[Image: Image of document]Union Parish
Overall Advisory Leadership Council Meeting Minutes
From January 27, 2009
Carol Remy, Parish Chair, called the meeting to order and welcomed committee members to the meeting at 5:30 p.m., January 27, 2009, in the Extension Auditorium.
The guests served themselves refreshments so they could eat during the meeting. Subway sandwiches, fruit and vegetable tray, chips, and soft drinks were served.
Remy introduced the Extension staff to the group and then turned the meeting over to Jason Holmes to facilitate.
Each member received a folder containing:
- 2008 Fall and Winter Semester Highlights
- Minutes from the last meeting
- Logic Model for Extension Programming
- Extension Programming Cycle
There were 31 people in attendance. They were: Jon Witherington, Lance Bruce, Theresa Sharp, Cole Griffin, Kay Brown, Elizabeth Pierce, Tonya Hicks, Cathy Tucker, Anita Walsworth, Donna Guice, Kathy Watkins, Reva Carpenter, Antoinette Curry, Connie Snell, Leroy Cole, Melissa Rhodes, Mandi Waldrop, Deborah Spann, Susan Edwards, Jennifer Wicker, Tommy Bennett, Bridgette Gean, Marilyn Wade, Bethany Rhodes, James Wicker, Mike Dean, Scotty Booth, Cathy Judd, Marianna Langston, Jason Holmes, and Carol Remy.
Members were asked to write program areas they felt Extension needed to address. Their responses included:
- Teach children/adults to raise a garden! Lessons could be taught in a science class. Include container/above ground gardening. The goal: let youth know food is grown in the ground not in a can and that money could be saved by raising your own produce.
- Teach basic orchard skills. Provide training on grafting, etc.
- Provide wood/forestry product workshops on utilization, value added, usage, opportunities in & awareness of science in biomass, pellitization, green fuel & various emerging technologies in fuels (diesel & alcohol). Various uses of waste in forestry related industry.
- Go Green: Stress recycling and anti-litter programs so we would have a cleaner parish, cleaner environment, use less chemicals, save money, resources and space in landfill.
- Train youth to be good volunteers.
- Conduct fund raisers so all kids in the parish could be 4-H members.
- Have educational programs for both youth & adults on financial management, tax information, landscaping, getting involved with politics, etc.
- Youth Programs could possibly include: topics on dating, violence, expressing self through creative arts, summer employment, work with under-privileged, abused & problem children by providing programs to help kids relieve stress and deal with relationships.
- Continue to work on training volunteers to be an extension of the LSU Extension program.
- Participate in more competitions in 4-H Shooting Sports.
- Provide youth programs on careers for the non-college bound students.
- Give students information on homework skills and how to study.
- Provide parenting and child development classes & information.
- Provide information on nutrition and health to inform youth about obesity.
- Conduct summer programs and life skill classes for kids.
- Teach the importance of hunting heritage and how to manage wildlife.
- Teach what is needed to replenish soil and about plants that add back to soil nutrients.
- Have programs on soil, water and forestry conservation.
- Develop a youth mentoring program for adults or older youth to help influence younger youth.
- Teach our culture to Hispanic students not familiar with our local customs.
- Teach youth financial literacy, career exploration (job shadowing) and stress civic and community involvement and volunteerism.
- Promote agriculture-related careers.
- Conduct forage trials and teach improved forage production.
- Teach youth interview skills and customer service skills to increase their employability.
- Help producers become more efficient by helping them understand budgets and the importance of financial planning/record keeping and goals for their operations.
- Provide programs for first time home buyers.
After discussion of many of these ideas, advisory council members were thanked for sharing their ideas and for them to feel free to give suggestions any time.