North Dakota State University
NDSU Extension Service
Preface
Introduction: The NDSU Extension Service in 2004
Extension to the 21st Century: The Leadership
Restructuring Extension - County Organization
Restructuting Extension - Integrating Specialists with Academic Departments
Responding to Disasters
Adopting and Using Technology
Making an Impact
NDSU Extension Service Employees (88KB)
Climate extremes and accompanying problems are no strangers to North Dakotans, both agricultural producers and non-farm residents. But the closing years of the 20th Century, starting about 1988, provided an unusual sequence of climatic problems, from severe drought to severe flooding.
The NDSU Extension Service annual report to USDA for Fiscal Year 1988 overview statement included the observation:
During 1988 the most critical issue was the extended drought, and the NDSU Extension Service reacted quickly and effectively. A drought task force was formed and a series of fact sheets was developed and distributed to aid producers in coping with cropping and livestock problems.
Actually, extension specialists were gearing up for dry conditions months before spring, when the planting season arrived but spring moisture did not. In the fall of 1987 Soils Specialist Carl Fanning reported the dire results from a statewide soil moisture survey, warning that unless every possible weather event provided optimum moisture the coming crop season would likely bring major problems. By April, when drought started looking even more probable, specialists were seriously involved in getting together information for producers. By mid-May, when the dry weather at planting continued, resulting in erratic crop stands, pressure on specialists and agents was starting to mount.
In a July issue of his "Perspectives" newsletter to extension staff, Director Bill Pietsch said, "Over the past several weeks most of us have spent increasing amounts of time either worrying about or doing something about the drought. The involvement of the NDSU Extension Service during this time of increasing stress on farmers and ranchers of the state, and the rest of the economy that revolves on agriculture, has been more intense than any I've seen in the past decade."
An article by Lyndon Anderson in Farm and Ranch Guide reported that on one day in June county agents and specialists dealing with drought issues received 1,280 phone calls, had 441 office visits, made 86 farm visits, held 41 educational meetings, were on 34 radio and television programs and mailed 3,970 newsletters.
The nature of calls covered a wide range of topics, from weed control, to feed value of weeds and damaged crops, to disaster aid programs and drought stress on gardens and lawns. County agent Dennis Egge commented that some farmer calls seemed to be just seeking encouragement to make it through the drought. The Haylist program available though the Extnet computer system listing hay available for sale received heavy use, though Computer Specialist Dave Rice pointed out that the biggest use was requests for the list. There probably was little hay to offer.
Perhaps the most visible extension effort, however, was surveys of the small grain and row crops to estimate yield potential and the economic impact of the drought. The surveys were conducted by a drought task force made up of seven plant scientists and four economists, with additional support from NDSU agriculture. Extension became the primary source for information about the drought impact for the news media both locally and nationwide and for decision makers, including North Dakota's congressional delegation. For example, Extension Economist Arlen Leholm told of receiving a call from Senator Kent Conrad requesting information for a meeting with Secretary of Agriculture Richard Lyng. The NDSU task force was able to respond in about an hour.
"We did a quick estimate and said the state would suffer a loss of $2.7 billion," Leholm said. National media including the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and others called for information. Leholm was interviewed live on ABC Television's Good Morning America. A front page story in USA Today quoted County Agent Roger Martin, and many specialists, agents and communication staff fielded questions from national and international media.
An updated survey about two weeks later raised the economic loss projection to $3 billion, including a multiplier effect and livestock and row crop losses. Agronomist Jim Helm reported that statewide yields, including abandoned acreage, would be about 12 bushels per acre for wheat, 15 bushels for barley and slightly above 20 bushels for oats, along with quality reduction.
A month later, losses continued to mount as row crops were hit hard by continuing drought, with losses estimated at $31.7 million for corn and $57 million for soybeans. Other row crops also suffered, although, ironically, projected revenue for dry beans actually increased because of sharp price increases brought on the by the short crop.
Projections developed from the surveys were made public at news conferences held on the campus. Some voices at NDSU were critical of this method and extension's high profile, apparently believing that it was poor public relations for NDSU to be the bearer of so much bad news. In reality, extension established a reputation for credibility and reliability that lasted for many years.
Information generated by the extension drought task force helped bring about $411 million in federal drought assistance. Said Senator Conrad at the time, "Their rapid assessment of the direct effects on farmers and the indirect effects of the drought on the entire North Dakota economy helped me convince my colleagues of the need to provide greater relief to those hit hardest by the drought. The extension service did a superb job."
In his September "Perspectives" newsletter, Director Bill Pietsch, commenting on an upcoming statewide program re-direction conference for extension staff, said, "I'm looking forward to a very special program as we take time to reflect on what has been a monumental spring and summer for each of you. I've never heard so much positive feedback about the special role we've played in helping people cope with the many complex impacts of the drought."
