Families Update » Environmental Scanning

Got Dignity?

nfranz — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 13:21:47 +0000

I’ve noticed a strong trend in my work over the last few months. There is a lot of conversation about diversity in our work and our personal lives. I continue to be reminded that we still have a long way to go to create and support a way of life where everyone feels valued. I believe the core issue is dignity. Dr. Donna Hicks with the University of Wisconsin Madison deeply studies dignity and has helped governments and organizations around the world when dignity is violated. She has identified ten essential elements that define dignity: 1) acceptance of identity as others being neither inferior nor superior to you, 2) recognition and praise for others for who they are, 3) acknowledgement of perople’s concerns and experiences, 4) inclusion by making others feel they belong, 5) safety both physical and psychological, 6) fairness through just and equal treatment, 7) independence by empowering people to act on their own behalf to feel control in their lives, 8) understanding of others’ perspectives, 9) benefit of the doubt by believing people have a good reason for doing what they do, and 10) accountability when you have wronged others and change the hurtful behavior.

Our ANR Extension and Outreach coworkers are conducting a webinar next week focusing on diversity. They have asked each other to examine dignity with the following points: 1) think about an incident when you were not head or respected, 2) think about a time when you experienced being in the minority, or experienced being considered or treated as different, 3) think about a time you experienced being stereo-typed, 4) think about at ime you witnessed unfair, insensitive, or disrespectful behavior and weren’t quite sure how to respond especially as a representative of ISUEO, 5) think about a time when you caught yourself operating according to a sterotype, and 6) think about a time when you treated someone with disrespect, rudeness, or insensitivity.

I hope we all find at least one way every day to enhance diginity in ourselves and others. I continue to ask myself, who in my life is invisible right now that I need to support? What do you do to encourage the dignity in others? Feel free to share your comments by email or directly to this post.

There’s No Place Like Home: So Why Do We Complain?

nfranz — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 17:47:00 +0000

Last week a coworker from Virginia Cooperative Extension visited ISU for a few days to explore PhD programs. It was refreshing to hear at every turn how impressed he was with our campus and our Extension system. He was literally in awe of our work and mentioned in particular our hot lines, branding, staffing, funding, and program support. Sometimes we forget about how good we have it here in Iowa as Extension workers. In fact, it can be easy to complain about all the things we don’t have or all the things we’ve lost. This deficit view of the world runs counter to the assets approach that underlies our work. Why do we have a hard time staying focused on the assets of our organization when we teach that approach every day to others? I believe this happens because we lose sight of the big picture and instead focus on the details of our own spot in the organization. We need to more often let go of the things that make us nervous and uncomfortable and instead bask in the warmth of the great people we work with and the great programs and projects we’re involved with. It amazes me that it takes a friend to travel across the country to remind me how wonderful our work is together and that Extension and Outreach is very vibrant in Iowa. What will you do this week to stay focused on the big picture of our work and all the great resource we have to be successful?

Lead by Serving: Keep Your Eyes on the Big Picture

nfranz — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 13:58:59 +0000

In our work we are called to lead no matter what our role is in the organization. Thanks to Donna Donald for recommending I read, “To Lead is to Serve: How to Attract Volunteers and Keep Them” by Shar McBee that reminded me how important it is to keep focused on the people we work with instead of ourselves. Here are some tips she helped me remember: 1) people are working with us because they care, 2) when we are in charge we must give to others, 3) to serve others we must be welcoming, 4) people feel happy when they belong, 5) when you talk too much people dislike you, 6) worry is negativity that repels others, 7) when we take good care of what we have more comes to us, 8) enthusiasm is attractive, 9) people support a leader who is modest and kind, and 10) if we think something is delightful, it is delightful! (my favorite)

Most importantly she tells a story about downhill skiing as a way to navigate change around us, “Keep your eyes on the distance. Look at the skyline and the beautiful mountains. Keep looking ahead. When you see yourself as part of the big picture, everything appears to be moving very slowly. On the other hand, if you look down at your feet, you appear to be moving so fast that you are out of control. When you get scared, keep your eyes on the big picture.” What great reminders about what really matters in our work and lives! What have you been doing to lead by serving and keeping your eyes on the big picture?

