University of Arkansas and Cooperative Extension Service
Administration Faculty
Dr. B. Alan Sugg, President, University of Arkansas
Dr. Mark Cochran, Vice President for Agriculture
Dr. Tony Windham, Associate Vice President for Agriculture -
Extension
Dr. Anne Sortor, Interim Assistant Director - 4-H
Dr. Anne Sortor, Assistant Director - Family and Consumer Sciences
Tom Riley, Director of Public Policy Issues
District Directors
Dr. Martha Sartor, Delta District
Alberta James, Ouachita District
Sharon Reynolds, Ozark District
State Extension Family and Consumer Sciences Faculty
Dr. Anne Sortor, Assistant Director - Family and Consumer Sciences
Betty F. Oliver, FCS/AEHC Volunteer Coordinator
Dr.
Laura Connerly, Family and Consumer Sciences Associate
Dr. Wallace Goddard, Associate Professor - Family Life Specialist
Dr. James Marshall, Assistant Professor - Family Life Specialist
Dr. Rosemary Rodibaugh, Professor - Nutrition Specialist
Easter H. Tucker, Associate Professor - Family and Consumer Sciences
Specialist
Dr. LaVona Traywick, Assistant Professor - Gerontology Specialist
Responsibilities of the Specialist Advisors
to the Program Area Chairs
Extension Family and Consumer Sciences Specialists assist the
State and District Education Program Chairs in matters and duties
that will aid in performing their responsibilities. The various ways
the advisors assist follows.
1. They should become familiar with the duties of the District
Directors and the Associate District Directors as well as the
particular program area as outlined in the Education Program section
of this handbook.
2. They should write to the chairs upon appointment to the office
offering congratulations, assistance in carrying out their duties,
and a proposed conference date, if appropriate.
3. They should participate in the initial planning conference and
set the stage for a pleasant working relationship. In the initial
conference they should also review the responsibilities of the
chairs, update the program suggestions for County Chairs, and listen
and encourage free discussion.
4. They are available to counsel at other times concerning
special leadership conferences, workshops, or special projects; for
example, classes at the Annual State Meeting, District Rallies, etc.
This may include planning the event, securing teachers, reserving
meeting places, and/or other physical arrangements. They can also
help the chairs develop ways to motivate County Chairs in promoting
the program area programs.
5. They can assist with report preparation by helping in the
development of a report form based on the state program area
programs. District Directors and Associate District Directors send
these report forms to the County Chairs and their advisors (County
Extension Agents - Family and Consumer Sciences) so the information
for the total state report can be collected in their respective
program areas. Specialists can also discuss ways to encourage a
response to the report forms and assist with planning the summary of
the responses while stressing the importance of meeting deadlines.
6. They should keep the AEHC President, AEHC Vice President,
State Extension Advisor, the Extension District Directors or
Associate District Directors (whoever is responsible for Family and
Consumer Sciences), and the county advisors (County Extension Agents
- Family and Consumer Sciences) informed about the committee work by
sending copies of all correspondence, summaries of conferences, and
copies of reports submitted about the committee to them.
7. They act as the contact person for other states’
correspondence relating to subject matter and program materials.
The Role of the Cooperative Extension Service
With the Extension Homemakers Clubs
The objectives of the Extension Homemakers focus on three broad
areas – education programs, community service, and leadership
development. An Extension Homemakers Club is a group of people who
meet on a regular basis to receive up-to-date research-based
information relating to the family, home, and community. Anyone who
wishes may join; it is a nondiscriminatory group. The County
Extension Agent - Family and Consumer Sciences (formerly, Home
Economics), a faculty member of the University of Arkansas, assists
with the county Extension Homemakers programs and serves as the
advisor to the County Council.
The Extension Homemakers Clubs’ education program is one method
through which the Cooperative Extension Service’s Family and
Consumer Sciences faculty share their knowledge. Local clubs select
one or two members to receive leader training conducted by the
County Extension Agent - Family and Consumer Sciences. This training
gives Extension Homemakers the foundation information needed to
present the information to their local members at their monthly
meeting.
Be proud of your local club and tell others about it. Through
your Extension Homemakers Council you are involved in an educational
program of the University of Arkansas. Inform others of what you
have learned through the program, how you have extended what you
have learned by teaching others, and about the community projects
and activities sponsored by your club.
The Extension Homemakers Council program has a rich heritage
through its partnership with the Cooperative Extension Service. The
Cooperative Extension Service and the Extension Homemakers Council
are partners in the educational development of families.
At the national level, the federal government became involved
with the passing of the Morrill Act of 1862, which created the
Land-Grant Colleges to "teach such branches of learning as are
related to agriculture and mechanic arts." In Arkansas, the
University of Arkansas is the state Land-Grant Institution.
In 1887, the Hatch Act added a research component to the
Land-Grant Colleges so they would have better knowledge to teach. As
a result of the Hatch Act, the Agricultural Experiment Station of
the University of Arkansas was established.
