Extension Leadership Team Meeting Minutes September 16, 2024

October 3, 2024 ELT Minutes, News

Extension Leadership Team Meeting Minutes
Date: September 16, 2024
Time: 8:00-10:00 AM
Location: Via Zoom

Facilitator: Jon Prichard
Note taker: Ryder Scott

Please note: Due to the confidentiality and sensitivity of some agenda items, these ELT minutes do not represent the full content of each meeting.

Meeting Focus

Agenda items relate to one of these three goals with corresponding action items and/or priorities.

  • Make Extension a sustainable, equitable, purposeful and enjoyable place to work
  • Work on structural, (county offices, staffing patterns), cultural and leadership issues that will lead to this
  • Focus on employee experience
  • Restructure Extension
  • Right size based on budget
  • Mission delivery that is current, and responsive to changing demographics/community needs
  • Overall efficiency and effectiveness
  • Define focus areas
  • Make PFAS a priority for Extension (define what this means; not necessarily a piece of everyone’s job, but an organizational priority nevertheless).

Check-ins and Other FYIs

Welcome to Kerry Chasteen, Executive Director of Extension Operations (EDEO)

We welcomed Kerry to the ELT!

Hannah

  • Retreat will be at the New England Outdoor Center October 7th and 8th. More details to follow.
  • National Plant Diagnostic Disease Network Annual Meeting in Portland last week. Alicyn Smart will be the Executive Director this upcoming year.
    • Hannah: extraordinary event, Alicyn “is a rockstar.”
  • Cumberland County Annual Meeting/Open House last week was well attended and a great event!
  • USDA ARS PFAS conference last week.
  • National Extension Directors and Administrators Conference this week.

Jon

  • In early October will communicate with all program staff to report effort and impacts for 2024, with a December 10 deadline.
  • Somerset County Exec Committee
  • Continuing work on portions of Civil Rights compliance text and documentation.
  • Met with Kerry to help orient her to county offices I work with, etc.

 Lisa

  • Doing annual evaluations and check-ins.
  • Learning Ecosystems Northeast 4-H meetings this week.
  • 4-H Teams (youth, volunteers and staff) at Eastern States Exposition for the next few weeks (September 13-29).
  • National 4-H and workforce readiness initiative. Maine is onboard to participate as this national initiative rolls out.
  • Sheila Norman will be retiring as of October 1st.

Kerry

  • Check-in (optional)
  • Meeting with Jon, Lisa and Tori re: county office updates, onboarding
  • Working with Jason to present a timeline of onboarding, etc. to the ELT (and beyond?)

Melissa

  • Matt and Michelle are continuing the transition of all Extension websites to Gutenberg, UMaine’s newest WordPress template. They are currently working on the main Extension site and others that have very few staff listed as editors. During this process they will also be creating new page patterns (templates) for use once sites have been transitioned. Regular updates on this work will be forthcoming.
  • Work continues on the comprehensive publications review being led by Tracey. She is systematically going through the massive catalog (about 700 publications), targeting older publications that need updating and reaching out to appropriate faculty for assistance. Be on the lookout for an email from her over the next several months.
  • The visit from photographer Edwin Remsberg has been scheduled for Oct 1-6. The itinerary is currently in development; tentatively scheduled to visit Cumberland, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc, Oxford, Kennebec, Somerset, Franklin, Knox and Hancock. Will share the itinerary with everyone once it’s more finalized.
  • Salesforce/CRM/Events/Broadcast Email
    • Plugged-In is being updated with more information about the Salesforce implementation for Extension including details about current projects, policies and training videos. This page will continue to be updated as a resource for Extension staff.
    • As of February 1, we are fully live with our new Events, Courses and Workshops landing page. Currently, we have 17 users in Salesforce with access to registration lists and the ability to email registrants. We also have 10 folks that have been fully trained to create and manage events in Salesforce. These two levels of access are open to anyone within Extension with a request to extension.events@maine.edu.
    • The Insect Diagnostic Lab went live with Salesforce in January 2024. This includes an online submission form and Case management inside Salesforce.
    • The Veterinary Diagnostic Lab started using Salesforce in late 2023. Their Phase 1 implementation will finish this year. Phase 1 included many submission forms (bottom of the page) and complex Case management inside Salesforce. Phase 2 includes taking payments for services and creating a user portal for customers to check the progress of their submission.
    • Food Testing Services has been live with Salesforce since May 2023. They have handled more than 400 submissions and questions through Salesforce since their launch.
    • Master Gardener Volunteers have been using Salesforce since September 2023, with the launch of their Master Gardener Application. They have also implemented their project enrollment process and hour and impact reporting for their Volunteers. As of August 2024, more than 10,000 hours have been reported! This is more than $300k in time given to our communities.
    • Ag Mediation is now tracking interactions in Salesforce as of early 2024.
    • The Ask an Expert Home Horticulture form has moved into Salesforce. As of September 2024, they have managed more than 300 inquiries through Salesforce!
    • The launch of the new Reporting System in December 2023 went smoothly, and we are now starting the second round of improvements and upgrades which will include aspects of Planning.
    • The tracking and awarding processes for badges and micro-credentials are mid-implementation in Salesforce. We will pilot two programs in fall of 2024.
    • The process to acquire ActiveCampaign, the chosen Extension-wide email platform, is still underway with many delays having been incurred along the way. We are still hoping to acquire and implement the tool this year.