Satisficing for Survival

nfranz — Thu, 24 Jan 2013 14:22:03 +0000

Have you noticed that change is happening faster than ever in our professional and personal lives? In the last week I’ve been part of several conversations about how to adapt to and thrive in this climate. In these conversations my mind keeps coming back to a process I learned about in a higher education decision making class I took while working on my PhD at Cornell. Herbert Simon in his book, “Administrative Behavior” suggests administrators often make decisions by “satisficing” rather than maximizing. He defines this as a course of action that is satisfactory or good enough instead of deeply and widely studying every best alternative available. He believes in a fast paced situation humans take into account only the factors most relevant or crucial since there isn’t time to attend to all the choices at once. He states that when we satisfice, we are basing our decisions on common sense and observation of the world around us. This sounds an awful lot like the world around us as we try to balance wider and deeper demands in our work and personal life with fewer resources. Have you thought about ways you can be a good satisficer in your work? Do you know where to go for research-based information and further develop your common sense and observation skills to help you make satisfying decisions?

Eleanor’s Wisdom

nfranz — Thu, 17 Jan 2013 14:20:52 +0000

I was in Washington, D.C. for a meeting about ten years ago and visited a friend at NIFA. She suggested I tour the new Franklin Roosevelt memorial. I took her advice and was amazed at the portrayal of his life in office. What caught my eye in particular was a tribute to his wife Eleanor, an anomaly for monuments of U.S. leaders. This discovery led me to purchasing a two volume biography on her life and set me on a path of trying to embrace Eleanor’s wisdom in my life. During the holidays I read the Pulitzer Prize winning book “Eleanor and Franklin” and for the first time discovered that in one of her many projects as First Lady, she work with Extension to bring about social change. A local Extension worker in West Virginia helped her resettle impoverished coal miners on farms and with development of a new settlement for them called Arthurdale. She indicated Extension was also doing “splendid work” to help low income families through subsistence gardening.

A needs assessment recently conducted by ISU Extension and Outreach to Families specialists revealed the most pressing need for Iowans is financial stability. Since half of our current Families audience is low resource individuals, families, and communities, we are well positioned to address this need. However, I often wonder if we are really meeting families where they are at in today’s world or are we asking them to come to us? What can we do to change what we teach and how we teach to be as relevant as possible for struggling families? I believe we should think deeply about what Eleanor articulated, “perhaps we have to learn that life was not meant to be lived in security but with adventurous courage.”

Learning from Lincoln

nfranz — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 14:11:24 +0000

When I visited my family at Thanksgiving we saw the movie “Lincoln” together. I was thrilled to find people so interested in U.S. history. Lincoln’s leadership style was highlighted as full of storytelling and much rumination around decision making. Yet he had a laser focus on creating a country free of slavery. Throughout all the trials and tribulations of his presidency (there didn’t appear to be much joy other than his youngest son), he never lost sight of the value of learning directly from citizens. In fact he went out of his way to listen to what everyday citizens and soldiers had to say. Lincon said, these are my “public opinion baths.” They “serve to renew in me a clearer and more vivid image of that great popular assemblage of which I have sprung.” This lens is just what we need in Extensin and Outreach in our formal and informal needs assessment for program development and implementation. How often do we really listen to what “the popular assemblage” has to say and not just a small circle of people we work with and live with. We should challenge ourselves on a daily basis to really see and hear what Iowans need, not just what we think they need. What strategies do you use to hear and see the next steps in our programming for all walks of life?

