(Revised October 2005) Section 4.A
Our survey of county offices identified additional areas where procedures need to be developed. Each county should establish procedures to meet their localized needs.
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The county extension education director has the responsibility to see that regularly scheduled office conferences are held. Many authorities recommend weekly county staff meetings. With a field specialist, this may be difficult. However, it is suggested that an office have two office conferences per month. Early in the year, dates for office conferences should be blocked out on every staff persons' calendar and should be honored. A casual conference during coffee breaks will not give the results of a more formal meeting. You will need to decide as a staff how you will handle office calls and walk-ins during your conference.
The following items are usually covered in office conferences.
1. Calendars: The better informed all staff are of all programs, the better they are able to help promote them, be unified in what they tell others and to help each other. Reviewing calendars should not be the sole purpose for office conferences, nor should they dominate the time.2. Secretarial Work Load: Find out who has major projects, priority items, etc. Newsletters take time to type, print and mail. Try to reach consensus on whose work will be done in what priority. This also gives staff a reminder on the lead time needed for major projects. Find out about additional "outside of county" workload that is being done for field specialists and multi-county programs.
3. Media: Regular radio and/or TV time and/or newspaper space may be available to the county extension programs. Decide in advance who is doing what. Using the media is an excellent way to boost county programs as well as being more organized with the media outlets you have.
4. Develop a guideline for reporting results of extension activities.
5. Items for the monthly extension council meeting: Discuss written reports and who will be giving oral reports and the topics. Ask if there are agenda items for council.
6. Program Plans: For the period being discussed--visual aids needed, assistance needed. This is an excellent time to bounce ideas off one another for recruiting, program content, etc.
On a periodic basis, the office conference should include:
1. A total county office situational analysis and (annually), needs assessment.2. At least one meeting where you share program development plans, directions, goals, and methods discussion.
3. Discussion of Civil Rights, ADA issues, and preventing sexual harassment --take it seriously and so will others.
4. Encourage careful planning with new or potentially risky programs.
5. Mutually celebrate successes and recognize others' program success whenever possible.
6. Discuss the budgetary process and time sequence with all staff. Solicit their ideas and be sensitive to their needs.
7. Conferences can be used as a problem solving arena.
In the CEED's role as a program coordinator, other staff expect that you:
1. Be interested in, not dominate, their programs.2. Take the lead in facilitating communication with others.
3. Contact the area director or relevant specialists when needed--you take the lead. Represent Iowa State University.
4. Recognize successes and be supportive when colleagues are working through problems.
5. Plan annual leaves and encourage people to take them.
6. Rotate facilitation of office conferences among staff.
In the CEED's role as office manager, office assistants and county staff will expect that you:
1. Recognize them as an important part of the county extension operation.2. Ensure they have a clear understanding of job expectations.
3. Be consistent with all county employees--you must know the rules!
4. Develop, with staff assistance, a procedure for handling work.
5. After each county staff conference, meet with the office assistant to plan the work load.
6. Conduct an annual performance review with each county staff employee.
7. Be a positive example in avoiding sexist words and/or actions.
As County Director, you are in a position to exercise significant leadership. Demonstrate and encourage creative insight and action. Work diligently to create supportive and stimulating atmosphere.
Prepared by Richard Munster, Area Extension Director for Northwest Iowa. Fall 1988. Revised by Beverly Peters, Franklin County Extension Education Director, 1993.
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The following is just a reminder of some things you might need to do when you arrive in the office in the morning and before you leave in the evening:
Each county extension office has specific policies and procedures with which you should become familiar. Do not hesitate to ask your director or other staff if you do not understand a policy or procedure.
Examples: lunch times; equipment checkout procedure; how to respond to callers when staff are not in the office; etc.
Attach a memo detailing items specific or relevant to your county.
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Checklist for Planning/Carrying Out an Extension Event
This document was created by Rhonda Christensen and Ester Mae Cox from the Northwest Extension Area. It is located on the Northwest Extension Area website at the following address.
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/nwaeo/Protected/Resources.htm
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There are different types of crises for an organization such as extension. One is the single event crisis, for which there is generally no forewarning and quick action and response by the organization is critical. Example: a tragic accident or fatality at a county fair or other ISUE-sponsored event.
Another is the crisis situation, which frequently involves some advance warning and which may last for periods from several days to several months. Example: Local environmental controversies.
This plan addresses both of these types of occurrences. There also may be times when natural or environmental crises (e.g., tornadoes or floods) occur locally or statewide and extension staff are involved in an educational response as part of an interagency effort. In this situation, staff should first contact the appropriate program director. The processes outlined in Appendix H also could be used by local or state officials.
