With the establishment of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, communities have depended on Extension Agents to address relevant needs. Extension Agents have used different approaches such as the Texas Community Futures Forum to obtain information on issues affecting people. The problem was that Texas Community Futures Forums have never…

There is a defined need to provide accessible and effective professional development for 4-H educators. Lesson study is a Community of Practice-based approach to educator professional development. Prior research has shown lesson study to be effective with 4-H staff, adult volunteers, and teen volunteers. This inquiry, a multisite case study, was…

Because FCS agents teach communities about dietary guidelines, it is important that they are aware of the latest nutrition research. This study assessed FCS agents' knowledge of popular fad diets (low-carbohydrate, intermittent fasting, detoxes and cleanses) and their potential adverse effects, and its relationship among location, certifications,…

Rural students graduate from high school at higher rates but go to college at lower rate than their urban and suburban peers. To take on the educational attainment challenge for rural students, we need to know more about postsecondary encouragement programs. This study examined a pilot postsecondary encouragement program in 11 rural high schools…

The University of New Hampshire (UNH), Virginia Tech (VT), and Texas A&M University collaborated to envision and plan (all) and then create (UNH and VT) the National Extension Web-mapping Tool (NEWT) to increase the use of spatial data in planning and programming decision making throughout Extension. With NEWT, Extension professionals can…

Having the ability to assess pest problems in schools is essential for a successful integrated pest management (IPM) program. However, such expertise can be costly and is not available to all school districts across the United States. The web-based IPM Calculator was developed to address this problem. By answering questions about the condition of…

To assist Extension professionals working in Texas's Little River Watershed with efforts to educate landowners about reducing amounts of bacteria there, we assessed motivations for and barriers to landowners' adopting best management practices (BMPs). We surveyed 275 landowners in the watershed. Respondents were at least somewhat familiar with…

The Adult Mentoring Assessment for Extension Professionals will help mentors develop an accurate profile of their mentoring style with adult learners and identify areas of proficiency and deficiency based on six constructs--relationship, information, facilitation, confrontation, modeling, and vision. This article reports on the reliability of this…

In addition to regular job duties, such as tree care, mulching, irrigation, and pesticide management, urban park workers have faced environmental changes due to drought, wildfires, and West Nile virus. They simultaneously have endured expectations to manage growing, diversifying park usage and limitations on career development. An integrated…

Increasing prevalence rates and legislative mandates imply that educators, parents, and Extension agents will need better tools and resources to meet the needs of special populations. The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service addresses this issue by using e-learning tools. Extension agents can take advantage of these courses to gain critical…

Globalization and diversifying communities in the United States mandate internationally minded Extension professionals and programming. The knowledge necessary for successfully working in international agricultural and Extension education is vast and takes time to acquire. A catalyst for this learning process is participation in university- or…

The study reported here provided a descriptive report on cowboy churches, while identifying the potential for Extension-cowboy church collaborations and examining the direct implications to Extension. The diffusion of innovations conceptualized the qualitative study. Semi-structured, face-to-face and phone interviews were conducted with 10 adults…

The ability of Leadership Advisory Boards within Texas AgriLife Extension Service to function as the primary visioning/needs assessment source is paramount to maintaining the grassroots connection for programs. The study reported here sought to measure the self-perceptions of members' ability to meet the demand associated with this role. The study…

Selected 4-H youth participated in the Texas 4-H Livestock Ambassador program. Forty-five youth participated in the 3-day program delivered by university professors and staff, Texas AgriLife Extension faculty and industry representatives. An instrument was developed and administered to the Texas 4-H Livestock Ambassadors at the end of their first…

This article reports on a qualitative study to assess Texas Family Consumer Science (FCS) Extension professionals' experiences working with individuals with disabilities and their perceived skills in promoting and delivering inclusive educational programming for this audience. Study results indicate that overall Extension educators viewed…