Meeting Participants:
| Tom Knecht Ross Love Charles McPeake Steve Umberger Clint DePew David Foster Rafael Olmeda John O'Sullivan Arlie Powell Joan Dusky Joe Schaffer |
Mike French Curtis Absher Louie Rivers Glenwood Hill Marion Simon Michael Ouart James Hill Bill Hubbard Charles Norman Steve Chapman Fran Wolak for Mac Horton |
Ross Love called the meeting to order more or less at 1:00.
Items of Business
- Committee night out: Charles McPeake is social chair and will make arrangements for dinner at 6:30.Ross passed a card for Dan Smith who will be having surgery later this week.Ross reviewed the agenda, with several items added.
- Michael Ouart introduced Tom Knecht and Steve Chapman for presentations of "Trademarking, Copyrights, Intellectual Property, etc." (see handout)
Key points (Knecht)
- Get to be friends with an attorney
- Intellectual property: tangible, original creations of the mind; valuable, profitable asset
- Protect development costs, control and discourage misuse, provides recourse for infringement
- Copyright/Trademarks/Servicemarks
- If work done for hire, the property belongs to the institution, but varies by university; for extension workers, some require extension authors to relinquish the property rights to the extension service
- Be professional/golden rule/take the "hi road,"/be a role model/ get permission to use materials
Key points (Steve Chapman)
- "Lawyers and Other Reptiles" is a good book to read if you need to get even with a lawyer
- Before you use it, get permission (always use this rule)
- Intellectual property = original product of thought, tangible, useful property, owned by someone to be controlled and used and enjoy
- The right exists and begins with the point of creation for copyright if federal law; vested initially with the author. Many universities wink with written work, but are more serious with patents.
- Faculty members should never sign rights to IP
- Make public record of your IP protection/registration, etc. Don't need a lawyer to protect.
- Trademark used to protect a product, i.e., goods that are sold
- Servicemark used to protect a service, i.e., and a service that is sold.
- Dealing with trademarks, need to be dealing with trademark attorney
- Very important to know clearly who owns the trademark or servicemark or patent.
- Trade secrets; confidentiality statements; proprietary information: the research/product development sponsors are defining the limits.
- Redraw it; redo it; do it a different way.
- Patent law is federal law; to protect inventors and artists; creates a property right. Don't own the patent until you have the patent documentation. Gives you the right to exclude someone from using the patent.
- To get a patent issued: have to have something new, novel; must be nonobvious; has to be useful; doesn't have to be new and improved; has to be patentable subject matter (devices; methods; compositions of matter; manufacture process)
- Statutory bar-by law, can't have a patent if more than one year before applying it was published or disclosed somewhere how to make or produce the invention (in USA and Canada). Know what constitutes disclosure.
- Not only if you publish it, but also make it or use it more than one year before applying for patent, it's not patentable. (These are two very significant points). Dead if you produce it and use it or sell it; alive if you produce it for testing purposes only.
- The issues: sponsorship; who has property rights? Who owns it? Who bought it? Who wants it? Material transfer agreements; confidentiality agreements; non-disclosure. Who are the inventors?
- Ethical issues.
- Schpmn@clemson.edu
- Farm Bill update: political maneuvering may mean most work is done in the election year.
- Appropriations: finished in House with no increase in formula (disappointment; originally there was an increase); new money in Farm Bill: 10 million for CSREES; still to be handled on Senate side. House does not deal with 1890 initiative; additions may be made on Senate side to be more consistent with House after Labor Day.
- White papers available in draft form.
- Mentioned Ron Brown as ASRED Exec. Director; primarily programmatic and focussing on more collaborative/cooperative/multi-state programming efforts, especially with 1890s.
- Web-based extension delivery (Dave King from Purdue is heavily involved)-e-extension service; tech transfer to commercial ag producers; how about to homeowners? Need to forward think and stay ahead of the curve.
