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James A. Chatfield, Ohio State University Extension, Northeast District/Horticulture and Crop Science; Joseph F. Boggs, Gary Y. Gao, Erik A. Draper, Keith L. Smith, Barbara G. Ludwig, Stephen R. Baertsche, |
Teams such as the ENLTT can help change a broader culture. This happened at Ohio State University. By 1992 the concept of agent specialization had been put in place by Extension administration. Entrepreneurial team development helped give it form, and administrative support provided ongoing nurture. Starting with ENLTT, OSU Extension now has a total of 25 highly active and creative, diverse agricultural and environmental commodity and issue teams. All provide better collegial communication and cooperative planning that ultimately improves delivery of research-based programming and development of partnerships with clientele groups.
As noted in the OSU Extension team brochure: "The development and formation of interdisciplinary commodity/issue teams is aimed at improving communication within our faculty and to better meet the needs of our commodity groups and industry clientele. These teams have focused on improved dissemination of new technology and the development of more comprehensive educational programs aimed at the commercial agriculture and horticulture industries and recreational/urban gardening. Teams are coordinated by county agents, district specialists, and associates represented across departments and colleges. Team directories are available upon request." (Ohio State University Extension, 1999).
An acknowledgment of the cultural shift engendered by these teams was highlighted in 1996 with this statement by the national Cooperative States Research Extension and Education System (CSREES) reviewers of the horticulture and crop science department at Ohio State. To quote:
"Those extension teams that the review team learned about were highly productive and able to respond rapidly to clientele. A review team member who recently reviewed extension programs in several other North Central states observed that Ohio State University was the only one of these institutions where extension personnel were moving boldly ahead with creative programs....There are some other departments and colleges in the country that have a strong relationship with their industry clients, but Ohio is near the top of the list."