Together, we did some important work this year, not the least of which was articulating our fundamental principles and core values which position us well for the future.  As I reflected on the past year, three words summed it up in my mind: focus, visibility, partnerships.  I asked a few colleagues what they thought was different in ISU Extension and Outreach after this year, and I’d like to share their responses:

Iowa Beef Center Director Dan Loy says, “One year ago, many of us in Extension were still licking our wounds from budget cuts and reorganization. What we needed to get us on our feet and moving forward was a more common purpose and direction, and that is what we found. New leadership, a name change, an organizational summit that helped us focus on partnerships and research-based education, together have brought us focus as well as visibility to our efforts. On campus this improved visibility is helping solidify the importance of extension to the land-grant mission. With visibility comes accountability, but we are up to the task.”

Joyce Schoulte, president of the Clayton County Extension Council, says, “As an attendee at the summit last fall, I felt that we, out here in the county, are not only having a voice, but are being listened to. I was hesitant to attend the summit because of past experience. I am so glad that I went and that my voice was heard. It seems to me that IACEC has been given a more important role as well. There seems to be more interaction between all facets of ISU Extension and Outreach. Bottom line: I feel that we are being listened to when we have questions to ask and ideas to share.”

Dean Luis Rico-Gutierrez of the College of Design says, “ISU Extension and Outreach has become, in a very short period of time, an indispensable partner for many of our activities in the College of Design. Through innovative affiliations like ours, Iowa State University has become a more effective partner with communities, organizations, and industries, involving people directly in identifying and implementing solutions that fit their aspirations, dreams, and needs. Our work together highlights a renewed commitment to ‘extend’ the reach of the nation’s knowledge infrastructure — our land-grant institutions — to improve the quality of life in our state, the nation, and the world.”

Andrea Nelson, office manager in Polk County, says, “I think the message we’ve been embracing in conferences, blogs, emails, and webcasts in the past year is, it doesn’t matter if you’re county or state paid, field or campus based — we’re all in this together on the same team…I think we’re working on improving ourselves and ultimately a better job at fulfilling our mission.”

Region 3 Director Gary Hall says, “ISU Extension and Outreach today compared with a year ago has been marked with an increase in leadership and vision. Yes, there are many differences to point out, but the overall change would be that a new driver has gotten behind the wheel of this vehicle we call Extension and Outreach, and she is skillfully navigating her way down the roads of partnerships, campus relations, county engagement, and staff development.”

Gary’s vehicular reference reminded me of the advertising campaign, “this is not your father’s Oldsmobile.” In the late 1980s, Oldsmobile began using this slogan to try to appeal to a younger demographic. The trouble was, the slogan had no substance. Oldsmobile didn’t change; it was still your father’s car. The slogan couldn’t save the company, and Oldsmobile went out of business.

Whether you’re selling cars or providing access to education, you have to offer what customers want. That means you have to be willing to change what you do  — not just how you talk about yourself — so you’re better equipped to meet needs.  President Leath has said that he wants Iowa State to become the university that best serves its state. Extension and Outreach plays a key role in the university achieving this goal.

Program specialist Karen Lathrop says, “It is much easier to define what we do well, and it is now clear why we must say no to opportunities that don’t fit into our vision and mission. This frees up the extension professionals to focus on the relationships and things that matter most, so that we can make an impact in our communities with our clients… I feel Iowa State University Extension and Outreach is on the right path and on the cusp of something really big.”

See you there.

– Cathann

You remember Crack the Whip. Any number can play. Someone gets to be the leader. Other skaters form a line by the leader and hold tightly to the person next to them. The leader skates along and veers suddenly in a new direction, or speeds up or slows down. Sometimes the leader goes in circles and others try to hold on. Very small changes from the leader get amplified along the line, until the person at the end loses balance or is catapulted into the wall.  And we thought that was fun…

This happens in organizations too. We each think changes we make are small, hardly worth mentioning. What we’re really talking about is the interdependence and interconnections among all of us, and how we foster them. It’s easy to lose sight of the impact out at the end of our line. So it’s not so much the leader’s vision, but rather, how it plays out all along the way. 

This point came home to me this week as we hosted the Office Professionals Conference here on campus.  We listened carefully to the needs in the counties, and how changes we are making may be impacting them.  There were great suggestions on improving communications, training, and programs.  We appreciated the enthusiasm and dedication we heard, in spite of the challenges.

