Annie’s Project Damona Doye, Extension Economist and Regents Professor Sara Siems, Risk Management Project Coordinator

Mission To empower farm women to be better business partners through networks and by managing and organizing critical information.

Vision To bring financial security and well-being to women in rural communities where food, fiber and fuel production are synonymous with family.

Annette (Annie) Annette (Kohlhagen) Fleck, generations under 1 roof Made tough decisions – Sent husband to work off-farm, 1967 – Sold dairy cows, 1971

Designed by Ruth Daughter Ruth Hambleton created AP program – Farm woman – U of Illinois, Extension Educator and Farm Business Management Specialist

National Program Support In November 2015, National Annie’s Project transferred from Iowa State University to a 501c3 in Illinois where Ruth Hambleton is based. Most of the national team remained the same and now serve as officers of the 501c3 board. *New Website* Monthly Newsletters Annual Workshops State coordinator and facilitator website: now accessible with login from new.org

Core Values Safe harbor Connection Discovery Guided intelligence 2015 Kay Co. Annie’s Project

Focus on risk management Production Price or market Financial Institutional and legal Human and personal

Key Principles Education in all five areas of agricultural risk Invite local women practitioners to serve as guest instructors where possible Allocate half of class time to discussion and hands-on activities Provide unbiased, research based information Create a learning environment where mentoring is spontaneous

What Participants Gain Answers, strength, and friendship. Confidence, business skills, and community prestige. "I'm more confident in my farm management decisions." "I now understand how many factors must be considered when making financial management decisions." Possible impacts: – Increasing use of production records – Creating and using marketing plans – Calculating breakeven prices for crops and livestock – Preparing financial statements regularly – Reviewing farm insurance policies – Writing and reviewing farm business goals – Adopting and using new farm record software – Estimating and reviewing retirement costs and needs

Target Audience Women who want to learn from professionals and each other – Varied experience levels, farm/ranch backgrounds, ages – Women farm/ranch operators – Mother/daughter, newlyweds, women dating farmers, widows, in-laws – A great opportunity for Ag & FCS educators to collaborate!

Current Program Status

Oklahoma AP History participants is the preferred class size to maximize networking and collaboration.

Basic AP Meeting Structure Six sessions during six weeks Three hours per session, plus meal time Typically 2-3 topics per night (except the last night or in “hands on” computer sessions) Classroom and computer lab Female agricultural professionals as presenters when possible Light meals Target class size 15, limit of 20 (minimum of 10) $50-$75 per person registration fee (depending on local sponsorship)

Time for Discussion No more than one half the time in lecture

Five Major Risk Areas Production Risk – Crop Insurance – Livestock Insurance – Enterprise Diversification Outcomes sought: Understand insurance options and be able to evaluate them for fit to the operation

Five Major Risk Areas Price or Market Risk – Marketing Plans – Market Analysis – Cash Marketing and Elevator Contracts Outcomes sought: Able to examine available market information sources, understand price expectations, and use the information in a marketing plan

Five Major Risk Areas Financial Risk – Financial Statements and Interpretation – Farm Service Agency Documentation and Programs – Enterprise Analysis – Business Plans Outcomes sought: Understand the value of information provided in basic financial statements and know how to use them to communicate business needs and support decisions

Five Major Risk Areas Institutional and Legal Risk – Estate Planning – Property Titling – Contract Arrangements – Business Structure and Liability Management – Tax Liability Management Outcomes sought: Develop and/or evaluate property titles and estate plan and update if necessary

Five Major Risk Areas Human and Personal Resource Risk – Communications and Personality Styles – Labor and Personnel Management – Life, Health, and Long-term Care Insurance – Safety and Disability Insurance Outcomes sought: Better communication skills when working with family and professionals to meet individual and farm business goals

Long-term Impacts Increased confidence in decision making Became better farm managers and business partners Expanded network of peers and professional service providers 2015 Logan Co. Annie’s Project

Start to Finish Project Planning Contact Sara/Damona Impacts sought, curricula Steering committee Budget/funding Partners and sponsors Scheduling: site selection, timing Speakers Publicity Evaluation and reporting Preparation Follow-up/Level II