Poverty in Iowa- Does it Define Us?

nfranz — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 15:07:21 +0000

We’re in the midst of “needs assessment season” in the ISU Extension and Outreach to Families unit. The most pervasive theme arising from a wide variety of sources around the state is the economic situation. In fact a recent article in the Des Moines Register indicated that from 2001 to 2011 in Iowa there was a 50% increase in child poverty, a 45% increase in free and reduced school lunches, a 128% increase in unemployment, and a 13% increase in food assistance. It is clear that the economic recession is making life more difficult for a large number of Iowans. This call to action for Extension is loud and clear. Families need us more than ever to help them navigate these tough times. How can we update our current programming to continue to respond in ways that not only help with the symptoms of the recession but helping people increase their income? More than ever before we need to see all of our work as economic development. I believe poverty clearly defines our work. What are you doing to make a difference for economically struggling Iowans? What do our work teams need to do to when they meet next week for inservice to respond to this call?

Beware: The Public Value Epidemic Spreads

nfranz — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 14:36:49 +0000

When I started working on the public value movement in Extension with Laura Kalambokidis in Minnesota almost a decade ago, I had no idea it would become an epidemic. I have experienced many joys and frustrations with this movement. It is so clear to me that without articulating the public value of our work to a variety of audiences we will slide into further decline, yet many of us have a hard time building public value work into our program development process. Over the years I’ve observed our clients and partners embrace public value concepts and work much better than we do as employees. This week I spoke at a confderence for faculty and staff from ISU, UNI, and DMACC interested in improving their NSF grant proposals around the “broader impacts” requirements (NSF speak for public value). The movement is clearing hitting epidemic proportions when more scientists are interested in public value! I’ve also been asked to start a national Extension public value network through the American Evaluation Association. So beware-public value is rearing its head higher than ever! What do and will you do to integrate public value planning, data collection, and story telling into your work every day?

Thankful for Extension Legacies-Yours?

nfranz — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 15:30:18 +0000

This time of year I enjoy thinking about elements to be thankful for in my life. My contemplations this year have turned to the Extension legacies that inspire me. In the last week I’ve expereience three important Extension legacies. The first is Pat Swanson’s work with personal and family finance. We held a unit retirement celebration for Pat last week and her legacy was shared by all. Many people live more successful lives due to Pat’s work. The second is Don Broshar’s work with leadership development. I recently became the ISU liaison for the NCR NELD program. Last week Don gave me a three foot stack of files on NELD. What an amazing legacy he has left working with NELD’ers, Elder NELD’ers and many other Extension staff to help them be successful leaders. The third legacy is SFP 10-14. I’ve been spending some deep time with PAHO/WHO staff learning about how the Spanish translation of SFP 10-14 has been used across Central and South America. I followed up with a visit with Virginia Molgaard and Beth Fleming (two of the three founding mothers of SFP 10-14) to learn more about this important work. All of these wonderful legacies full of public value were created by humble Extension workers who strive to make life better for others. It makes me contemplate my Extension legacy. How might I strengthen my skills and work to better contribute towards the issues for families, youth, and communities today? What is your Extension legacy and how does it add to our public value as an organization? Happy Thanksgiving and legacy contempation!

Advisory Council Provides Feedback

nfranz — Thu, 15 Nov 2012 15:18:48 +0000

Last month the ISU Extension and Outreach to Families Advisory Council met to learn about our programming and provide feedback on our work. They believe what we are doing well includes our involvement with schools, our work with 4-H, leadership development, education on food access and food security, work on aging, using electronic media, the Strenthening Families Program 10-14, the Powerful Tools for Caregivers program, and our visibility in communities. They suggest we improve our work by building programs and then letting go of them, communicating differently to get our messages out, telling our story more fully to be seen as the “go to” resource for other entities, engaging older Iowans, continuing to provide individualized approaches rather than one size fits all, helping communities build capacity, being more strategic with our partnerships, getting our websites at the top of web searches, having Extension easily found on line, and working more with K-12 and STEM education. They felt emerging needs and issues include for us include going to where people are located with our education, solidifying more state level partnerships, helping people get access to technology across the state, just in time education on food issues, school food service changes, family environmental education, being “right there” on the issues we can address, helping the sandwich generation, medicare changes, younger adults as consumers, providing leadership for issues, sharing lessons learned with others, and picking our battles. I look forward to putting this advice to work. What are you doing or can you do to build from our strengths to address these suggestions for our work?