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Table of Contents
President's Message
Meet Sydney Turner: USDA NIFA Program Specialist
Relationships, Relevance, Results Highlights in 2017 PILD 1st Timer’s Scholarship Recipient Reflections
Invitation to JCEP Leadership Conference
Opportunities to Connect With NEAFCS
Now That I Have Done It . . . How Do I Write It?
Meet the Board: Central Region Director
Important Dates
NEAFCS 2018 Annual Session Call for Proposals
December 4 - January 31, 2018
NEAFCS Impact Statement Reports
December 1 - February 1, 2018
PILD 1st First Timer Scholarship Application
Mid-December - February 1, 2018
NEAFCS Awards System Open
December 1 - March 15, 2018
JCEP Leadership Conference
February 14 - 15, 2018
Orlando, FL
Public Issues Leadership Development Conference
April 8-11, 2018
Arlington, VA
NEAFCS 2018 Annual Session
September, 24-27
San Antonio, TX
NEAFCS 2019 Annual Session
Sept. 30 - Oct. 3, 2019
View All Events...
GRANT OPPORTUNITY
AAFCS Excellence in Extension Grant - $5,000
AAFCS membership is not required for eligibility
Click here for guidelines
IMPORTANT UPDATE FROM NATIONAL OFFICE
Please add the following two emails to your "safe sender" or "white lists" to ensure you continue to receive emails from NEAFCS as we move to a new system.
[email protected]
[email protected]
For those of you accessing your email through a work email server, you may wish to share this information with your IT person and ask for their help in ensuring the email addresses are added to your safe sender lists.
National Extension Association of Family & Consumer Science
325 John Knox Rd. Suite L103
Tallahassee, FL 32303
(850) 205-5638
[email protected]
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President's Message
Lora Lee Frazier Howard (KY) 
Thanksgiving and Christmas are two of my favorite holidays. It is an opportunity to gather together with family and friends and enjoy a delicious meal. It is also time for me to acknowledge what I am thankful for in my life. I have a small framed picture in my office that says, “Greet each day with thanks. In all things give thanks. Give thanks for your many blessings, for they are the best gifts you can receive.” I hope you and your family enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday. I hope you enjoy the holiday season whether you celebrate Christmas, Kwanza or Hanukkah. The opportunity to be together with family and friends enables us to slow down and enjoy life in our fast- paced world.
Your board has already been hard at work. We are reviewing polices for updates, looking at the Annual Session Handbook for updating and planning the Family and Consumer Science JCEP meetings, just to name a few. If you have topics we need to discuss at our JCEP meetings in February, please let your Regional Director know. Your Vice-Presidents and their committees have already started working on the 2018 meeting.
Start your plans now for attending Annual Session in San Antonio, Texas and become more actively involved in NEAFCS. What could you do that would contribute to a successful annual meeting and year for NEAFCS? You might submit to present a session, enter an award, become an active committee member, and commit to attend an in-depth session or pre-conference workshop, or submit credentials for office. Your active commitment and participation assures a successful annual meeting and year for NEAFCS. There is something for everyone. I am looking forward to seeing “you” more actively involved in 2018.
Just a reminder, NEAFCS wants to hear from you. If you haven't completed the NEAFCS Member Benefit Survey, please do so by December 31st. This information was emailed to you earlier this month. You can access the survey by clicking here.
The first three members who found the Texas star in last month's newsletter were Nancy Frecks, Amy Vance and Lynda Latta. Their names will be entered for the free registration to attend the 2018 Annual Session. Remember to look for the Texas Star in this newsletter for your chance to be entered into the drawing. Email me the location to be entered. Good luck!
Sincerely,
Lora Lee
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Meet Sydney Turner: USDA NIFA Program Specialist
Caroline E. Crocoll, Ph.D., CFCS, Director, USDA NIFA DFCS, Washington, DC 
Sydney Turner is the Program Specialist for the Division of Family & Consumer Sciences Community Vitality and Research and Evaluation portfolios. In addition to those duties, Sydney serves as the Division’s Lead Communications Specialist. She works with administrators, faculty and Extension educators across the Land-Grant University System, as well as with other Federal agencies and various other partners to support the areas of research, education and extension.