One result of the re-direction conference was described by Pietsch in his October newsletter: "The `big rock' of our after-the-drought program effort will be delivered under the title of Extension Focus." It was to involve a series of 25 multi-county educational events in key locations throughout the state along with other program efforts, supported by a set of pertinent educational materials all produced with a common theme and appearance. "I like to envision the complete set of educational materials we'll release looking like the new line of cars a manufacturer would release for a new sales season," he said.
New publications were developed on a range of topics, from parenting during stressful times, community survival and managing family finances to production topics like local crop input strategies, effects of drought on rangeland, alternative livestock feeds and marketing alternatives.
A 16-page tabloid newspaper dealing mainly with drought issues was also produced and distributed throughout the state. In what was called the most ambitious use of television in NDSU extension history, a series of four half-hour programs offering a wide variety of information was broadcast statewide on the KX Television Network.
The Extension Focus effort was planned to involve no more than 25 percent of extension's human and financial resources, meaning 75 percent of efforts would continue to support continuing education and other programming.
The "after-the-drought" designation proved to be a bit optimistic, as dry conditions continued into 1989. The Fiscal Year 1989 report to Extension Service USDA stated:
The continuing drought in the Great Plains again influenced the programs of the Extension Service in North Dakota. While not as severe or widespread as the 1988 drought, the continued financial and emotional stress on farm and ranch operators, and interdependent communities provided many opportunities for Extension to provide programs of high impact on North Dakotans.
Two consecutive summers of drought had a major impact on the state's economy and placed many families under considerable stress. From July 1988 to June 1989 every county and area extension staff member participated in programs designed to lessen the impact on children and families. Programs included a four-part video series entitled "From Farm to Families" that received an award from the North Dakota Mental Health Association.
The drought ended with the end of the decade. More normal weather patterns and crop yields seemed to be returning, but then some areas were faced with a new problem—too much moisture. A story in the June 24, 1993, issue of The Forum carried the headline, "N.D. farmers worry about soggy fields." Staff Writer Suzy Frisch described heavy rains adding up to two inches of water to already drenched fields in southeastern North Dakota while the Bismarck-Mandan area was hit by strong winds, heavy rain and hail.
In general, however, the region's crops looked promising. Wheat and barley stands were good, and farmers expected bumper crops. But unknown to most, excessive July rains along with heavy fogs and dews favored an unexpected plague, Fusarium head blight, also known as scab. The scab epidemic spread in a region from South Dakota to Manitoba, catching farmers by surprise and causing great alarm when they found grain heads to be empty or moldy when harvest started in August. Extension pest reports and news releases had issued warnings of scab infection in July, but producers and millers were lulled into false security by the lush green appearance of the grain crop and early predictions of record yields.
Fusarium blight was certainly not unknown. The fungus had caused severe damage in grain-producing areas of the world many times, and isolated outbreaks had occurred in North Dakota before, as recently as 1986, but the region had never experienced anything this widespread before. Yields and quality were severely damaged by the scab fungus, but the greatest concern in 1993 was the high incidence of vomitoxin, a byproduct of the Fusarium mold, in the diseased grain.
As the scope of the epidemic became known, the regional news media started to report the situation. An article in the August 14, 1993, issue of The Forum by Staff Writer Mikkel Pates carried a banner headline, "Valley grain diseased," with a subhead stating, "Early tests indicate high level of vomitoxin." Pates quoted Extension Plant Pathologist Marcia McMullen saying, "Right now it's paralyzing marketing of grain in the region." McMullen would become a major source of information on scab and the epidemic and a leader of the massive educational effort that would follow.
Grain companies would not buy any wheat that tested above the Food and Drug Administration "level of concern" of 2 parts per million vomitoxin. McMullen said in the Pates article, "The elevators aren't sure what to do with it. They have to meet requirements set by their purchasing companies -- people like Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland, Peavey and Conagra." She said that many farmers would harvest grain and store it, waiting to see if it could be cleaned enough to be acceptable to buyers or if buyers would return to the market after the initial panic.
The FDA level of concern for raw grain was later dropped, but a guideline of 1 part per million for finished flour products was maintained. Wheat with vomitoxin damage could then be sold, but usually at a heavy discount. Producers often had to sell at livestock feed prices and sometimes had trouble selling for that purpose. For barley, the malting industry adopted a standard of less than 0.5 parts per million vomitoxin in malting barley, severely impacting barley growers in the region.
Howard Casper of the NDSU toxicology laboratory, the only lab in the region equipped to accurately measure vomitoxin, reported a high incidence of vomitoxin in both barley and wheat. Vomitoxin was known to cause illness in swine if used for livestock feed, but little was actually known about what levels of infected grain could safely be fed to swine and if it could be fed safely to ruminant animals.