We are counting on the interdependence and interconnections among all of us as we forge our future. We have the results from our leadership summit, the Administrative Response, we’re developing a business plan, and we recently released our Strategic Plan. We have our map for where we go from here. Now, we all need to consider how this map informs our work and get familiar with where we are headed, so we move forward together. 

Thank you for the hard work and consistent efforts over the past several months. We are building on a firm foundation as we continue the work of ISU Extension and Outreach. See you there.

– Cathann

In December 2011, the Salt Lake Tribune reported that thousands of Eared Grebes had crash-landed in Cedar City, Utah. During a storm the migrating birds seemed to have mistaken a rain-slicked Walmart parking lot for a lake. As reported in the Tribune, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources estimated that nearly 5,000 birds landed at Walmart. Grebes aren’t built for ground landings, but are designed for the water.  The impact left some birds dead, some injured, and some terribly confused.

Maybe no one in ISU Extension and Outreach has ever crashed into a Walmart parking lot, but chances are, we’ve all been confused a time or two. It’s not hard to get mixed up when leadership decisions seem unclear, processes appear random, or basic principles are uncertain.

However, our leadership summit in November marked the start of our new way of doing business in ISU Extension and Outreach.

• We affirmed that our core purpose is to provide research-based educational programs. We extend the resources of Iowa State University to our state.
• We accomplish our goals by developing diverse and meaningful partnerships.
• Through our purpose and in partnership, we provide relevant, needs-driven resources, and as a result, create significant impact in the state of Iowa.

We agreed that these fundamental principles would guide our decisions, structure, behavior, and priorities across our programs. That’s why we will be making strategic changes to streamline ISU Extension and Outreach Administration into four functional units to better support our overall mission:

County Services and Outreach. This unit will support county-based efforts and extension councils, build partnerships, and coordinate program implementation across the state and at the local level. This unit also will better align us with our ISU academic counterparts; ISU provides student services and is student centered, while Extension and Outreach provides county services and is citizen centered.

Program Leadership. Headed by our program directors, this unit will guide our efforts in educational program development.

Operations. This unit will focus on human resources, finance, and business activities; setting up practices, procedures, and processes that are clear and establish how to access resources or assistance.

Organizational Advancement. This unit will keep us on track with our mission, developing our people; communicating our efforts to partners, stakeholders, and others; coordinating fundraising and philanthropy; and advancing Iowa State and Extension and Outreach.

The Administrative Response to our leadership summit will include more information about the roles and responsibilities of these units and other actions we will be taking to clarify processes and decisions. This structure, along with our business plan and strategic plan, will move us forward on our path to becoming a relevant, vibrant organization, with a common mission and common principles. No more confusion, and no more crashes. See you there.

– Cathann

Norman Borlaug was ninety-one when he was informed he had personally been responsible for saving the lives of two billion people. He was the Iowan who hybridized corn and wheat for arid climates. The Nobel committee, the Fulbright Scholars, and many other experts calculated that Borlaug’s work saved over 2 billion people from famine all across the world — and the number is increasing every day.  But maybe Borlaug was not the person who saved the 2 billion people. It might have been a man named Henry Wallace, an Iowan who was vice president of the United States under Franklin Roosevelt, during his third term. Henry Wallace was a former secretary of agriculture. As vice president, he used his power to create a station in Mexico whose sole purpose was to somehow hybridize corn and wheat for arid climates — and he hired a young man named Norman Borlaug to run it. So, while Borlaug won the Nobel Prize, it was really Henry Wallace whose initial act may have been responsible for saving the 2 billion lives.

Maybe though, it wasn’t Henry Wallace who should’ve gotten the credit; maybe it was George Washington Carver who saved the 2 billion lives. What many people don’t know about George Washington Carver is that while he was 19 and a student at Iowa State University, he had a dairy sciences professor who allowed his own 6-year-old boy to go on botanical expeditions every weekend with this brilliant student. George Washington Carver took that little boy and gave 6-year-old Henry Wallace a vision about his future and what he could do with plants to help humanity.  Carver developed 266 products from the peanut that we still use today. And then there’s the sweet potato. Eighty-eight uses he developed from it. He also wrote an agricultural tract and promoted the idea of what he called a “victory garden” to ease food shortages during the war. But with all the time and effort and years that Carver spent on things like peanuts and sweet potatoes and victory gardens, isn’t it amazing that a few afternoons with a 6-year-old boy named Henry Wallace turned out to make that much difference!