Project Planning: Sample Agenda Start on Time, End on Time! Session 1: Welcome and Intro to Annie’s Women & Money: Family Financial Management Goal Setting Family and Business Communications: Real/True Colors Session 2: Developing a Business Plan Legal Issues Insurance Basics Session 3: Financial Statements Estate and Retirement Planning Session 4: Crop/Livestock Marketing Crop and Livestock Insurance Helpful Agencies & Organizations: FSA, NRCS, RCD, producer groups, etc. Session 5: Computer Tools: “Hands On” session Farm Records Enterprise Budgets Other Ag Spreadsheets, Websites and/or Apps Session 6: Participant Choice Graduation

Project Planning: Challenges in Facilitating the Courses Scheduling classes Coordinating publicity Targeting publicity Vetting guest instructors Everyone’s busy

Local Steering Committee Prospective participants Prospective speakers Recruiters Potential sponsors

Budget Expense items$ per participant Annie’s padfolio (tabs included)$25 Annie’s pens$5 Jump drive$10 Refreshments/meals$10 True Colors (no cost while supplies last)$8 OSU software: 4 enterprise budgets$75 value Duplicating? Publicity? Speaker travel? Facilities? Total base cost per participant$58

Budget Revenue items$ per participant Registration fee$50-75 Grants/Sponsorships?

Partners Seeking and selecting good partners is essential for both funding and participation Who are potential willing partners? Why are they willing to help? Remember, not one person has to sponsor all meetings. Farm Credit partnerships

Preparation Marketing is IMPORTANT, not just a flyer Invitations, brochures, direct mail, posters, press releases, PSAs, social media, and banner display (1 available per state) 6 week commitment- Need time to relay value to stakeholders and potential participants. Need time to prepare and deliver our end of the deal. Planning Timeline document available More advertising tips and templates available through the state coordinators.

Updated templates and logos All new templates! Example flyers, brochures (mailable and non-mailable), press releases (local and non-local) you can modify for your class.

Scheduling Day-time or evening Meal or snack Facilities – Cost, conducive to discussion, available at the chosen time for 6 consecutive weeks – Learning resources, computer lab – Academic environment

Presenters Obtain presenter contacts from steering committee Not intended to be solely taught by the OCES educators Try to have 3 names associated with each topic Face-to-face visit Allow 30min with each potential presenter

Things to remember You can take all the steps in vetting a speaker and still get someone who misses the mark Make note of this for future facilitators It’s difficult to disappoint someone who really wants to present at Annie’s. It’s much more difficult to face women in an Annie’s class wondering how you missed the mark.

Evaluating & Reporting Pre and Post Evaluations – Online versions recommended (Qualtrics.com) Create participant ID codes and login to evaluation- “Evaluation Helper” document and ID Labels available – ID codes- Use all CAPS, 4 letters to indicate location, 2 letters to indicate state, 2 digits to indicate participant. Assign numbers to each code, then assign to a participant. – Example: Grant County, Oklahoma has 10 participants » Grant Co  GRNT » Oklahoma  OK » used » Jane Doe’s code: GRNTOK10 » Sally Farmer’s code: GRNTOK11 » Rachel Lamb’s code: GRNTOK12…and so on

Evaluating & Reporting Pre and Post Evaluations – Trigger creation of the report summary by sending an to Sara Siems or Damona Doye with your participant codes. We will contact Mandi Anderson and cc: Tim Eggers at National Annie’s. Do this for both pre and post evaluations. This way we will each received the copies of the summaries. – Print versions available Mail completed surveys to Mandi Anderson, Research Institute for Studies in Education at Iowa State University – Follow-up surveys after 6 months

Evaluations & Reporting Data should be entered by participants online/on paper or by RISE (Research Institute for the Studies in Education) To test the evaluation, use code “99”, these will be discarded by RISE Evaluation uses – Monitor program quality – Add and/or revise course materials – Impact for project reports – Seek funding or continue sponsorship

Follow-up, Other Opportunities Extra sessions for continuing education Local/regional women in ag conference Statewide conference for women in agriculture Area Annie’s Project events Facebook: OKWomenInAg