When the 1993 season was tallied up, grain producers in North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota and Manitoba had suffered an estimated $1 billion in losses from yield and quality reductions, making it one of the greatest losses to any plant disease in a single year in North America. Some farmers did not survive the devastating losses. The survivors hoped to avoid future outbreaks, but the general belief was that the year had been a fluke and that a recurrence was unlikely. Unfortunately that was not the case, and scab continued to be a major problem in the region for years to come.
The enormous scope of the 1993 outbreak stimulated an extensive educational response involving a collaborative effort among public and private agencies, as well as pressure for concentrated research efforts to find ways to manage the disease.
A multidisciplinary extension Fusarium head blight task force was established in North Dakota. A similar working group was formed in Minnesota. Darnell Lundstrom, the NDSU Extension Service program leader for agriculture and natural resources, credits Marcia McMullen for providing "...strong leadership working with research, working with farmers, working with breeders, working across state lines to develop management guidelines."
(In 1994, McMullen was selected by the National Association of Wheat Growers to receive the group's Excellence in Extension award. She was nominated by grain producer groups in both North Dakota and Minnesota for coordinating the educational effort on scab.)
Scab has continued to be a part of extension educational efforts every year since 1993. Some years have been less severe, but there have been additional severe outbreaks, and the disease has appeared in new areas as the infection moved farther west. Extension agents and area specialists in the north central and northwest counties of North Dakota found themselves engaged in the scab battle, along with their counterparts in the northeast, where the disease first became severe.
McMullen believes that the continuing scab problem has contributed to changing the face of extension. County agents and area specialists, along with state specialists, have learned to quickly respond to disasters. This disease has changed the lives of extension agents, she says, "...making better people of them, but it's difficult." The difficulty involved not only the workload of meeting a massive demand for information but also the stress of supporting financially stressed farm families facing what was in many cases the last straw.
The extension response has included many new or revised publications, a host of newsletters and news media releases, and vast amounts of information on the Internet. Areas of emphasis have included identifying grain varieties tolerant or resistant to scab, crop selection, crop rotations, tillage options and fungicide use. Agricultural engineers including NDSU Extension Specialist Vern Hofman have worked to develop methods to apply fungicides to grain heads most effectively. Animal scientists have done feeding trials with vomitoxin contaminated grain, Cereal scientists have done milling, baking and brewing studies with infected grain. And plant breeders continue trying to develop acceptable varieties that are resistant to scab.
The continuing situation in North Dakota and Minnesota coupled with Fusarium outbreaks in other parts of the United States had focused national attention on the disease. Formation of a National Fusarium Head Blight Initiative in 1997 led to expanded research efforts and funding for the initiative from USDA, expanding the state and regional programs of research and education that had sprung from the 1993 disaster.
In 2003, producers and extension educators are more knowledgeable about scab, there are some more tolerant varieties available, more fungicides are available, there is more crop diversity, and producers are more aware of disease and pest problems and more interested in good crop management. But, as McMullen wrote in the December 1997 issue of the journal Plant Science, "We cannot control the weather; we cannot expect a large shift in tillage trends; and we will always grow large amounts of wheat and corn in the United States. We must search for other solutions for managing scab."
Wet soils and wet springs leading to delayed planting were also responsible for an insect infestation. According to Extension Entomologist Phil Glogoza, there was no documented economic infestation of the orange wheat blossom midge in North Dakota prior to 1995. But, as described in a report prepared by ag program leader Darnell Lundstrom, problems started to emerge in 1994.
Area Extension Agronomist Terry Gregoire did an informal survey in northeastern North Dakota, checking fields from Rolette County to Foster County and east to the Red River Valley. He found some fields along the Canadian border with economic infestations of the midge. South of there midge larvae could be found in small numbers, but the observations were enough to suggest a potential problem in the northern counties. Since the midge had never been an economic problem before, it was difficult to generate farmer interest about the potential problem.
In 1995 planting was very late in the northern counties, meaning grain crops would be heading and most vulnerable to midge infestation at the time of peak midge activity. Gregoire reported only about 10 percent of the crop was heading by July 10, or early enough to escape most midge activity. He estimated losses of about 7 million bushels of grain in Ramsey, Nelson, Benson, Rolette, Towner and Cavalier counties. Ramsey County had an estimated loss of 25 percent. Losses in individual fields ran as high as 60 percent.
Extension's effort to inform producers, pesticide applicators and crop advisors about the midge had started well before the planting season. Information, much of it borrowed or adapted from Canadian sources, was presented at winter schools, crop clinics and meetings; in the Crop and Pest Report newsletter; on the Data Transmission Network (DTN); in the news media and on farm and plot tours by state and area specialists and extension agents in the affected area.
In 1996, delayed planting because of wet weather and overwhelming populations of midge larval cocoons put almost 2 million wheat acres at risk in North Dakota. This time growers were aware of the potential problems and responded by using field monitoring, growing degree day information and treatment thresholds to decide what course to follow. As a result, only 40 percent of the threatened 2 million acres was treated with insecticide, saving growers treatment costs and avoiding the environmental effects of insecticide.