As a Program Specialist, Sydney provides programmatic grant support to competitive and non-competitive grant programs at NIFA: Extension Risk Management Education, Farm Business Management and Benchmarking, Regional Rural Development Centers, and Small Business Innovative Research Phase I & II – Topic 8.6 Rural and Community Development. These programs emphasize improving the nation’s health, nutrition, and family and community quality of life in rural America in the areas of community resource and economic development, rural/urban interdependence and workforce development. Sydney also provides co-leadership for the Division’s efforts in the area of FCS research and evaluation and examines gaps and opportunities in program evaluation capacity building within NIFA and across the Land-Grant University System.
Prior to joining NIFA, Sydney worked for the Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) in Rockville, MD. While employed at SAMHSA, Sydney developed, analyzed and evaluated new and modified program policies and procedures, analyzed the request for applications, prepared and executed grant applications.
Sydney holds an A.S in Social Sciences from the Northern Virginia Community College and a B.S in Sociology and Minor in Social Work from George Mason University. Sydney’s area of studies included: human behaviors, family and childhood development, social policy analysis and advocacy, community development, research and evaluation and statistics.
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Relationships, Relevance, Results Highlights in 2017 PILD 1st Timer’s Scholarship Recipient Reflections  
Edited by Glenda Hyde (OR), former Vice President Public Affairs and Julie Garden-Robinson (ND), Vice President Public Affairs
The PILD conference was one of the most useful conferences that I have attended over the course of my professional career. I was grateful for the opportunity to “sit a spell” and network with other Extension professionals and discover that many things done in Extension in Louisiana aren’t unique to my state. I now have a clearer understanding about the relationship between Extension and the USDA. The House and Senate Staffers’ presentations gave me a unique insight on how to approach legislators in a manner that will be beneficial to Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service and the government official. During the time given for Congressional visits, my delegation met with the firm that lobbies for the LSU AgCenter. The information given to us by the representative was invaluable! The Twilight tour was amazing and the perfect opportunity to see some of our nation’s historic sights. I’d definitely recommend this conference to anyone who is employed in Extension. I have come away from the PILD conference fully prepared and equipped to advocate for Extension and articulate the importance of our work!
Tiffany Williams (LA)
What a wonderful experience! This was my first time attending PILD as a chair for Public Affairs through Purdue Extension, and I can honestly say I was not prepared for what I was getting into prior to attending the sessions through PILD. I was anxious and nervous as I touched down in D.C., but fortunately the conference gave me some wonderful tips to apply during my visits with my Senator and District Representative. The experience provided me with not only with an abundance of great resources, it helped me grow professionally and personally. It gave me the confidence and pride to educate on Extension and elaborate what we are doing collectively. As I took off from D.C., I left feeling more confident and eager to embark on the adventure again. I look forward to attending PILD in the future, and would highly recommend anyone to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity. Thank you NEAFCS and Purdue Extension for this great opportunity!
Amanda Galloway (IN)
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Invitation to JCEP Leadership Conference  
Diane Whitten, (NY), Eastern Region Director and Julie Cascio (AK) Western Region Director
Let’s start at the beginning; what is JCEP? The Joint Council of Extension Professionals (JCEP) is an umbrella organization that includes representatives from all seven Cooperative Extension professional associations, including NEAFCS, the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (NACAA), the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents (NAE4-HA), to name a few, plus USDA-NIFA staff. One of the primary goals of JCEP is to promote leadership in Extension which it does partly through the JCEP Leadership Conference.
The conference this year is in Orlando, FL, February 14-15, 2018. The JCEP Leadership Conference provides professional development that addresses leadership and management skill development critical for emerging Extension leaders that are needed in all the Extension issue areas and JCEP member organizations.
 During the JCEP Leadership Conference, there is specific time for all NEAFCS representatives to gather and talk about issues relevant to our association. Speaking for all the Regional Directors, we highly suggest that each NEAFCS Affiliate send a representative to this conference, so we as a group can discuss important issues regarding the future of our association. Recognizing that many of our Affiliates don’t have the resources to send a representative, the NEAFCS Board of Directors is offering twenty-five $350 scholarships to subsidize the cost of attendance. For more information, contact your Affiliate President or Regional Director.
