Or: Making the Best Better Sandy Macnab Professor, OSU Extension

Established 1911 To take the knowledge from the college to the people, “extending the campus” to all Oregonians. Later added deliver the needs and real issues from the people back to campus to be addressed Feds joined in 1914 Passage of Smith-Lever Act

Representative Lever: “The County Agent is to assume leadership in every movement, whatever it may be, the aim of which is better farming, more education, better living, more happiness and greater citizenship.”

Sought, tested, purchased conservation tillage equipment Purchased insecticide and sprayed up to 72,000 acres for Mormon crickets Led conversion from sacked grain to bulk storage Provided for and promoted Victory Gardens

Demonstrated improved range land grasses and practices Chaired the Draft Board, labor pools, ration programs, Neighborhood Leader Planning, long range planning Chaired local scrap metal drives

Land use planning

Master Gardeners

Master Woodland Managers Master Food Preservers Master Watershed Stewards Master Recyclers Master Green Builders Master Anglers

Listening County Courts Advisory Councils 4H Leaders Associations Commodity groups Civic/Service groups Extension faculty and staff Other

Are we meeting local needs? Do we have the skills to meet them? How to address those priorities? Career vs. seasonal vs. episodic? How to fund?

Currently 17 positions Retirements looming

Do we simply refill the same position? Are the support dollars there? Re-organize the position or totally new? Possibly regionalize? Consider all the costs Must make sense Coordinate a shared position? Fill position with campus based faculty? Drop the position?

What do the people want and agree to?

Discover what needs are un-addressed Can we find replacement agents to address different roles/ Do we want to?

Priority: The OSU COUNTY Extension Program One century… One mission

Limited within region Each stream is separate. As regional agent and chair…..