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This extension training guide sheet was developed by Don Broshar, extension organization development specialist, for use by office assistants. An audio cassette seminar by the same title is available from the ISU Training and Development Office, (515) 294-8914.
When thinking about delegation it helps to consider it as more than dividing up the work and distributing it to others. Delegation is a process that involves careful thought and planning. It also involves helping others grow and develop.
Delegation fits into the following categories:
Deciding how to delegate can be frustrating. The following process will help:
1. Set a clear objective or statement of task. Be certain you know what it is you want the other person to do.
2. Select the person delegated for the task. For office assistants this may appear to be limited. However, any office coworker or volunteer could be a potential possibility depending on the task.
3. Train the person delegated on all or part of what you are delegating. Be certain that person knows how to perform the task.
4. Get input from the person delegated. Ask that person for ideas on what needs to be accomplished.
5. Assign the project or task with a specific deadline.
6. Provide necessary guidance.
7. Make a contract. Assign responsibility and appropriate authority. Determine the appropriate level of authority:
Level I - Take action without reporting back.Level II - Take action and stay in touch. (Be certain you decide who is responsible for staying in touch.)
Level III - Get approval before moving on.
Level IV - Do only what I tell you to do.
8. Establish controls.
9. Maintain controls.
10. Provide feedback on how the task was completed.
11. Identify the lessons learned.
12. Evaluate the performance.
Different people handle delegation differently. For instance, people who are direct, goal oriented, and want tight control of things give the person delegated responsibility for the task and hold him or her accountable. However, this type of person, a driver, has difficulty giving up authority. The driver may have to work at giving up authority and wanting to control the way the task is accomplished.
Analytical people, those who like details, hate to be wrong, and tend to over explain things and do not easily give up responsibility. They tend to want to do everything. However, if they do give responsibility it will include the authority and they will hold the person delegated accountable, including responsibility for all the details.
Expressive and amiable people are more people oriented. They tend to give responsibility and authority, but fail to hold the person delegated accountable. These types of people confuse holding someone accountable with being liked. Expressives and amiables should focus more on being respected and less on being liked. This will result in less guilt for the delegator.
Office assistants may find there is more they can delegate to coworkers and volunteers if they use the process of effective delegation and understand how delegation impacts their personality.
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This extension training guide sheet was developed by Don Broshar, extension organization development specialist, for use by office assistants. An audio cassette seminar by the same title is available from the ISU Training and Development Office, (515) 294-8914.
There is only so much time in the work day and how you use that time will determine how effective you are at managing your own job and work load. Time management issues that face county office assistants include handling paper, establishing priorities, working for multiple bosses, dealing with interruptions and socializers, and how to say "no." Listed below are some hints for dealing with each of these issues.
Take out all the paper for the day and sort it into two piles: work for today and work for tomorrow. Then put the tomorrow's work pile out of sight and only deal with today's work pile.
Strategies for handling paper only once
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When someone brings a project to you have him or her enter it on the log sheet. This lets others know the workload and lets them know they need to set priorities.
By implementing some of these suggestions you will find yourself becoming more effective, more confident, and less distressed in your work.
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This extension training guide sheet was developed by Don Broshar, extension organization development specialist, for use by office assistants. An audio cassette seminar by the same title is available from the ISU Training and Development Office, (515) 294-8914.
There are two keys to prioritizing. The first is communication and the second is organization. Coworkers or team players must be willing to share their ideas with others as well as listen to others' ideas. Once people know the needs of others, then there must be a system designed to manage the work flow. Listed here are suggestions to help implement these keys.
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Following these suggestions will not prevent all conflicts, but having a system for identifying priorities will eliminate unnecessary distress. And being willing to communicate will enhance your ability to handle tough situations.
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If a plant sample is brought into your office for problem diagnosis, and the question cannot be answered in the county office, it is critical to provide campus specialists with appropriate information and an adequate sample so the best possible diagnosis can be made.
The appropriate form must be completely filled out and mailed with any samples submitted. Most of these forms have instructions for collecting samples on the back side of the form.
Here is a quick reference sheet for various questions about samples, organized by ISU department.
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The clinic is a laboratory for diagnosing diseases of
horticultural and field crops.
(515) 294-0581, FAX 294-9420
323 Bessey Hall
Use form PD-31, Plant Disease Identification Form, for plant diseases. Cost is $10 from the client for each sample submitted. Use form PD-32, Plant Nematode Sample Submission Form, for soil samples to be tested for soybean cyst nematode.