- FF revised strategic plan-very productive process
- Programming will continue same 6 priorities (Program Areas on web site)
- Objectives in PA's become more focused and pointed
- Started process to ID hi priority topics and projects (two or three in each priority area)
- Revised website (see card)
- No longer funding committees; travel to meetings must be related to FF program priorities
- Looking for additional help-internships; special assignments
- Process to raise profile of FF (see brochure) through media, documenting outcomes, follow-up activities
- Farm Bill materials project-39 or 40 policy oriented statements with reference materials. Available September 15; talk to FF this week to order @ $6 per copy. Each institution will receive CD-ROM in PDF file, logo-free, available in mid-September.
- Farm survey had 28 states participating; ready for distribution in mid-September @$4 each; will be on the CD-ROM also. State contacts will receive state data.
- New book from Kettering-Biotechnology in our food: great achievement or unnecessary risk? Hunting reviewers for final draft (contact Edelman at ISU). (See handout)
- CAFO response done; want to do workshops within next year; working with FAPRI
- National level conference on animal health concerns including FMD in November
- NPPEducConf in San Antonio-encourage attendance
- Brown shared ideas about his position, roles, etc.
- Directors concerned about how to improve multistate efforts and how to initiate and implement multistate efforts; roles PLC can play in multistate programs
- Questions: How do we (PLC and Program committees) address the needs for multistate programming better and more efficiently? How can PLC facilitate better communications between directors and administrators and the work of the committees? How can we speed up the process of multistate programming? What is the role of director and administrators' advisors to the regional committees? What do you see as the role of the Executive Director of ASRED in relation to PLC?
- Ross to contact Oscar Butler about D. Marsh's participation on PLC as advisor
- August 25-28, 2002 next PLC meeting in Nashville at the Embassy Suites.
8. Joe Schaffer on SR Natural Resources Committee (see handout) Hold for tomorrow after committee reports.
9. Mike French. Reported on call from Monte Johnson, NPL for PAT, certification
- Committee for PAT funding formula
- PAT formula developed in 1978. EPA pass through funds to USDA to support extension AT in the states. Formula is 23 years old. EPA has continued to support program; this year at $1.88 mil plus an added $3 mil to SLAs on a different formula. In PIAP review, decided that needed to change formula only when new funds available.
- Would be open to a review of the formula and revise formula if new or additional funds came available. Would change formula on existing funding.
- Current formula: base of $15,000 and rest based on 10% on no. private applicators trained since inception; 10% on commercial applicators trained since inception; 40% on no. commercial applicators on record; 20% on private applicators certified on record; 20% on number of farms. Mike has not said yes to serving on the committee. Monte and D. Coop have no intention of changing formula without input and support of significant number of states. Concerns raised about basing the formula on more current data. EPA and CSREES have developed new web based reporting system of PAT; 28 states have submitted plan of work. EPA also has new accountability system. Next year states will report on the new reporting system. Intention is that PAT dollars will not flow without reports and plans being submitted on the new system.
- Suggested some rolling (at least more current) average be used to base allocations on. Another question about having the existing PAT committee deal with this issue.
- Lot of PAT categories that are not farm connected.
- Some would like to talk to state PAT people, BUT DON'T GO BACK AND STIR UP STATE COORDINATORS.
11. Dan Smith's address
203 Camille St.
Easley, SC 29640
- finishing 2001 budget year; will make competitive grants awards (IFAFS) in next 30 days
- for 2002, H and S budgets are out with $33 mil discrepancy on NRI
- RREA will have to go to conference
- For 2003, department budget is submitted and will hear report back in September
- Personnel changes (under Secretary Dr. Joe Jinn; Jim Mosley is Deputy Secretary; undersec for NR and Environment is Mark Ray; CSREES much better of with undersecretary appointed; Gary Cunningham coming from New Mexico; NR program area has made an offer; readverting on soil and water and on atmospheric science and plant and animal systems, Tom Bewick joined in horticulture area and Herb Bolten on temporary position.
- Stakeholder involvement-regional listening sessions already held were poorly participated in; covered all program areas and some very positive comments were received. Oct 3 in Fresno and Oct 25 in New Orleans. Written comments through Nov. 15.
