Revisiting Cornell's 132-year-old land-grant mission, more than 400 Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) educators from across the state and Cornell faculty members affiliated with the extension programs gathered in Ithaca June 6-8 for CCE's annual conference. This year's theme: "Renewing Our Commitment to New Yorkers."
|
| C. Peter Magrath, president of the NASULGC, left, and Merrill Ewert, director of CCE, answer questions from participants at the CCE annual conference at the Clarion University Hotel, June 6. Frank DiMeo/University Photography |
Merrill Ewert, director of CCE, explained to conference participants that many New Yorkers are calling for their land-grant university to help address problems facing the state. The citizens are looking to CCE to respond, he said.
So Ewert arranged the statewide CCE conference and workshops and brought in C. Peter Magrath, president of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges (NASULGC), to be the kick-off speaker. Magrath, in his keynote address on June 6, challenged CCE to renew its land-grant mission by making its services pertinent to the state's current and future needs.
"Magrath's talk set the stage," said Ewert, and now the extension arm of Cornell's land-grant mission is aiming to become more accessible, responsive, accountable and excellent in the eyes of New Yorkers, he said.
"We are witnessing the rebirth of the land-grant mission at Cornell," said Scott J. Peters, Cornell assistant professor of education. "The best way to make a rebirth vital is to take a leap of faith, and with this conference, that's just what the extension educators did."
Peters said that Cornell's educators saw a reawakening of Liberty Hyde Bailey's turn-of-the-century vision to keep the university "close to the ground," which means to make CCE educators an integral part of the local fabric.
CCE conducts statewide programs in agriculture, community development and protecting the environment, as well as instruction in nutrition and health. The service provides information resources for seniors, and it conducts the 4-H program in every New York county. In addition to 4-H, CCE has more than two dozen different youth programs around the state. Extension has helped to develop agricultural cooperatives and has provided business-development services to small companies. In the case of Penn Yan, CCE business and economic services helped turn a dying community into a thriving trade center.
Cornell President Hunter Rawlings introduced Graham Spanier, president of Penn State University, who gave the conference capnote speech.
"Cornell has a long tradition of using its expertise and knowledge to meet the needs of people in New York state, whether on the farm or in urban or in suburban areas," Rawlings said. "Teaching, research and extension all contribute to building stronger communities, [and that tradition] is part of the fabric of our university."
Spanier then discussed how he created an "engaged" land-grant university system in Pennsylvania. His state's cooperative extension system model emphasizes the integration of teaching, research and service, he said.
Spanier explained that like their colleagues at Cornell, the extension faculty and staff at Penn State stand ahead of the curve in seeing community trends and marketplace needs. "They are the first line of contact with a very large segment of our constituents and more flexible than many other parts of the university in responding," he said.
The Penn State president also said he aimed to promote the delivery of resources from academic colleges to improve health, save jobs, create products, resolve individual and family problems and generally enhance the quality of life for Pennsylvanians.
Spanier discussed the need for more collaboration between faculty and extension educators, and he explained how he took a county-by-county cooperative extension system and turned it into a regional system so that more resources could be shared.
Ewert adjourned the conference with renewed hope for a bright future for CCE: "We're helping New Yorkers build a better New York," he said.
| Cornell Chronicle Front Page | | Table of Contents | | Cornell News Service Home Page |