Extension efforts on coping with the orange wheat blossom midge became more routine in following years, with some variation. The affected area expanded to the west and south. In 1998 area crop protection specialist Janet Knodel reported that some infestations were more persistent than usual, with populations staying high longer, and that the pest was more mobile, moving from fields where they emerged to other fields where conditions were more favorable.
In the March 5, 2000, edition of the Minot Daily News, staff writer Jerry Kram did a series of articles on NDSU extension and research efforts. In an item titled "Extension is NDSU's front line," Director Sharon Anderson used the orange wheat blossom midge effort as an example of how quickly extension can respond to a new or emerging problem, with state and area specialists, researchers at research extension centers and extension agents all cooperating to get information to growers. "We got producers involved at the very beginning. Things were amazingly fast," she said.
The winter of 1996-97 started early, with a major snowfall covering most of the state on November 5. The first official blizzard of the winter struck northeastern North Dakota on November 17, with most of the state receiving heavy snow from November 17 to 20 and again November 23 and 24. Another blizzard covered most of the state on December 16-18. A total of nine blizzards struck somewhere in North Dakota before the winter was over. Fargo would receive a record 117 inches of snow, Bismarck nearly 102 inches (also a record), and Grand Forks over 98 inches. Wind chills were calculated at between 50 and 80 below eight times during the winter.
On January 27, Sharon Anderson commented in her e-mail staff update, "January has continued to provide adequate stress to everyone..." She reported that many extension staff had provided information and help during the snow emergency situation, done media work, gathered information from producers and offered specific assistance to citizens requesting help. "I am afraid there will be long-term implications from this much snow and cold," she said.
On January 12, President Clinton declared a major disaster in all 53 North Dakota counties and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local snow removal.
Extension specialists from many disciplines prepared information for the news media, in printed circulars, and for use by county staff, and virtually all of it also appeared on the NDSU Extension Service Web page, along with links to other sites providing emergency information. Topics of emergency publications ranged from planning an emergency food supply to checking for ice-plugged sewer vents and safe use of alternative heating sources. With livestock producers being hit especially hard, a long list of circulars under the titles of "Cattlemen Coping with Winter" and "Dairymen Coping with Winter" were prepared and distributed. Topics included hay quality, cold weather and bull fertility, consequences of underfeeding beef cows, critical buying and selling decisions, buildings and facilities, and weather-related mastitis problems.
Even as extension and the state struggled with the severe winter, it was apparent the spring snow melt was going to bring flood problems. Extension started getting into flood emergency mode in February, as communication and subject matter specialists started gathering materials on flood preparation and prevention. New or updated publications on sandbagging for flood control, sump pump questions, and steps to reduce flood and water damage were prepared and printed, including other agencies reproducing copies for their own use.
Extension's "Coping with Floods" Web site went on line February 20, containing NDSU information along with links to other universities, FEMA, Red Cross and other agencies with flood related information. The site provided immediate information to county extension staff, other agencies and the public. In April, when the waters started to rise, the site was getting about a thousand hits per day.
Rivers and streams over much of North Dakota overflowed their banks, including the Knife, Heart and Cannonball rivers in the Missouri River drainage and the Souris River. The major flooding, however, struck the Red River Valley, including rivers flowing to the Red like the Sheyenne, Wild Rice, Maple, Goose and Forest.
Problems on the north-flowing Red River started on the south end, at Wahpeton, where a flood crest of 19.2 feet was reached on April 4. The respite from rising water was a short one, however. On April 5 a major blizzard struck the state. In many areas the storm started as heavy rain, then changed to an ice storm, and then to a blizzard with heavy snow, adding to the already unprecedented quantity of water trying to make its way to the channel of the Red. A second flood crest hit Wahpeton on April 6.
Governor Ed Schaefer issued a statewide disaster proclamation on April 6. President Clinton proclaimed a federal disaster in North Dakota the next day.
For extension, the focus changed with the April 5 and 6 blizzard, as large areas were without electric power because of downed power lines. Extension immediately distributed information to help residents determine if stored food was still safe, conserve heat in the home, and use portable generators safely. Some of this information was quickly accessed from the North Central Region Extension Disaster Education Network.
On April 11, extension agents and state specialists began conference calls to discuss what research needed to be done, what information needed to be developed for the public, and how counties farther north could prepare for the approaching flood. As cleanup began in the south end of the Valley NDSU developed a checklist on cleaning flooded or water-damaged homes, because a 60-page booklet on the subject available from other agencies was overwhelming to people in crisis.
Collaboration with other states was vital, as North Dakota obtained copies of publications and video tapes from Kansas, Minnesota and other states. When the Wilkin County, Minnesota, office in Breckenridge flooded, the county staff shared space with the Richland County staff in Wahpeton for 18 days. Working together, the two staffs distributed 1,300 packets of cleanup information and newsletters about flood-related agricultural issues to 1,200 farms.