But maybe it was actually a farmer from Diamond, Missouri, who saved 2 billion people. The farmer, named Moses, and his wife, Susan, lived in a slave state, but didn’t believe in slavery. They were known as “sympathizers.” One cold winter night, Quantrill’s Raiders attacked Moses and Susan’s farm. They burned the barn, shot several people, and dragged off a woman named Mary Washington — who refused to let go of her infant son.  Mary Washington was Susan’s best friend, so Moses sent out word immediately, trying to arrange a meeting, trying to do something to get Mary and her baby back. Within a few days, he had the meeting set; and so, on a bitter cold January night, Moses took a black horse and went several hours north to a crossroads in Kansas where he met four of Quantrill’s men and Moses traded his only horse for what they threw him in a burlap bag. There in the freezing dark, with his breath’s vapor blowing hard and white from his mouth, Moses brought out of that burlap bag a cold, naked, almost dead baby boy. And he opened up his jacket and he opened up his shirts and placed that baby next to his skin. Moses fastened that child in under his clothes and walked that baby out — talking to that child every step of the way, telling the baby he would take care of him as his own, promising to educate him to honor Mary, his mother, who they knew was already dead.

That was the night that the farmer told the baby he would give him his last name. And that is how Moses and Susan Carver came to raise that little baby, George Washington Carver. So there it is — it was obviously the farmer from Diamond, Missouri, who saved over 2 billion people.

For the truth is, who really knows who it was whose single action saved 2 billion people? How far back could we go? And how far into the future could we go to show how many lives you will touch? There are generations yet unborn, whose very lives will be shifted and shaped by the decisions you make and the actions you take — tonight, and tomorrow, and tomorrow night, and the next day, and the next.

See you there.

– Cathann

*Steele’s remarks are based on “American Dreamer: A Life of Henry A. Wallace,” by John C. Culver and John Hyde; “George Washington Carver,” by Willliam J. Federer; and “The Noticer,” by Andy Andrews.

Iowans value education and equality and demonstrate their concern for others. It’s no surprise that ISU Extension and Outreach resonates and is valued here in Iowa. Thank you for everything you do as part of ISU Extension and Outreach. Education, equality, concern for others — Iowans have set a pretty good example. How do we carry that forward?

The Executive Summary from the Advance: 2011 Leadership Summit now is available as a pdf online. This summary provides an overview of the issues we identified collectively during the summit and our agreed upon fundamental principles, action items, and priorities. I encourage you to thoughtfully review this document.

The Full Report with appendices will be available after the first of the year. The ISU Extension and Outreach Administrative Response, outlining actions and decisions for the coming year, will be distributed shortly afterward.

Collectively, the fundamental principles, action items, and priorities that we agreed upon now serve as the basis for shaping our future. No matter what any individual’s role is with ISU Extension and Outreach, we are asked to be one team with a common mission and common principles. We are all part of moving us forward. The decisions we make each day contribute to the success — or failure — of the organization. Together we can be a part of a meaningful endeavor—a relevant, vibrant organization, fully committed to anticipating issues, acting in catalytic ways, and supporting Iowans over the long haul. See you there.

–Cathann

That’s true for ISU Extension and Outreach, as well. Whether you participated in the summit or held down the fort at home and then heard about the summit from your colleagues, you have a role to play on the team. As Ginny said,

• Start from where you are;
• Follow your passion and the rest will come;
• Create a vision, set goals, and push yourself to do things you don’t think are possible; and
• Continually focus on building relationships.

It’s about taking responsibility. And as Ginny said, responsibility doesn’t mean pointing your finger at somebody else – it’s how we choose to respond. Each of us needs to look at the way things are. If I’m not happy with it, it’s my responsibility to change. If you’re not happy with it, it’s your responsibility to change. There is always a choice. What are you willing to do to create change? See you there.