- IFAFS program had 760 proposals; quality of proposals was improved; lot of re-submissions
Making awards to 96; 14 will get a bridge grant to keep team together and address issues and resubmit; rest will get standard award. Three NASA award funded on graduate training. 119.8 million dollars total awards. South fared well. Do need panelists to review proposals, especially to satisfy gender and racial balance). Suggestion from Mike French to streamline and condense the proposal and documentation. - Farm Bill: The system has had much more input in the process this year, with a lot of LGU system collaboration on presentations and materials presented. If there is an educational need in any title, it needs to be connected to the education role of CSREES. ECOP forestry liaison team has been interacting on forestry issues in the FB.
- See FB summary sheet for conservation issues in FB with proposed enhancements. Mentioned Eric Norland. Continued concern raised about proposed educational roles of NRCS especially in grazing land initiative.
- April 10-13 in Salt Lake City, UT
- Issues: process for addressing policy and programmatic issues; action plans to address issues; input into CSREES plans; communication on programmatic issues; professional improvement; how to publicize ANR impacts; form national topic teams; develop systematic response mechanism to disasters.
- Questions: what type of structure for national ANR committee; how they should operate; other significant roles and actions. How to communicate to deans and directors?
- Other questions: would the west actually participate? Some from the NE might participate, but much of the attendance would be from south and north central.
- John O'Sullivan suggested need to focus more on multi-regional efforts and how to work together with less focus on just the national interaction.
- Curtis Absher mentioned Sustainable Communities and how little tie there was to the program at this meeting. Need to not look or do what we've done in the past; need to be looking for and opening big doors, not just the little doors.
- David Foster reminded us that this group has moved away from bringing programming issues of major importance to the region. We've tended to move toward how we do extension rather than dealing with major emerging issues and opportunities. Think about the challenge to ANR to develop programs for the new increasing segment of small farms-who are they? Where do they get info? How do we relate to them? Etc.
- We did some issues identification at the San Antonio meeting, but there was no follow-up.
- Steve Halbrook: is there a need for a national ANR committee to keep the process alive? Tendency to lose focus after a few years.
- Larry Biles: timing of this meeting might allow CSREES to help with a priority issue with "innovation funds." Might be able to provide funding to initiate programs.
- Sense of the body: Will support the national meeting in April; Steve Umberger, James Hill, Joan Dusky and Clint Depew will represent southern region on the program planning committee. Clint suggests revisiting the San Antonio program opportunities, re-survey the group for reprioritizing and develop the program from there.
- Spring meeting for SR ANR leaders: have as part of national meeting: motion made, seconded and passed to meet associated with the national meeting in Utah.
- introduced Sally Maggart from Washington; she made comments on papers addressing the bigger context in which agriculture occurs. She talked about the broader base in which agriculture occurs. See white paper on Economic Environment at CSREES white paper site: www.rees.usda.gov
- Five new goals (on handout) in new strategic plan
- Move to process of training teams in states and empower and enable them to equip teams to do training and education in the states (encouraged by directors)
- Sustainable communities, workforce training is two training programs that need to be carried further.
- Future workshops announced: labor-force and workforce issues workshop in Louisville; E-commerce training program, including agriculture track; National Extension Community Development conference in Orlando in February (looking for curriculum with community connection)
- Research new program: sustainable community innovations grants; deadline is November 2, 2001; jointly with SRDC and SRSARE. Agriculture: Open the Farm Gate (think in new ways)
- Southern Perspectives new issue, looking at rural-urban interface (handout)
- New policy series: Food Assistance Needs..(handout and on SRDC web-site)
- Millennium series: Rural South Challenges for the 21st Century; more to come
- mentioned need for case studies of engagement
- briefly discussed the directors' and his intent to foster collaborations, especially multi-state programming
- Curtis Absher suggested at this SR PL meeting we've gravitated back to separate groups meeting at the same place
- Mike French commented on role of triennial workshops in helping orient, support and equip new specialists. Specialists need to be coming together talking about programs and learning about programs from each other. How does this relate to the SERA activities? Some SERAs are research driven and extension programming and mentoring won't get done in SERAs.