Ryder

  • Fall Outdoor School programming at three of four 4-H Centers
    • MOSFA Network met with Environmental and Climate Funders Network
    • Private funding
    • Exploring referendum
  • Grant to Quimby Foundation for MSW internship program
  • Development work with boards, 4-H Foundation and UMaine Foundation – Appeal letters, BP Development Committee/consultant
  • Peter Alfond Foundation
  • 12 “Friends of Tanglewood” Open House and alumni event
  • Presenting on NorthStar at Educate Maine conference in Dec.
  • Micro-credentials meeting with Laura
  • 4-H Council CAMP III grant coming to a close
  • Common Ground Fair this weekend
  • EPA grant collaboration with Andrew Hudacs

 Tori

  • Screening for the latest round of the Ornamental Horticulture Specialist search is slated for tomorrow.
  • Mary Wicklund, Horticulture Professional in York County has resigned.
  • The York County office has moved (back) to the courthouse in Alfred.
  • Common Ground Fair this weekend, Sept. 20-22- large Extension presence.
  • Reminder of our in-person meeting in Waldo next Monday @ 1pm (Tori, Jon, Lisa, Beth, and Kerry).

Beth

  • Save the Date: New Employees on Campus Sept. 25th
  • Civil Rights: Working with Alisha on our NIFA Civil Rights Compliance as well as polishing our Civil Rights Brightspace course
  • Search & Hire Process: Amanda assessing current camps recruitment and hiring processes and working with directors, UMS HR, student employment, etc. for developing a smooth and efficient system.
  • Crisis Support: In supporting our employees to be prepared for a broad range of stressful situations, from interpersonal relationships with clients or colleagues up to community crisis, I’ve met with the Counseling Center a couple times to determine an appropriate course for Extension – Julia Vicaire, Outreach Coordinator, has proposed developing a 2-part session for leaders and supervisors (a blend of the “intro” course Crisis Assessment and Prevention and taking it a step further to action steps and resolution). Training release tentatively November 2024, 20 or so supervisors per session.
  • Performance Evaluations: I have been discussing incorporating DEI-specific questions / goals into the standard UMS Salaried Assessment form with Amie Parker and Anila Karunakar – Amie was receptive and needs to connect with Labor Relations. In the meantime, we are able to add our own Extension-specific sub-questions. (5.) Areas for growth, (6.) Plans / goals and (7.) Training / professional development could all include opportunities for growth in the realm of DEI, but explicitly stating it would emphasize the importance of these values and the work in this area.
  • Professional Development: working with Amanda and Emily on PD assessment and planning (so much survey and SDF data!) – Staff Development Newsletter is going well, early Conference discussions (Nov 2025), Exchange scheduled through May 2025, ongoing plans for pop-up PDs (such as supervisor training – see UMS supervisor trainings! grant writing workshop with Michael). Chair of NAEPSDP’s PD Committee position starting earlier than expected – as of this or next month, instead of January.
  • Connections: on the road with Amanda to Washington County office (Tues 17th) to meet up with staff, more to be scheduled during the school day hours and before winter arrives!