In March, in anticipation of the flood, the Cass County extension office sent packets of flood preparation information to all mayors, auditors, township board members and pastors in the county. The Cass County staff played an important role in the Community Response Team that included FEMA, Salvation Army, Red Cross, Community Health, church groups, Social Services and others to respond to community needs.
The flood crest moved north, with the Red cresting in Fargo on April 18 at a record 39.64 feet. The Fargo-Moorhead area was threatened by overland flooding as smaller rivers and drainages could not handle the flooding. A massive diking and sandbagging effort held, with serious flood damage limited to localized neighborhoods.
In the Grand Forks area flood waters overwhelmed the dikes and flooding was widespread. Many residents, including three of the 10 county extension staff, had to evacuate their homes. The flood disaster was exacerbated by fires in the flooded downtown area. FEMA declared Grand Forks the worst per capita disaster in U.S. history.
The extension office in Grand Forks was the first county office to reopen to serve the public. The county staff immediately used radio to deliver flood recovery information. For nearly three weeks they were on KCNN radio three hours per day taking call-in questions, with the station often replaying the programs on tape. The staff also worked with the local newspaper, other radio stations and the local television station to get information to the public. They worked with the National Guard to distribute cleanup information as people were allowed to return to their homes, displayed informational posters in public places, and distributed information at the recovery center and in business places.
In Traill County, extension distributed packets of information at a shelter for Grand Forks evacuees at Mayville State University residence halls. An NDSU team including an extension engineer, food safety specialist and family science specialist also spoke at this shelter.
Farther north, extension agents from Walsh and Pembina counties reached farmers in their counties and Grand Forks County with meetings and radio programs on farming after the flood. The Pembina County office was the county's emergency operations center with an extension agent as the spokesperson. The agents used Internet access to keep the sheriff and National Guard posted on weather reports and flood stage information and provided information to the news media. After the initial crisis Pembina County extension organized a public meeting where FEMA, EPA, Red Cross, Job Services and extension provided flood recovery information.
From NDSU, information on flooded cars and equipment, safety during cleanup, flood-related fraud, preserving important papers, assessing structural damage and other topics was e-mailed to North Dakota and Minnesota extension agents. NDSU apparel and textiles faculty trained extension agents via conference call and helped develop fact sheets on cleaning and disinfecting.
In April the extension family science specialist developed "What About the Children," a package for guidance counselors to use with children in their schools and evacuated children attending new schools. As childrens' needs became understood, the Grand Forks, Walsh and Pembina county agents worked with the Northeast Human Service Center, Lutheran Social Services and Northwest Mental Health to develop "Children, Schools and Disaster Recovery," a notebook distributed to K-12 teachers that included self-care ideas, parent resources and hands-on activities for children.
Extension engineers presented information about wood moisture meters and the importance of drying a home before rebuilding to area homebuilders and lumber dealers. A fact sheet about ventilating and drying homes was also developed. With continuing indoor air quality problems, North Dakota and Minnesota specialists collaborated on mold seminars.
The stress mounted for all those affected by the flooding, including extension staff. In May, a team from the University of Florida helped North Dakota and Minnesota extension staff, school counselors and department of agriculture staff cope with their stressful experiences and think about the future. Extension collaborated with the North Dakota Survival Task Force to sponsor "Overcoming Stress During Disaster" meetings across the state.
In 1998 the NDSU Extension Service flood education group was selected to receive a USDA Secretary's Honor Award.
The NDSU Extension Service is a heavy user of technology to distribute information and educational materials, including the Internet, the World Wide Web, interactive video and satellite technology. Getting to the present point has been a long process of adopting developing technology, integrating it into existing delivery systems and trying to stay at or near the cutting edge.
The first venture into technology was with AGNET, the Agricultural Computer Network. AGNET started out in 1975 as a pilot project in Scottsbluff, Nebraska, accessing a central computer through terminals. From 1975 to 1977 terminals were available only in a few Nebraska county extension offices and university experiment stations. In 1977 the leaders of the AGNET project at the University of Nebraska submitted a proposal to the Old West Regional Commission to fund a regional project in the Old West states of Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming.
At a time when computers were mainly regarded as large number crunchers used to process research data, the originators of AGNET believed that a system could be designed to make computer technology useable by people with no previous knowledge of computers. AGNET was accessed by typewriter-like terminals that connected to the central computer via telephone. The terminals were portable and could be used anywhere an electrical outlet and telephone were available.
In North Dakota AGNET was based in extension agricultural economics. The first AGNET manager was Arlyn Staroba; Jerome Johnson of the agricultural economics faculty was research advisor; Wallace Eide, livestock specialist, was the extension advisor.
Staroba died in a traffic accident on New Years day, 1981. Eide volunteered to be an interim manager for AGNET and filled in until July, when David Rice assumed the role. Eide later became a computer applications specialist and served as an extension district director before taking the position of director of the Institute for Business and Industry Development (IBID).