- David Foster raised issue of redefining scholarship for extension faculty if extension faculty are going to be successful professionally. We need to work on that issue; ECOP and directors will work on this.
- Glenwood Hill mentioned need for continued 2501 outreach financial support; projects are being added, but additional funding is not being appropriated
- John O'Sullivan questioned meaning of the door being open to 1890 involvement in the arrangement with R. Brown to be ASRED Executive Director No decision from 1890 community. Foster responded that Brown would be active with PLC, which includes 1890s. They could also function on specific initiatives and projects similarly to PR and VI, which was not assessed financially to cover Brown's position. 1890 administrators will need to decide how they want to be involved with respect to the ASRED Exec Director position and roles. Lawrence Carter is representative of 1890s in the future meeting in Roanoke.
- This position does not parallel what Tom Helm does for Research Directors.
- McPeake: dollars and lack of specialists were the reasons for interest in developing training modules; specialist effort lost due extension being integrated into departments.
- See: NC Core Competencies; NC Competency-based On Line Learning Resources; TX Competency based Professional development program
- Don Hamilton background on GA's experience
- Larry Lippke discussed examples of what can be done with online learning (Wisc-OnLine page: Wisconsin learning objects-2 to 15 minute self contained learning units; tagged with metadata or info about the learning object); Barnes & Noble University of free online courses; commercial coursework sites like elementk as inexpensive training; NETg computer learning; Land-Grant Training Alliance at www.lga.org
- Learn2 www.learn2.com a commercial firm have learn lets
- www.ceonline.tamu.edu online course on soil and site evaluation
- one way of multi-state cooperation would be sharing learning objects; other extreme would be to use a whole course from another state.
- Possibility of using the ANR group to identify the hi priority issues for development into training modules
- Potential areas: new faculty orientation; core competencies; bigger priority programs; demonstration work/conducting field trials/how to evaluate a demo economically
- Mitch Owen: different models or ways to view the pie:
Program-course-module-learning object (conceptual)
Commercial horticulture production-apple production-grafting rootstock-image of the cut to be made on rootstock (application) - Work with learning management system
Employee database
Competency database
Learning catalog and meta-database
Career development and needs assessment
Online self-assessment
Evaluation and reporting - McPeake suggested Ross appoint a task force to develop proposal for staff development to present to Brown to take to directors in January 1. Need to go t middle management and staff development before going to PLC. Foster added that staff development training is a good place to start.
- Ross suggested taking to PLC for discussion to see if they want to identify a joint task force to work on this. Dusky, McPeake, Ouart will 1)communicate with other committees on this, 2) hear what directors have to say about these discussions, and 3)start identifying core competencies that many states would have a need for(need to connect to middle management as needs are identified)
Meet at 8:00 Wednesday.
Motion made, seconded and passed that Louie Rivers will be PLC 1890 representative to complete the term of James Hill (2 yrs). James will remain secretary as elected on Tuesday.
Reviewed committee reports, liaisons, chairs and meeting locations.
PIAP Advisory Committee either needs to be renamed or done away with. Program and funding changes. Federal moved to four regional centers receiving 4.3 million dollars. $1.3 million awarded competitively; 13 Southern Region states were funded. Requesting progress reports by September 21. Suggestion to continue the group for project leaders (former PIAP coordinators). Moved and voted to keep as is (Southern Region Pest Management Center).
Animal Science Triennial Conference: Roger reported on aborted conference last May. It seems it's become a forum for beef and small ruminant specialists to come together. This type of meeting is viewed as high priority for new extension faculty to interact with existing specialists. Roger will send two or three survey questions on rescheduling workshop, when, and to identify issues and topics for a rescheduled meeting (see agenda for poultry meeting). How we couch the meeting is important-background, importance of topics and the benefit this meeting would provide to specialists. Younger specialists plan around technical matter; the benefit of this program should be much more in the direction of extension methodology.
