Dairywomen Peer Groups One Year Later: A Progress Report
Chris Mondak, dairy field specialist
Rhonda Rosenboom, family life field
specialist
Issue
At introductory peer group meetings held in the summer and early fall of 2002,
dairywomen identified common problems of a sense of isolation, a lack of friends
or family who could understand the demands of simultaneously running a dairy
business and a family, and various degrees of unrelieved stress. Most could
relate to the issues of self-esteem, stress-overload, and communication challenges
portrayed in the “A Farmwoman’s Perspective: Dealing with the Challenges
of Agriculture” video and discussion set created by the University of Minnesota
and utilized at the introductory meetings in Iowa.
Response
Extension staff listened to the needs and issues expressed and assisted with
the logistics of coordinating peer group meetings every two months for dairywomen
in Osceola, O’Brien, and Sioux Counties in NW Iowa. The dairywomen identified
topics of interest, and extension staff worked to provide the guest speakers
and materials to address the topics. In some cases where peer group members
took initiative on projects, extension lent support. County extension directors
provided support and funds from a Mental Health Grant to obtain materials. Extension
staff encouraged networking by assisting with the development of name/address/phone/e-mail
lists.
In the time span from June 17, 2002 through August 2003, 30 dairywomen from
Osceola, O’Brien, and Sioux counties participated in peer group meetings
held every two months. Seventeen meetings occurred, with an average attendance
of 10 people per meeting. Topics selected by the peer group members included:
improving communication skills, understanding and managing stress, strategies
for stress relief, strategic planning for family farms, tools to determine cost
of production, the “Colors: A Personality I.Q.” program, dealing with
loss and change, and building a positive image of the dairy industry. As a result
of peer-group discussions, the dairywomen took initiative on two projects: the
establishment of a dairy booth at two county fairs to display “The Iowa
Dairy Story,” information about dairy products, and participation in a
local project to form a non-profit organization dedicated to setting up school
milk vending machines and to enhancing in-school nutrition programs.
Impact
Evaluation questionnaires were mailed out and returned in August 2003. Peer
group members rated the peer groups as valuable in connecting them to others
experiencing the same challenges and lifestyles, in giving them a chance to
take a short break from work and family pressures, as a chance to exchange information
on common problems, as a way to gain confidence to participate in community
projects, and as a way to improve their self-image by realizing a sense of belonging
to a profession.
On the evaluation questionnaires, all dairywomen voted in favor of continuing
peer groups as a way to continue network-building and information sharing. Several
expressed an interest in planning more extensive activities, such as tours.
All expressed interest in retaining a connection extension to assist with planning
meetings and programs.
Page last updated:
July 9, 2006
Page maintained by Linda Schultz, lschultz@iastate.edu
