ADEL, Iowa -- Craig Hertel says he has been on a trajectory toward his position as the new director for Iowa State University Extension Region 13, covering Polk, Dallas and Warren counties, ever since he started his professional career.
Hertel started the new job Aug. 1 as the result of a restructuring of how Iowa State University Extension provides leadership and program coordination in 100 county offices across the state. The changes were necessary to deal with budget cuts affecting all areas of the university.
Hertel had served as Greene County extension education director since 1990 before the county director positions were eliminated in the restructuring. He is one of 20 former county directors appointed to the new regional posts.
ISU Extension supports healthy people, healthy environments and healthy economies. Hertel said his experiences as a county director gave him a broad understanding of what ISU Extension has to offer and the many opportunities to help clients. In addition to serving as a county director, he had a 13-month stint in 2002-2003 as an interim area director, working with ISU Extension staff in 17 central Iowa counties.
Hertel earned a bachelor’s degree in agronomy and business from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and worked for the Farm Credit Service as an agricultural lender during the turbulent 1980s before joining ISU Extension. He also has a master’s degree in business administration and a graduate certificate in public administration, both from Iowa State University.
Hertel said that background plus some off-the-job experiences such as serving a term on the Jefferson City Council have made the regional director’s position the next natural step in his professional career. “I’m honored to be asked to do this, and also very aware of the heavy responsibility involved,” Hertel said.
The three counties he serves are in the fastest growing area in Iowa, gaining an estimated 73,000 residents since the 2000 census. That growth provides fantastic opportunities for ISU Extension, Hertel said, with a greater than ever need for non-formal education by people in all walks and phases of life. Extension is uniquely positioned to meet the need with the programming available through its association with Iowa State University and with county extension councils and through existing partnerships with other agencies and organizations.
Hertel will be working closely with the three elected extension councils to determine how they can continue to meet the needs of their constituents. He sees his role as one of providing leadership and support, both in the programming decisions that lie ahead, and in working with the staff in the county offices and the program specialists who will serve Central Iowa.
Hertel has his office in the Dallas County Extension Office, 28059 Fairground Road, Adel, Iowa. He can be reached by phone at (515) 993-4281 and by e-mail at chertel@iastate.edu.
Hertel and his wife Janie, who is a financial controller for FC Cooperative in Ames, have lived in Jefferson since the early 1980s. They are the parents of two grown children, Nathan and Stephanie, who both are graduates of ISU. Janie also holds a graduate degree from ISU. As a family, Hertel says, “when it comes to Iowa State, we walk the talk.”
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