Contacts
Required for all samples:
Boxes, envelopes and merchandise return labels for shipping plant samples can be obtained free from Extension Distribution (one return label shipped with each envelope/box):
--EDC/PP 114 (padded envelope, 10-1/2 x 16)
--PDO/PP 25 (box, 8-3/4 x 11-3/4 x 3)
--PDO/PP 26 (box, 8-3/4 x 11-3/4 x 6)
--PDO/PP 28 (box, 8-3/4 x 11-3/4 x 12)
Use of merchandise return labels will allow samples to be sent to the Clinic without shipping fees being assessed to the client. The Clinic is charged for the mailing costs.
Woody plants (trees and shrubs). Collect samples only from branches that are showing symptoms, but are not dead. Dead, deteriorating branches are usually worthless as specimens. For Dutch elm disease and oak wilt testing, branch specimens should consist of four to six pieces that measure 6-8 inches long from branches 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter.
Turf. Lift out a section of turf, including roots, about 6 by 6 inches so that healthy plants are included along with those at the margin and the central portions of the affected area. Include photos if possible; they are extremely helpful in diagnosing turf problems.
Fleshy plant material (fruits, tubers, bulbs, roots) Wrap specimens in enough clean, absorbent material such as paper toweling to absorb any leakage. Package in a strong carton.
Other herbaceous plants (such as annuals, perennials, vegetable plants, house plants) Include entire plants when possible (roots and all). Include enough material to show all stages of the disease.
Field plantings. Be sure to include the pattern of symptoms in the field and cropping history.
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This department identifies insects and insect damage.
(515) 294-1101, FAX 294-8027
109 Insectary Building
Use form IC-449, Insect Information Request Form.
Contacts
Sample Preparation
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Extension Weed Science answers questions relating to herbicide
injury, herbicide use, and weed identification.
(515) 294-1923
2104 Agronomy
http://www.weeds.iastate.edu/
Use form Ag-126, Weed ID and Herbicide Injury Diagnosis Form.
Contacts
Sample Preparation
This hotline provides answers to home gardening questions. It is answered Monday - Friday, 10 a.m. - 12 noon and 1 - 4:30 p.m. (515) 294-3108
This department provides information regarding injury to plants by
animals.
(515) 294-7429
103 Science II
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/wildlife/
Contact
For more information, call (515) 294-3076 or visit: http://www.agron.iastate.edu/soiltesting/
Please do not hesitate to contact campus personnel if you have questions about sending samples. They will be glad to help you.
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It is important to inventory equipment for insurance purposes and update the list annually. Some counties do this manually while others input the information to a computer. In either case, you need to have a hard copy of the information in a place where you can access it easily.
One suggestion is to type this information on a sheet of paper and place it in your administrative file. Each year it could be updated, a copy made, and placed in the file. Be sure to include a list of equipment on loan from Iowa State University, including ISU identification numbers, serial numbers, date acquired, and where placed or stored in office.
You might want to start a list of maintenance contracts you have on office machines, perhaps using the suggested form attached or a similar one that works for your particular office. (On your desk calendar or tickler file you might want to note when the contract expires.)
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Issued: August 1955
Effective: August 1955
Background
Unless an exemption is provided for by law, individuals and organizations are required to pay sales and use taxes on a variety of goods and services as itemized in the Iowa Code. When the county agricultural extension districts were created, the issue of tax exemption was pursued with the then State Tax Commission. Its advice and counsel was reconfirmed in February 1989.
Policy Statement
As a state funded public educational institution, Iowa State University is exempt from paying Iowa sales and use taxes. The tax exempt status of the University when purchasing from out-of-state vendors is determined by the selling state and may vary from state to state.
Pursuant to Iowa Code s.422.45(5), a County Extension District as a "tax-certifying or tax-levying body of the state of Iowa" is exempt from sales and use taxes. The tax exempt status of the District when purchasing from out-of-state vendors is determined by the selling state and may vary from state to state.
Tax exemption certificates are not issued as evidence of tax exempt status. County Extension Offices may photocopy this information as proof of their tax exempt status.
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This information is also found in the Iowa 4-H Handbook for Extension Staff. Included there is a booklet on Social and Charitable Gambling in Iowa.
Gambling permits are required by Iowa Law for any gambling activity where a person pays a consideration to have a chance to win a prize. Common examples would be bingo, raffles, and carnival games including cake walks, basketball shooting and others if the games meet the above stated criterion.
This was reviewed and revised by Kent Nebel, Department of Inspection and Appeals in April 1997.
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Revised October 28, 2005. Content questions? Ask the
experts.
Comments or suggestions? Contact the committee,
(e-mail: ofcguide@iastate.edu)