U of A University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture

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Arkansas Extension Homemakers Council

Cooperative Extension Service

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A E H C - Community Service, Leadership Development, and Education

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Handbook

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Section A
Welcome


Section B
History


Section C
Bylaws


Section C
Standing Rules


Section D
Officers and Chairs


Section E
Education Programs


Section F
Awards


Section G
County/Club Officers


Section H
Financial Affairs


Section I
U of A,  Extension


Section J
Legal Matters


Section K
Affiliation With Others

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

 


© 2006
University of Arkansas
Division of Agriculture
All rights reserved.
Last Date Modified 10/20/2009 

Arkansas Extension Homemakers Council
2301 South University Avenue
Little Rock, Arkansas 72204 • USA
Phone (501) 671-2033 • Fax (501) 671-2323
 

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