AGNET was regarded as a management tool for agriculture and most of its software was "number crunching" programs. NDSU specialists were very active in creating programs for AGNET, including CASHRENT by Billy Rice, COWCOST by Wally Eide, PLANTAX by Tommy Reff, and MARKETCHART by Doug Anderson, Hugh McDonald and Norman Toman. Eide recalls that a survey of producers who used AGNET to formulate least cost rations reported total savings of about $7 million in feed costs.
The system was also used as a communications tool. The AGNET newsletter of July 1979 tells about using "electronic mail" to send message files from one terminal to another. "While the program doesn't replace telephone communication or the postal system, it is a valuable supplement. It can save on the cost and frustration of placing a long distance telephone call only to find your party is out, and it takes the worry out of losing things through the mail."
NEWSRELEASE was used to disseminate news stories, users could obtain market information, and electronic conferencing was available via AGNET.
All state and county offices in North Dakota had AGNET terminals by 1982, used for file transfer and electronic mail as well as for problem-solving software. Rice says that this terminal-oriented beginning was a good stepping stone for microcomputer use in extension.
The May 1980 AGNET newsletter commented on the "revolutionary" idea of microcomputers being marketed for private use and issued cautions about the costs and limitations of the emerging technology. Micros, the article said, can do word processing, are useful for record keeping systems, and can be hooked up to act as a terminal with a larger computer system such as AGNET. "They do have limited applications because they lack the memory, speed and storage capacity of the larger computers. In brief, they are the first glimmer of the future of home computers."
The advent of personal computers suggested that the role of computer technology was changing, with information technology becoming as important as data processing. In a July 15, 1983, message to extension staff, Director Myron Johnsrud announced that in response to interest expressed by both staff and clientele in the area of microcomputers and computer technology, an electronic technology specialist position approved by the state legislature was being activated effective July 1, with Wally Eide initiating the role on a temporary basis. He also announced that electronic technology functions would be placed in the agricultural communications unit, reporting to Assistant Director for Communications F.C. "Chuck" Humphrey.
At the same time, the standard microcomputer system to be supported by NDSU extension was announced to be the Personal Computer manufactured by International Business Machines (IBM) along with a combination of IBM and non-IBM components. Upgrading from the AGNET system would be funded with county, state and federal funds, with cost sharing of $2,000 in state and federal funds toward purchase of microcomputers by counties. Standard packages of software would be provided through state and federal funds.
Through the NDSU bid, machines "For installations where a single microcomputer will serve as the AGNET terminal, for stand alone problem solving computations, as a data storage and management device, and as a word processor" consisted of a central processing unit with 64K RAM and two diskette drives, an expansion card with an additional 256K RAM, a 12-inch amber monitor, modem and printer and cost $3,609.45.
Arlyn Staroba had purchased extension's first microcomputer, an Apple III. According to Eide, it "...sat in a corner, because we had nothing to run on it." However, an increasing volume of calls and requests for information involved personal computers. Rice said he was getting questions from AGNET users about microcomputers and interfacing them with AGNET that he could not answer. He realized then that the future lay with the microcomputer.
Rice encouraged the extension agricultural economics section to get involved with microcomputers and prepare management programs for demonstration. Section members were first responsive to the idea, but then were led to believe that it would take years of training to become competent in microcomputer use. Rice's attempts to persuade them otherwise failed. A proposal to purchase microcomputers to be paid for from fees for clientele workshops was also rejected.
Rice purchased his own Radio Shack microcomputer and began collecting agricultural software for it and the AGNET Apple III. Farm Management Specialists Tom Reff and Billy Rice obtained Apple software from the University of Minnesota, and Dave Rice was able to obtain programs from several other universities. Extension's first real microcomputer training was conducted at the North Dakota Agricultural Association trade show in 1982, with demonstrations on basic programming, word processing, data base management, farm accounting and electronic spread sheets. North Dakota extension also co-sponsored a microcomputer workshop with the University of Minnesota in January. Evaluations from participants were favorable but indicated a desire for hands-on training.
In 1983, microcomputer training was gradually becoming accepted by extension staff. In Rice's words, "The individuals who wanted us to believe you needed a PhD in computer science to operate a microcomputer were much quieter this year."
Farmers and ranchers were considering purchasing microcomputer systems but had very little information to help them make purchase decisions. Extension started hands-on microcomputer training for clientele in 1983, when Johnsrud was persuaded to advance funds to purchase a training bank of six Apple IIe and six Radio Shack Model 4 computers plus one Zenith IBM compatible machine. The Apple and Radio Shack computers were chosen because of their popularity with clientele.