– Cathann

This summit marks the start of the new way we are going to do business in ISU Extension and Outreach. No more ad hoc, seat-of-the-pants operations. We have a lot of knowledge and best practices in ISU Extension and Outreach, and it would be good to have systems to share them. Think of the extraordinary capacity we would have if we could stand on each other’s shoulders.

We will have to strike a balance on a number of issues, and it won’t be easy:  how do we allow flexible entrepreneurship vs. having common structures, when do we use common systems vs. providing tailored responses, when is it most efficient to operate in a centralized vs. decentralized manner?  We’ll need to make these decisions as we proceed.

I went to the summit probably much like you, with expectations. I hope that like mine, most of your expectations were fulfilled.

• I hoped that we would remember we are a team. No matter which category you selected during voting, we are all one team with common mission and common principles.
• We are all part of moving us forward — decisions each of us makes determine our success and whether we create something meaningful as our “what’s next?” or whether we just go back to business as usual.
• We want to be a part of a meaningful endeavor—a relevant, vibrant organization. The summit certainly offered evidence of our shared commitment.

As I’ve said before, here in Iowa, people care about each other and their communities. They believe if something’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well. Iowans see the value in serving the public good, and they come together to get things done.  But, WE ARE NOT done. Please keep engaged; when asked, give input, serve on committees, pilot new systems. Take responsibility for helping us become what our early pioneers envisioned. Let’s live according to our principles. Let’s carry out our mission. Let’s be Iowa State’s treasured resource. See you there.

– Cathann

P.S. We are still taking comments related to the summit on the blog site.  To be able to review and share ideas when appropriate, we need comments by noon next Tuesday, Nov. 15.

How many extension professionals does it take to make a decision? Maybe that’s not the right question. How long does it take to make a decision in ISU Extension and Outreach? Too much of the time the answer is “too long.”

We have to learn to gather information, consider our options, and then not worry so much about the decisions we make, but instead, focus on implementation. When we spend too much time trying to make the perfect decision, by the time we finally decide, the time is past for effective action. Instead, gather the facts and make the decision. Then adjust as necessary during the implementation, which we often must do no matter how “perfect” the decision.

So, got facts? Good. Go start something. See you there.

–Cathann

 Think about ISU Extension and Outreach five years from now and imagine failure: When I offered this challenge at my interview forum, participants provided six highly consistent reasons. They are listed below in the rank order mentioned:

1. Poor communication (28%) — internally and externally

2. Inability to change (18%) — unwillingness to let go of familiar programs as well as irrelevant programs

3. Isolation (15%) — from constituents and critical partners, as well as field, campus, and upper administration

4. Unclear vision and mission (15%) — lack of vision or inconsistent vision with values of Iowa, constituents, and the university

5. Poor leadership (15%) — leaders who don’t motivate others, solve problems holistically, or build public support for the public good

6. Insufficient resources (9%) — continued decreases in funding

The first five issues can potentially impact our ability to generate revenue, and deserve our fuller attention.  However, funding was not the primary concern.  I hope to prove to you in the next few months that we already have taken steps to address concerns about leadership.  In the near future, I’ll be discussing these issues in greater depth. Until then, I encourage you to talk to colleagues, constituents, and stakeholders about these concerns. What do you think we should do about them? What do our partners think we should do about them? Invest some time in reviewing these issues generated by your experience and perspective. Prepare to work collectively to prevent them from blocking our successful future. We can imagine failure – but then let’s use what we learn to ensure our success. See you there.

-Cathann

• Expect your responsibilities to vary somewhat, depending on the day.
• Serve as a positive role model for others.
• Help others adjust to camp life.
• Don’t stay only with other counselors. Instead, be “in and among” campers so you can be in tune with camper health and wellbeing.
• Be alert for fatigue.
• Provide leadership for informal groups, classes, and activities.
• Communicate with leadership about what is going on.
• Address problems as they arise.
• Work cooperatively with other staff.
• Attend and participate in training activities.

Of these instructions, my favorite is “in and among.” I’ve learned the best way to address all the other instructions hinges on how connected you are to the people you serve. It’s critical to show up, to be part of the activity, to cultivate the relationships.  This week, I’m headed to a Harrison County flood relief event, the Benton and Greene County Fairs, and the CIRAS staff meeting. I plan to be in and among as we do our work. See you there.

- Cathann