daughter, and four grandchildren. Friends will be received
from 2 to 4 p.m. and 6 to 8 p.m. tomorrow (March 6) at Dering’s Funeral
Home in Morgantown. Her service will be held at 11 a.m. March 7 at St. Mary’s
Catholic Church in Star City. Burial will be in Elkins. Condolences may be
sent to Tom at 1050 Hildebrand L&D Road, Morgantown WV 26501.
Rita Anne Shultz, wife of retiree John A. Shultz, died Feb.
27 in Morgantown. She was 83. Her funeral was March 3. Other survivors include
six children, 16 grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. Memorial donations
may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association—Morgantown Chapter,
1299 Pineview Drive, Suite 3, Morgantown WV 26505. Cards may be sent to John
at 651 Southview, Morgantown WV 26505.
Elizabeth Reel, mother of Roberta (Bobbie) Simons, died Feb.
26. Her funeral was March 2 in Jane Lew. A long-time member of the Gee Lick
CEOS Club, she was chosen as the Lewis County Belle for the 2005 West Virginia
Folk Festival. She was also a 4-H All Star. You may send condolences to Bobbie
at 89 Pridemore Acres, Jane Lew WV 26378.
Edith Wallbrown, mother of Rodney M. Wallbrown, died Feb. 27 in Spencer. Her funeral was March 1. Condolences may be sent to Rodney at this address: 381 Staff House Road, Point Pleasant WV 25550.
Important Program Planning and Reporting Dates for 2007
March 30, 2007 Final reports due for those who received Seed Grants for Research and/or Competitive Funds for Team Activities in spring 2006.
April 3, 2007 Final Faculty Assignment Document in MS Word due to program leaders.
Federal Reporting Dates
March 30, 2007 Program Accomplishment Reports submitted to CSREES
March 30, 2007 2008-2012 Plan of Work Update submitted to CSREES
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Our Continuing Mission . . .
The mission of the West Virginia University Extension Service is to form learning partnerships with the people of West Virginia to enable them to improve their lives and communities. To these partnerships, we bring useful research- and experience-based knowledge that facilitates critical thinking and skill development.
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Extension Focus is a publication of the Office of the Associate Provost for Extension and Public Service. News items should be sent to the Office of Communications, 506 Knapp Hall, P.O. Box 6031, Morgantown, WV 26506-6031.
Issues of Focus are archived on Extension's Intranet
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Programs and activities offered by the West Virginia University
Extension Service are available to all persons without regard to race, color,
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origin, and marital or family status.
Submitted by Joyce Bower.