The first workshops, presented by Eide, Rice and Agricultural Engineer Harvey Hirning, were intended for clientele just considering buying a microcomputer system and provided 14 hours of instruction over a two-day period. Sessions included possible uses of microcomputer systems and presentations of various software packages and applications. Hands-on training included booting up the computer and using DOS commands, some BASIC training and using electronic spreadsheets and database managers.
Clientele workshops were held over a 10-year period. Dave Rice was joined by Computer Specialists Rhonda Conlon and Andrew Swenson to provide training on a variety of topics and software, including farm accounting and financial management, electronic spreadsheet clinics, database management, LOTUS, FarmPlan, WordPerfect and Quicken. Fees charged for the workshops paid for the training equipment, which was also used for extension staff training.
Over the period, nearly 5,200 participants received training.
An Electronic Technology Task Force appointed by the director in 1987 was charged with allocation of special funding by the state legislature for computer, video and other electronic technology purchases and setting distribution policies for this equipment. The five-year plan developed by this group noted, "Computer technology will serve as the common link among many of the information delivery systems being placed in the NDSU Extension Service. This technology offers extension staff the tools required for more efficient office management and improved delivery of educational programs and information. Microcomputers are now available in every extension office."
Extension used the AGNET system for electronic mail and file transfer for about 10 years, until November 1987. With this system, more than 5,000 electronic mail messages and 10,000 news stories were transmitted each year at costs ranging from 41 cents to $1.31 per message. Computer services had considered moving to a microcomputer managed system for several years as a cost saving measure. When a 40 percent decrease in the AGNET operating budget was announced in April 1986, efforts turned toward creating an in-house electronic mail and file transfer system.
The system developed by Rice and programmer Roger Egeberg was called ExtNet and was hosted on an IBM-PC/AT compatible microcomputer with 4 MB of RAM and 72 MB hard disk drive. The operating system was a version of UNIX. The system was upgraded several times in the years to come.
E-mail quickly became a standard tool for both campus-based staff and county and regional offices as a convenient means to correspond with colleagues and became increasingly valuable as a way to disseminate information. Clientele began to use e-mail to contact specialists and agents with questions, and specialists used list servers and other means to contact specified audiences.
News and information releases from the agriculture communication unit had been available electronically since the AGNET days but were accessed mainly by county staff and a limited number of clientele. The traditional news dissemination method, a weekly printed "packet" of items, continued to be mailed to media outlets. As both print and broadcast media began to adopt computer technology, efforts were made to provide information in faster and more convenient ways.
An early attempt initiated by Departmental Editor Barry Brissman was to offer media the weekly packet on a computer disc. This allowed the media to use NDSU items without having to keystroke them, saving publishers time and money and reducing introduction of typographical errors. It offered little cost saving for extension, however, because the discs were usually mailed along with a copy of the paper packet.
The next goal was to provide releases via e-mail, with the objective of eliminating producing and mailing hard copies. This effort was successful but in many cases slow to be adopted. Many media outlets were either lacking the technology or the know-how to use the electronic version and continued to ask for the weekly hard copy. The weekly mailing list did continue to shrink, however, resulting in substantial cost savings.
It took a near disaster to complete the process.
In June 2000, the Fargo area was hit with heavy storms that dropped 7 or more inches of rain in a matter of hours. Considerable flood damage resulted, including on the NDSU campus. The campus infrastructure was badly damaged, and the agriculture communication unit, located in the basement level of Morrill Hall, was disrupted. For most of the summer the only convenient way to send the weekly news was via e-mail. When things returned to normal, the e-mail distribution was going so smoothly, with few or no complaints from the media, that the decision was made to drop the hard copy mailings. An annual expenditure of $20,000 was cut by at least 75 percent.
Agriculture news releases had also been available on the World Wide Web since 1997. The Web was also the means of distributing illustrations and graphics to accompany news releases and columns, and the technology was also used to distribute sound bites for radio stations to complement print stories.
The Internet is now well known as a vast repository of information of varying quality and utility. Making this resource available to the public required a means of finding and accessing information. This means became the World Wide Web, a name coined in 1990 when the first real hypertext protocol was written.
North Dakota extension first joined the search for access to information via the Internet with the Gopher information system. Gopher was basically a document viewing and retrieval system created and developed at the University of Minnesota in 1992. Extension computer services provided some training on searching Gopher (with a system named "Veronica") and access to some NDSU information was placed on the Gopher network. The Gopher experience served as a precursor to the World Wide Web interface.
Extension computer services started testing the Web, which developed as a conglomerate of technologies including File Transfer Protocol, Gopher and others, in 1994. Bob Innes, Rhonda Conlon, Roger Egeberg and Dave Rice developed a prototype and experimented with putting a Web page together. The first NDSU Extension Service site was linked to USDA in June of 1995. The developers remember the original page as "bare bones," text only with no graphics capability, consisting of weekly news releases and some fact sheets and publications, basically what had been on Gopher.