 Michael

  • Indirect Cost Return: Notifications and balance updates this week (to participants only)
  • Credit Card Revenue & Fees: Procedural change for the camps (more to come, mostly behind-the-scenes)
  • ORA/Grants: Procedural recommendations sought from ORA admin on how to enforce monthly G/L Reviews based on University-wide practices ~ To come: On-line G/L Review Certification Portal

Jim

  • DRL still having HVAC issues
  • Evaluations slated for early October
  • Land update

Discussion Items

Annual Evaluations and Promotion Processes

Angela joined us for this discussion on Annual evaluations and professional promotions. We continue to hear that some of the evaluation and promotion processes are not consistent across the organization.  We discussed some ways to help improve our processes going forwarded. Hannah will email staff on behalf of the ELT with reminders on the process and highlighting the requirement of annual evaluations.

Civil Rights Compliance Action Plan

Alisha Targonski, Beth Hawkyard and Hannah are near completion on the Civil Rights CAP that will be submitted to NIFA on September 23.  The CAP will illustrate UMaine Extension’s commitment to civil rights and illustrate our policies and procedures for operationalizing that commitment.

First Aid Kits

We are providing First Aid Kits to  all county offices, four camps, and the DRL.

Announcements & Congratulations

Quarterly Grants Announcements

See August meeting minutes for the most recent quarterly announcement.

Other Announcements

Congratulations to Lisa Fishman who this month was elected Eastern Region Director for the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (NEAFCS).  NAEFCS is the professional organization for Extension Family and Consumer Sciences that builds leaders for the future; provides innovative professional growth and development opportunities; recognizes and promotes excellence and scholarship in programming; serves members as a nation-wide resource for education, information, networking, and building partnerships; promotes the profession and the mission and goals of the Land Grant University Extension System.

Please remember to share your successes so we may recognize you here!

Extension Positions in Progress

*accurate as of 9/16/24

REQUESTED

  • Admin CL1 York (Paused)
  • Early Childhood Program Professional, Blueberry Cove (paused)
  • TEMP Livestock Health and Education Aid

INITIATED / JOB DESCRIPTION & REQUEST TO FILL IN PROGRESS

  • 4-H Community Education Assistant- Part Time- Kennebec
    • This position search has failed twice and is back to try a third round of hiring (ideas for this one?!, we are thinking about setting it up as an internship)
  • 4-H Community Education Assistant CL3 – Penobscot

WAITING FOR APPROVALS IN ORACLE

  • EFNEP CEA CL1- Somerset
  • EFNEP CEA CL1- Franklin
  • 4H- Youth Professional- Somerset

ADVERTISING, ANTICIPATING APPLICANTS

  • Extension Agricultural Engineer Professional ends 9/31
    • Changed end date
  • Administrative Specialist CL3, Kennebec
  • Assistant Extension Professor of Horticulture and Ornamental Horticulture Specialist, Penobscot
  • Administrative Specialist CL3, Cumberland

INTERVIEWING / OFFERING

  • Parent Educator/ Maine Families Visitor Cumberland/Sagadahoc Counties – (Second Round this week)
  • Farm Operations Technician CL1, Aroostook Farm
  • Wild Blueberry Extension and Research Professional, Penobscot (Orono)
  • Assistant Extension Professor and Aquatic Animal Health Specialist

HIRED

  • Admin Specialist CL2 (Education) with Mari’s Team Sept 16 Sta
  • 4-H Community Education Assistant CL2 (part-time), York Sept 9 Start
  • TEMP- Scientific Research Assistant (Cathy Hopper), Sept 3 Start

2024 ELT Meeting Dates

Dates Facilitator Notes Location
October 8-9 Carter TBD Millinocket Retreat
November 20 Scott Arndt TBD
December 17 Arndt Bailey Oxford County