Georgia County Government - January 2009 - (Page 37)

water quality, profitability in agribusiness, family wellness and life skills. Most counties have a combination of agents who specialize in agriculture and natural resources, youth development and family and consumer sciences. Agents complete specialized training to help them meet the needs of the communities they serve. Some specialize in horticulture; others, in row crop or livestock production. Some agents work to help families deal with rural development issues or raise healthy children in urban settings. Agriculture and Natural Resources Although agriculture and society have changed dramatically during the past 95 years, the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension continues to fulfill the same basic mission with which it began in 1914 – to deliver information from land-grant colleges and universities to all Georgians, particularly those who lack access to formal education. County Extension agents help keep individuals, families and communities abreast of the latest technology, research and strategies leading to overall prosperity. Steve Sanders is the County Manager in Dooly County, Georgia’s top producing county for row and forage crops. The county’s agricultural producers accounted for a total farm gate value of more than $126 million last year. Sanders summarizes, “Since farming and agribusiness are such a vital component of the economy of Dooly County, the commissioners maintain that an investment in Cooperative Extension will deliver valuable returns to the community.” Sanders values the relationship he and his fellow county officials have with their local Extension staff. “The Dooly County Commissioners and Dooly County Cooperative Extension both understand that our role is to serve the citizens of Dooly County. We also both understand that our constituents can be best served when we work in cooperation with one another.” In more urban settings, the programs and services may have a different look but they are just as valuable. Agents help educate citizens and homeowners in every community by providing soil and water test kits and instruction, advice on safe pesticide use, and providing publications and computer programs. The Georgia Master Gardener program is a keystone effort in many of Georgia’s urban counties. In Cobb County alone, 162 Extension-trained Master Gardeners contributed more than 14,000 hours of volunteer service worth an estimated $259,000 to the community. Veteran Cobb County Manager David Hankerson, who grew up in rural Burke County, says, “I understand the historical relevance of Extension in rural counties, but I challenge anyone to convince me that Extension is any more relevant in any setting than it is here in Cobb County.” When he looks at the great demand in his county for horticultural, gardening, and agricultural services and knowledge, he concludes, “Flowers and vegetables are big business in Cobb County. Besides being a great overall value to the county, Cobb Extension provides the only centralized location where citizens can get the all the information and recommendations they need to meet their demand for knowledge and information.” Steve Brown, CAES Assistant Dean for Extension and statewide A&NR Program Leader, paints the whole picture. “Programming in the area of Agriculture and Natural Resources supports the economic viability of many of our Georgia counties. Agriculture, forestry, and agri-tourism represent major components of the economic engine in not only rural counties, but urban counties as well. The green industry pumps hundreds of millions of dollars into many of our urban areas. Water issues impact every Georgian and our educational programs are helping conserve this precious natural resource and to keep it clean. We could not have our current level of impact in A&NR programming without our many county partners.” 4-H Youth Development UGA Cooperative Extension also coordinates 4-H, Georgia’s largest youth program. Each year, more than 162,000 young Georgians participate in community projects, summer camps and conferences on today’s issues while having fun and learning to work together. The leadership skills and responsible values they learn in 4-H last a lifetime. The mission of Georgia 4-H is to assist youth in acquiring knowledge, developing life skills, and forming attitudes that will enable them to become self-directing, productive and contributing members of society. This mission is accomplished, through “hands on” learning experiences, focused on agricultural and environmental issues, agriculture awareness, leadership, communication skills, foods and nutrition, health, energy conservation, and citizenship. Mary Jo Beverly, County Commissioner in Thomas County, fondly recounts her 4-H experiences growing up there. “I joined 4-H at the earliest possible age. As an active 4-H member I grew to know and love the agents. My participation in 4-H afforded me so many opportunities, including traveling to Europe as a 16-year old on a 4-H Goodwill trip and getting to travel the U.S. and meet President Johnson as a member of the 4-H Report of the Nation Team.” As a county elected official, Beverly appreciates her local Extension team from a different angle. “As a Thomas County Commissioner as well as a consumer, I am very cognizant of the services offered by Cooperative Extension. They are not only well informed, but they have tremendous resources from experts all over the state to help not only farmers, but urban folks as well. They are highly regarded in our county and do a great service to the citizens.” The list of successful men and women in Georgia who credit their early experiences in 4-H as one the driving factors in their development is long and wide. Many of those identify their ability to speak publicly, their ability to effectively interact with others, or just simply their degree of self confidence as traits they mastered through 4-H involvement. In local school systems across the state, in-school delivery of youth development programming allows Extension agents involved with 4-H to help bring relevance to the Georgia Performance EXTENSION continued on page 38 JANUARY 2009 www.accg.org 37 http://www.accg.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Georgia County Government - January 2009

Georgia County Government - January 2009 Contents President’s Message County Matters Forward-Thinking Bulloch County Leaders Put Progress on the Front Burner Robert Farris: Champion for Georgia’s Forests ACCG, BCBS of Georgia Work Together to Improve County Employee Health Georgia’s Grand Old Courthouses: McIntosh County Extension News: Cooperative Extension Generates ROI Research Corner: How Does Your County Rate? County Parade Index of Advertisers

Georgia County Government - January 2009

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