Dave Rice, acting as Web master, started putting new extension service circulars and bulletins on the Web site, with all new and revised going on immediately with older publications modified for the Web as time permitted. He became full time Web master in 1996 and started expanding efforts, including more integration of NDSU research onto the site.
The Web quickly became a major outlet for NDSU agriculture information, reaching audiences nationally and internationally as well as North Dakotans. In 2002, the site received 10,189,769 successful requests for information from NDSU extension publications on the Web, up from 4,339,262 "hits" just two years earlier. The 2002 statistics indicated that most-requested subjects included gardening and landscaping, food and food safety, and pest control and pesticides. Numbers of requests for agriculture and non-agriculture topics are roughly equal.
The 1988-92 five-year plan prepared by the Electronic Technology Task Force noted that distance learning refers to the delivery of educational programs (voice, video and data) by satellite, fiber optic cable or television and that "NDSU Extension Service wants to be a leader and an active participant in using these new developing technologies to deliver its educational messages to the residents of North Dakota."
The task force recommended that a comprehensive statewide system of telecommunication be established to serve the state's distance learning needs and expressed a concern that a number of different agencies and institutions appeared to be developing separate plans for delivery systems.
In his August 1990 "Perspectives" newsletter to extension staff, Director Bill Pietsch said, "A major innovation in educational technology will become a reality for the people of North Dakota later this month. That's when we'll `light up' the first phase of our two-way interactive video system. In November, the entire North Dakota University System (except Bottineau) will be `wired' for sight and sound."
The Interactive Video Network (IVN) uses cables much like regular telephone lines to transmit audio and video. The first priority of the IVN system is university system credit courses, but when available the system has also been used for extension education. For example, IVN was used when the wheat scab concern was at its height in 1994, allowing producers and agriculture professionals to have scab questions answered by NDSU faculty. Master Gardener program training has also been delivered via IVN.
Satellite technology is another means extension uses for distance education. The first major effort involving satellite delivery was the statewide wheat school organized by Crop Specialist Jim Helm in 1995, using the Prairie Satellite Network in cooperation with public schools. Through the efforts of NDSU agriculture communication electronic media staff Jerry Rostad, Randy Cadwell and Cj Johnson, 20 hours of programming in four days provided wheat production and marketing information from NDSU extension specialists and research faculty to more than 500 producers at 45 viewing sites.
Pesticide recertification training was conducted by satellite in 1996. This training had typically been presented at five or more locations around the state. With satellite, the program was conducted once, and all 400 applicators receiving the training were within one county of a downlink site. A survey showed 95 percent of the participants felt the method was an effective way to receive training.
North Dakota extension also receives programs produced at other universities or agencies. Programs on a wide variety of topics have been downlinked for public use or for staff training.
Another form of distance education is Web-based videoconferencing, developed under the grant-supported Technology Opportunities Program starting in 2000. Partners in the project are NDSU Information Technology Services, United Telephone Mutual Aid Corporation, the North Dakota Information Technology Department, and the North Dakota University System Interactive Video Network. Coordinators were Jay Fisher of NDSU's North Central Research Extension Center and David Saxowsky, director of agriculture communication at NDSU.
A project performance report dated February 10, 2003, described activities conducted and significant milestones reached. The report said that a year earlier there had been 25 to 30 video sites in the state compared to 200 at the time of the report. Lynette Flage, technology trainer, was providing training to new sites as they received videoconferencing equipment, either over video or in person.
Educational programs were provided to numerous sites by extension specialists in a variety of subject areas, including pesticide management, livestock marketing and production, e-commerce and others. For a seminar on cattle backgrounding sponsored by the Divide County extension office, several speakers delivered their presentations and answered questions by video conference, saving time and travel expense. Campus-based extension specialists were able to save an 800-mile drive and 15 hours of travel time.
Crops marketing specialist George Flaskerud was in his second year of providing instruction to marketing clubs. Schedules were established for six meetings, which would provide a total of 12 hours of education by video conferencing. Livestock marketing specialist Tim Petry provided livestock price outlook and related programs to marketing clubs interested in livestock. Because many of the livestock marketing clubs are located in western North Dakota, visiting the clubs in person would involve almost full time travel for campus-based specialists.
Project personnel were assessing the effectiveness of the technology, described as "not perfect, but it is improving all the time." The initial technology was deemed adequate for conferencing and meetings, but participants said the sites needed additional capability to be effective educational sites. The project was exploring additional projectors, cameras, electronic white-boards and related equipment.
Collaboration with state agencies such as IVN and ITD was described as critical for successful implementation of the technology. Efforts were under way to set up a statewide Web-accessible database with information for all state videoconferencing sites. Use of the technology was also spreading beyond extension, including classes offered by the North Dakota Association of Counties and the Institute of Local Government.
Extension to the 21st Century, June 2005
NDSU Extension Service, North Dakota State University of Agriculture
and Applied Science, and U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating. Duane Hauck,
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