CSREES Update - January 24, 2007

CSREES Update, from the Office of the Administrator, is a biweekly newsletter for research, education, and extension partners at land-grant universities and other cooperating institutions.

In This Issue

CSREES

• CSREES Names Associate Administrator
• Deputy Administrator Position for Plant and Animal Systems Open
• New Visual Information Specialist
• CSREES News
• CSREES Lists Open Requests for Grant Applications

USDA

• USDA Provides More Than $42.5 Million for Additional Natural Disaster Recovery

Partners

• Regional Assets Indicators Web Site Launched

Opportunities

• Journal of Youth Development Accepting Submissions
• Upcoming NACDEP Conference
• Rural Philanthropy Conference

Awards and Recognition

• Farber Receives Cafritz Award

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CSREES

CSREES Names Associate Administrator

Ralph A. Otto will become the new CSREES Associate Administrator on February 4, 2007. Otto has been the CSREES deputy administrator for Plant and Animal Systems since March 2002.  He was appointed CSREES deputy administrator for Natural Resources and Environment in 1995.  He served as the assistant deputy administrator for Extension Service's Natural Resources and Rural Development from 1990 until the CSREES merger in 1994. 

Otto worked with USDA's Office of International Cooperation and Development, serving as program leader for Asia and the Middle East in the Technical Assistance Division, and then as the director of the International Training Division from 1980 through 1989.  During this period, he traveled to more than a dozen countries on short-term assignments.  His interest in international development stems from working as a Peace Corps volunteer in Malaysia in the early 1970s.

He is a New Jersey native, and current resident of northern Virginia.  He received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Rutgers University and his M.S. from Virginia Tech. His M.S. and Ph.D. degrees are in quantitative aspects of wildlife biology. 

Deputy Administrator Position for Plant and Animal Systems Open  

The deputy administrator position for Plant and Animal Systems (CSREES vacancy announcement number CSREES:SES:07-01) is now open. Applications and supplemental information must arrive at the address shown in the announcement by the March 5, 2007, closing date. A copy of the vacancy announcement is available on the CSREES Web site, or from the Office of Personnel Management Web site. Contact Betty Lou Gilliland for more information about the position. For information on the application process, contact Deborah Crump on 301-504-1448 or by e-mail.

New Visual Information Specialist

CSREES Communications Staff welcomes Stephanie Engle. Engle is a visual information specialist, with a BFA degree from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), after attending both SCAD and The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City. She also studied in the design management graduate program at Pratt Institute.  She brings more than a decade of experience producing award-winning work for businesses and institutions, including the J.Crew catalog, American Express Publishing, New School University, and Chermayeff & Geismar. After an 8-year design career in NYC, Stephanie returned to her hometown of Martinsburg, WV, and joined the faculty of Shepherd University as visiting assistant professor of art.  While at Shepherd, she coordinated the graphic design concentration, developed the curriculum, and taught design courses from beginner to advanced. She also facilitated a partnership between the university and the National Park Service (NPS), directing students in the production of highly visible design work for NPS as part of a unique classroom learning experience.

CSREES News

USDA Honors Texas A&M's Pankiw with Research Award

USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics Gale A. Buchanan presented the 2006 National Research Initiative (NRI) Discovery Award to Tanya Pankiw, Texas A&M University, for her research in pheromone regulation of brood rearing in the honey bee. Pankiw's work led to a patented procedure that chemically manipulates a honey bee colony to significantly increase pollination of crops and increase the colony growth rate. The award includes a $10,000 supplement, and a 1-year project extension. The NRI Discovery Award recognizes outstanding researchers in agriculture who have supported CSREES' mission and highlights the exceptional scientific and economic impacts of NRI-funded projects. Visit the CSREES Newsroom to read the full release.

 

CSREES Lists Open Requests for Grant Applications

CSREES advertises all of its funding opportunities through "Find Grant Opportunities" on the Grants.gov Web site. This site is searchable and contains summary information on all Federal funding opportunities with links to the full announcements. Users can search announcements by topic, funding agency, and date, as well as subscribe to an e-mail notification service based on these parameters.

USDA

USDA Provides More Than $42.5 Million for Additional Natural Disaster Recovery

Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns announced that USDA would provide an additional $42.5 million to help with natural disaster recovery efforts in 13 states. This funding provides recovery assistance for natural disasters that occurred between December 2005 and June 2006.