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Opportunities to Connect With NEAFCS
Edda Cotto-Rivera (GA), Vice President Member Resources 
Greetings everyone! I am pretty sure that by the time you start reading our newsletter you will have heard or shared one of the most common phrases of the time: It is December! I can’t believe that 2017 is almost over. Yes indeed! We are just a few days shy of welcoming another year, but before it ends we want to share two opportunities that are available to you as a member. The e-journal sub-committee is sending the following information:
Consider submitting to the Journal of the NEAFCS!
The end of the year often means a time for wrapping up projects, analyzing and making adjustments to programs, and planning for the new year. This is the perfect time to prepare an article to submit to the Journal of the NEAFCS. We are looking for articles that highlight the exciting and impactful work you are doing in your communities. To learn more about submitting an article, go to https://neafcs.memberclicks.net/journal-of-neafcs to view the submission guidelines and to check out previous publications. Submissions are due March 1, 2018.
The e-journal sub-committee is also looking for an apprentice. The individual interested in being an apprentice would be responsible for collecting, and organizing articles as well as corresponding with authors during the process of publishing them.
To submit an article, to volunteer to be an apprentice, or if you have any questions, please contact Dana Wright at [email protected], the e-journal sub-committee chair.
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Now That I Have Done It . . . How Do I Write It?
Keishon Thomas (GA), Awards Committee Member 
The program is complete, the agenda, evaluation and sign-in sheet are filed away. You may be thinking about applying for an award, but how do you transform those documents into an award winning application? Good news-you’ve done the work! All that is left is to write it up. Consider using who, what, when, why and how as a guide for your award application.
Identify the target audience. Who is the program for? For example, child care providers or food handlers.
Think of what details you can add to your award application such as; type of educational program, the resources used (grant funding, sponsors) and partners. Also add supporting documentation such as flyers or social media posts.
Detail when the program took place. Most award criteria indicates the work must have been conducted within the past 2-3 years.
Explain how you know the program was needed by the target audience. The situation that prompted the program, purpose, objectives and impacts is a good place to begin. It is imperative to add information on any behavior changes that were a result of the program. “Participants increased vegetable consumption by 30%”, for example, is a great documented behavior change.
How was the program conducted? Was it online or in person? Detail the topics discussed as well as activities conducted. Be sure you have supporting documentation such as handouts, agendas and an evaluation instrument.
Don’t forget the applicant photo! This is an easy way to get five points.
Finally, review the NEAFCS Awards Manual. It has critical information on each award. Good luck!
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Meet the Board: Central Region Director 
Ellen M. Bjelland (ND), Central Region Director
Greetings from North Dakota! It’s been nearly 40 years since North Dakota has had a seat on the National Board so I am honored to both be on the board and to serve the Central Region. I have been an FCS Extension Agent for nearly 30 years, three of which were in Wisconsin. I love my work and the fact that there is such variety in my position (agents are generalists at the county level in ND). Perhaps my favorite programming area is health and wellness. I truly enjoy visiting area schools and seeing children get excited about health concepts, especially when they realize that being healthy is their decision. It is one of those “light-bulb moments!”
Family has always been important to me. Although I do not have children of my own, I am very connected to my extended family both in the United States and in Norway; for example, I spent most of this past August in Norway visiting family and playing tourist. I also enjoy reading, cooking (just published a family cookbook), and travelling. Finally, I am a lover of the prairie. The beauty of the blue skies, Northern Lights, waving fields of grass and grain, crisp winter mornings, and local fauna and flora never fail to brighten my day. But enough about me!
As we enter the giving season, I would like to encourage each of you to give to others, whether monetarily or of your time. This can include dropping off gently used winter wear for those who have none, volunteering your time at a soup kitchen, ringing the bell for the Salvation Army, or donating to a local or national cause you believe in. Perhaps this year you might include the NEAFCS Endowment Fund in your list of giving. You can make a straight donation or you can do so as an honorarium or memorial for someone important in your life. Go to https://neafcs.memberclicks.net/endowment for more information.
With that, I wish each of you a joyous and meaningful holiday season. See you in San Antonio!
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