Dairy group meets regularly at SAAS meeting. We serve them on an adhoc basis. Recommendation to eliminate the Dairy Committee, but we'd be open to serve and support them on an as needed basis. One thing that needs to be facilitated some way to connect extension specialists with research base across the region. Some of this is happening on a sub-regional basis, including both R&E programs. Growth areas in pasture based dairies and especially on-farm processing issues. We've been managing events; need to get beyond this and influence programs, issues and needs.
Pesticide coordinators and education: Foster will check with IEG3 and see if IPM coordinators can do their thing at IEG3 and could possibly eliminate. Will connect with IPM coordinators before any official action.
Hold Agricultural Engineering and Southern Region Plan Exchange for Salt Lake City meeting; Fran Wolak will try to find out where this group is.
Water Quality Planning Committee: Recommend tentatively Cass Gardner from FL A&M; will seek permission from Lawrence Carter. Other possibility would be John Meister from UA Pine Bluff. Important to have regular representation to work with the group and attend ANR meetings
Master Naturalist Committee will have roundtable discussion at Little Rock in October. Will probably come forth with strategic plan document that may dissolve the group; or could change its purpose. There appear to be three or four states that are sharing and cooperating; they will proceed onward; some original players may not continue as a part of the program. (SC, FL, MS, AL are the states playing now; TX has its own program.)
Joe Schaefer will keep ANR leaders informed of further development and activities of the master naturalist committee.
Re-raised the question of forming a SR Natural Resource Committee. Joe suggested having a NRC committee would give a stronger liaison with Program Leaders and directors. Structure could be focused on events or on program issues. Umberger made a motion to form combined NR committee (WLF, MR, Fish and FOR) and that connection be made with forestry (could opt out) and WQ group (could opt in); Schaefer seconded. Motion tabled and charged Schaefer to contact other committees for their interest in coming under one umbrella.
Small farms Committee will provide report to Bonnie. Risk management, SARE. NRCS, CRIS federal projects. Field pea project led by Michigan State-Jan 2002 workshop at Fort Valley funded by USDA and World Bank.
Steve Umberger reported on progress of USDA-CSREES-LGU exchange activities. Bill Wagner and Steve Baertsche will participate in the first exchange.
Multi-state activities: Have states received their annual report feedback? Some have just come back very lately.
October 23 listening session in New Orleans
Ross updated item on NC/SR-CSREES farm bill teams (see handout).
State comments:
NC Johne's disease
French: 4 major program emphasis-water; reduce cattle feed costs; alternative enterprises; best management systems for soybeans. 4 to 3 districts
Hill: water quality and natural resources
Absher: Phase 1 tobacco settlement dominated KY efforts; administrative changes www.ky.agnr.com
Dusky: budget impacts; west-Nile virus and related mosquito-borne issues DE is a multi-state opportunity (who would be interested?). IFAFS review-extension didn't come out looking very good. Got to cut budget; push to eliminate. Suggest Joan send info on list serve and ask for feedback.
Rafael: working on nutrient management certification, working with NRCS; and SS department to certify agents
Ouart: reallocating resources to natural resources business development-income opportunities from wet and forest lands; Joe McGilberry is interim director. Working on reorganization of field staff. Looking at ways in ag, crd and fce to make sure staff equipped and know more than the customer
Umberger: Water quality of life publication; partner with electronic journal of plant health progress; will put state logo on home page and put publications on their homepage.
Love: nothing terribly exciting from OK. Mentioned Karnal Bundt and FMD
McPeake: most agents certified in waste management; forage testing for toxic agents has been useful in their soil and water testing facility, urban web page
Depew: agents specializing in primarily one major commodity or program focus area.
Bill Hubbard reported on regional forestry programs. (see handout) Special note of web-site: Forestry Index.net: a directory of web based resources. Working with USDA to get funds for state NREM contacts to attend national conference from both 1890 and 1862 institutions ($400-500 scholarship per person) in Naples, FL.
John O'Sullivan on SR SARE:
- National/Regional Sustainable Agriculture Conference in North Carolina
- SR SARE PDP stakeholder meeting Jan 24-25 in Chattanooga focusing on Biotechnology through the eyes of extension
- Also mentioned possibility of 1890-1862 partnership in Southern Region to develop region-wide training project for training in small farm issues.