The funding is available through the Natural Resources Conservation Service's Emergency Watershed Protection Program and includes more than $7 million in technical assistance and more than $35 million in financial assistance.

The support will help restore agricultural and community infrastructure disrupted by flooding, severe stream bank erosion, and debris deposits. Visit the USDA Newsroom to read the full release.

Partners

Regional Assets Indicators Web Site Launched

The Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City recently launched a resource to assess regional innovation and entrepreneurship assets. The Regional Assets Indicators Web page hosts a variety of tools for judging how a region is performing on key economic and demographic factors. The regional asset indicator project provides metrics that regions can use to better understand their economic assets and help inform regional development strategies.  Researchers can use these metrics to explore regional attributes and growth.  The metrics track important categories such as innovation, creative workforce, human amenities, wealth, infrastructure, and entrepreneurship. The Web site also includes articles that provide further information on each of the indicator categories. Contact Sally Maggard for more information.

Opportunities

Journal of Youth Development Accepting Submissions

Journal of Youth Development: Bridging Research and Practice is an online resource for youth development researchers, practitioners, and policymakers. The multidisciplinary, applied refereed journal is published three times a year by the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents and focuses on the development of school-aged youth through the transition to adulthood (ages 6-22).

The Journal of Youth Development: Bridging Research and Practice is accepting submissions of papers for publication consideration in any of the following categories:

• Feature Articles—2,000-5,000-word original research articles;

• Program Articles—1,500-word articles that highlight unique, successful, or promising youth development programs or initiatives;

• Research and Evaluation Strategy Articles—1,000-word articles that describe innovative methodologies and strategies in the collection and analysis of quantitative or qualitative research and evaluation data; and

• Resource Reviews—300-word critical reviews of resources and tools that would be helpful to youth development professionals.

Manuscripts are accepted at anytime. Please visit the Journal of Youth Development: Bridging Research and Practice Web site to access submission guidelines and the first two journal issues. Contact Patricia Dawson, journal editor, for more information.

Upcoming NACDEP Conference

The National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) conference "Declaration of Interdependence: The Fabric of Community” is April 16-19, 2007, in Philadelphia, PA. Concurrent sessions will cover such topics as economic development, community decision-making, and evaluation and research. A pre-conference session entitled “We the People: Building Inclusive Communities” is also on the agenda. The conference theme and the pre-conference reflect NACDEP's commitment to building a scientific understanding of the changes impacting communities and applying that knowledge through Cooperative Extension education and outreach programs to benefit people and communities. Visit NACDEP Web site to register, or contact Sally Maggard for more information.

Rural Philanthropy Conference  

A Rural Philanthropy Conference on “Using the Transfer of Wealth to Put the Bricks in Order for Your Community Foundation,” is February 7-9, 2007, in Nebraska City, NE. The conference will address the results of the Nebraska Community Foundation's (NCF) study of intergenerational transfer of wealth in nine states, including Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Arizona, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Louisiana. The conference explains a grassroots model of intergenerational transfer of wealth pioneered by NCF. The model focuses on capturing at least 5 percent of intergenerational wealth transfers to fund community foundations through place-based efforts led by local leaders. Compared to more traditional fundraising models of giving from current income, this model is customized to fit the rural reality of limited income but significant amounts of real property. The conference will explain the importance of the intergenerational transfer of wealth, and how Nebraska and other states implement this strategy to motivate donors to give back. To register, visit the Nebraska Community Foundation Web site or contact Sally Maggard.

Awards and Recognition

Farber Receives Cafritz Award

Sandy Farber, extension agent, Environment and Natural Resources, University of the District of Columbia, has won the Cafritz Award for Distinguished D.C. Government Employees. She received the award January 18 at the 7 th Annual Awards Program held at the George Washington University – Cafritz Conference Center . The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation sponsor the annual award program to recognize outstanding performance by D.C. government employees.

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For a plain text copy of this newsletter, please contact Judy Rude. CSREES UPDATE is published biweekly. The next regular issue is planned for February 7, 2007. Submit news items to newsletter@csrees.usda.gov by January 31, 2007.

Editor: Judy Rude, Public Affairs Specialist, CSREES Communications Staff. If you have questions about Update, please contact her at jrude@csrees.usda.gov.

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Back issues of CSREES UPDATE are available on the CSREES Web site.

Colien Hefferan, Administrator

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or part of an individual's income is derived from any public assistance program (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC 20250-9410, or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.