Excellence in Team Awards Announced

JCEP, Joint Council of Extension Professionals, announces the 2005 winners of the JCEP Excellence in Teamwork Awards.  Projects from Tennessee and Idaho received the 2005 JCEP Excellence in Teamwork awards.  The awards were presented at the national Extension professional association meetings of the winning team members.

JCEP, Joint Council of Extension Professionals, is the coordinating board made up of the past president, president-elect and president of the five Extension professional associations and honorary fraternity - ANREP, Association of Natural Resources Extension Professionals, NACAA, National Association of County Agricultural Agents, NEAFCS, National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, ESP, Epsilon Sigma Phi and NAE4-HA, National Association of Extension 4-H Agents. JCEP meets to coordinate national actions affecting all associations and our Extension system. JCEP’s mission is to promote communication, cooperation and professionalism among Extension educators.

Joint Council of Extension Professionals Team Award Abstracts 2005

Student Financial Education Simulations Tennessee

Tennessee team members included: Dr. Dena Wise, F. Neal Smith, Tonya Bain, Donna Bradley, Rita Casey, Lori Mantooth, Nancy Rucker, J.Brian Signiago, and Sharon Tubbs    

The Tennessee project focused on Extension programming for youth in Tennessee is to equip young people with the life skills and knowledge to make responsible decisions as adults. During the last three years, Tennessee Extension agents have engaged more than 1,000 local volunteers annually to coordinate financial education simulations for more than 50,000 young people. As a result, approximately 30,000 young people have learned how much money it takes to get by as an adult, to be more sensitive to their parent’s financial concerns, the cost of rearing children and the impact of a family on lifestyle. In follow-up surveys more than 28,000 young people reported changing their career plans or financial behaviors as a result of the simulations, and almost 12,000 reported beginning or increasing savings totaling $4.5 million annually.

Intermountain Livestock Judges Training Idaho

Idaho team members include: April Ward, Scott Nash, Steve Harrison, Joel Packham,

Rauhn Panting, Dawn Sanchez, Jim Jensen, Ross Jacobsen,

Dale Zobell and Brett Bowman                      

The Idaho projected focused on Intermountain Livestock Judges’ Training.  Each year 4-H volunteers, extension educators, vocational agricultural educators, fair board members and market animal committees meet to discuss potential judges for youth livestock shows.  These stakeholders work with limited budgets and a small number of qualified judges.  The stakeholders identified the need to develop a list of qualified judges from a geographic area that will enable the show ring experience to be educational and logical.  A team of extension personnel developed the Intermountain Livestock Judges’ Training to provide livestock judging education for potential youth livestock show judges.  Judging experts were brought in to serve as instructors for the three day event.  Participants were able to learn their role as youth livestock judges through workshops, hands-on judging, evaluating and speaking and view harvested animal carcasses in the cooler.  An evaluation at the conclusion of the training indicated that participants better understood their role as judges at youth livestock shows. 

Two JCEP Excellence in Extension Teamwork awards will be presented in 2006. Program/project must involve at least two or more different program areas, such as agriculture, 4-H Youth Development, family and consumer sciences, natural resources   or community development.  Applications for the 2006 awards will be due April 1, 2006. Visit the JCEP website www.jcep.org for complete details and an application form.

Jim Hovland

JCEP President-elect

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