In 1890, the second Land-Grant College Act was passed by Congress
establishing institutions such as the University of Arkansas at Pine
Bluff.
In 1914, the Smith-Lever Act was passed which established the
Cooperative Extension Service. The mission of the Cooperative
Extension Service is to take practical information from the
Land-Grant Colleges and the United State Department of Agriculture
(USDA) to "the people of the United States" in their homes and
communities. As stated in the act, the major function of the
Cooperative Extension Service is:
". . . to aid in diffusing among the people of the United States
useful and practical information on subjects relating to agriculture
and home economics, and to encourage the application of the same . .
."
This broad charter clearly identifies Extension’s role as
education. This is not education in the abstract, but education for
action. It is informal and distinct education directed to helping
people solve the various problems in agriculture, family and
consumer sciences, 4-H youth, and community development. In
performing this role the Cooperative Extension Service has always
held high those objectives which help people attain:
- A greater ability in maintaining more efficient farms and
better homes.
- A greater ability in acquiring higher incomes and levels of
living on a continuing basis.
- An increased competency and willingness, by both adults and
youth, to assume leadership and citizenship responsibilities.
- An increased ability and willingness to undertake organized
group action when it will contribute effectively to improving
their welfare.
The overall purpose of the Extension Family, Youth, and 4-H
Education program in Arkansas is to help individuals and families in
identifying needs and improving the quality of individuals and
family living through enhancing their social and economic
well-being. More specifically, Extension faculty members work to:
- Enhance the quality of decision making and increase the
knowledge and skills needed to carry out decisions.
- Improve the ability to affect and adapt to societal changes
by exploring possible solutions that deal with problems and
concerns of individuals and families.
- Recognize and identify unexpressed needs which affect
individual and family well-being and future directions.
- Increase ability to use and participate in the development
of community services that contribute to the quality of family
living.
Extension Family, Youth, and 4-H Education programs seek to help
individuals and families identify their needs, conserve their
resources, achieve a desired level of living, and be informed
participants in the evaluation and formulation of public policy.
Programs focus on critical issues facing families. The emphasis is
on research-based education programs which are reliable, timely,
useful, and helpful in improving the quality of life through
enhancement of economic and social well-being.
The State Extension Office is in Little Rock. It is here that the
administrative staff, state program leaders, district staff,
communications office, and the state Extension Family, Youth, and
4-H Education specialists are located. Other Extension Family and
Consumer Sciences faculty are located at the University of Arkansas
- Pine Bluff and Experiment Stations in Keiser and Monticello.
Extension Homemakers members also receive assistance from Extension
faculty members in agriculture and community development. .
The University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service has at
least one office in each of the state’s 75 counties. Each County
Extension Office has at least one Agricultural Agent, one Family and
Consumer Sciences Agent, and secretarial assistance. Several
counties have additional agents. Some counties have paraprofessional
or other staff for specific program areas.
An effective method of accomplishing the involvement of people in
program development is through the use of County Extension Councils.
The County Extension Agent - Family and Consumer Sciences serves as
a resource person providing background information to help the
County Council. Using this information, the committee analyzes the
situation, determines objectives, sets priorities, plans action
programs, and assists with evaluation. The agent is responsible for
final determination of programs and developing the written county
plan of work. State Extension faculty provide information and data
about the state and national situations and trends to the county
faculty. They may also serve as a resource to county planning
committees. Professional persons such as home economics teachers,
public housing authorities, social workers, and others may be
involved as a resource to help provide facts concerning problems
faced by families in the counties.
Each Arkansas citizen is a potential client for the Family and
Consumer Sciences program. Extension offers its programs to all
people regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or
disability. The educational needs and interests of families differ
widely according to socio-economic status, stage in the family life
cycle, and other factors. Education programs and efforts require a
variety of teaching methods that are well-planned, well-organized,
and tailored to specific audiences. In terms of available resources,
priority is placed on developing educational efforts for the
following audiences:
- Extension Homemakers Club Members
- Volunteer Leaders
- Young Adults, Singles, and Families
- Low-Income Individuals and Families
- Professed Expanded Food and Nutrition Program Homemakers
- Disabled
- Youth
- Middle-Years Adults
- Middle-Income Families
- Older Adults
- Small Business Owners
- Restaurant Managers
- Day Care Providers
- Food Stamp Recipients
- Other State Agencies
Community leaders give of their time to learn from the Extension
faculty and to extend learning opportunities to others. Arkansas
Extension Homemakers members help with Family and Consumer Sciences
programs in Arkansas. County and state Extension faculty also share
information with other professionals concerned with individuals,
families, and the community.
The educational delivery system used depends on the needs and
interests of the people in the situation within each county or
locality. Technological advances as well as mass media and other
communication methods are part of a carefully planned program
implementation. Important changes in human behavior require exposure
to a variety of organized education experiences. Extension agents
use a variety of methods to implement their teachings.
Memorandum of Understanding Between UACES and AEHC
Guidelines |
