| The Pre-Conference is designed for Cooperative Extension staff who provide administrative and program leadership, i.e, state, regional/district directors and county extension directors. |
Goals for the Pre-Conference are to:
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- Showcase successful urban Extension strategies to stimulate new thinking, problem solving and resource development
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- Identify trends that impact urban communities and Extension's urban work
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- Strengthen the urban network of Extension administrators
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Pre-Conference Keynote Speakers |
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 Mark O'Connell, Executive Director Wisconsin Counties Association
Local government can benefit from many of the resources and programs provided by Cooperative Extension in urban counties. Many of the issues facing metropolitan and urban areas are relevant to the Cooperative Extension educational programs and resources provided at the state and local county level. There is tremendous value in seeking strategic partnerships and linkages between county government/local government and Cooperative Extension.
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The County-Extension Connection: Challenges, Successes and Emerging Trends |
 Rachel Surls, County Extension Director
Los Angeles, CA
In Cooperative Extension, our relationship with county government is critical to our success. During difficult economic times, funding from county government can become a particular concern. A recent national study explored both the history and the current status of the partnership between extension and county government. By surveying county extension directors throughout the US, the study identified variables that predict whether a county extension office is thriving or struggling, and examined levels of county financial support for both urban and rural counties. The study also gathered information on strategies used successfully by county extension directors to augment county funding and as well as head off budget difficulties. In this session, the presenter will review the results of the study, and discuss implications for extension and its future relationship with county government, with a special focus on extension in urban counties.
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Public/Private Partnerships Sucess in Redevelopment |
Laura Bray
 Menomenoee Valley Partners, Inc.
The Menomonee River Valley has been hindered by a legacy of environmental contamination, where economic gains have historically superseded the health of Valley’s natural system. While industry boomed in the 1800s, creating thousands of jobs,care of the river, its wetlands, and its bluffs was disregarded. When factories closed and businesses moved away in the 1960s through 1980s, thesurrounding neighborhoods were left reeling from the loss of jobs and the environmental degradation. Menomonee Valley Partners, Inc. (MVP) was created in 1999 to guide the transformation of the Valley with the fundamental belief that lasting, sustainable change will occur when ecological restoration and economic development are achieved simultaneously.
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We are entering a remarkable time to advance urban issues with the creation of the Office of Urban Policy by the Obama Administration. Local communities will need to play a key leadership role on issues that have impact on the local as well as regional and state levels. To understand the "will of the people," citizen engagement will play an increasingly important role in any new urban agenda, but how to do that effectively in an era of compressed time schedules and multiple, competing agendas.
A pioneer in the field of citizen engagement, Dr. Lukensmeyer will describe the values behind and practice of deliberative democracy, and discuss innovative methods to effectively convene hundreds to thousands of citizens
to deliberate on critical policy issues. This session will also explore how communities can collaborate to reinvigorate and sustain citizen engagement programs to address local needs |
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Institutionalizing Extension's Commitment to Urban Areas |
 Richard Klemme
Dean & Director
UW-Extension Cooperative Extension
Rick will wrap up the pre-conference with his perspectives on Cooperative Extension and urban programming. He sees urban programming as an important way in which Cooperative Extension is transforming itself into the 21st century. He will talk about how the Extension model has to be flexible in providing relevant, value-added educational programming to the residents in urban areas. He will also talk about the importance of both listening to our partners (local, state, and federal) with respect to what they see as value-added and helping them understand our broader ability to add value in urban areas. |
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Pre-Conference Planning Committee:
Mary Jane Willis, New Jersey, Co-Chair
Bonnie McGee, Texas, Co-Chair
Barbra Grossman, Minnesota
Eloisa
Gomez, Wisconsin
Karen Hintz, Wisconsin
Margaret Tweeten, North Dakota
Susan Williams, Nebraska
Tedi Winnett, Wisconsin
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Carolyn J. Lukensmeyer