Changes coming for Extension

By KURT NESBITT

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- The word isn't official yet, but soon will be about changes in the University of Minnesota Extension Service, commissioners from area counties learned in a meeting with Extension officials in New Ulm Tuesday night.

While many caution that the situation surrounding the pending changes at Extension are still "hypothetical," U officials who addressed the commissioners seemed certain that the services' current model, without changes, will create a $6 million deficit by 2006. The Extension Service is currently spending about 90 percent of its money on personnel, while the money it receives from the Minnesota State Legislature has remained at the same dollar amount since 1990.

Extension Service Assistant Dean and Director Jean Markell gave officials a short presentation outlining the changes the U is considering making to the Extension Service. She said the changes will come in the form of fewer staff and more regionalized services instead of having staff for each individual county. The service also promises to seek an additional $2.5 million every year through new grants, fundraising, contracts and fees. However, not all pieces of the puzzle have come together yet.

"This plan is not a done deal," Markell said. "But it presents a framework."

Markell later emphasized that "the University is not cutting Extension, but we need to look at the budget. Our partners are not keeping up with our costs."

Since the changes in Extension services were announced in December, the university has designed six new districts for the Extension Service, which will cover the entire state. Extension services and programs will come from a regional educator. Some, like 4-H and family nutrition programs, will also use a county program assistant in addition to the educator. Currently, the idea is to have two neighboring counties share educators regardless of whether or not a county is within one of the six districts.

The university has also set a timeline for its staff reduction plan. The meetings with area officials come after a similar set with Extension Service employees, where they were called on to indicate their job preferences in the new structure. The meetings with county officials is the next step in the plan. Layoffs and new assignments will follow in late February and possibly event into March. The new staffing plan takes effect on July 1.

But in order to have an idea as to how the plan is actually going to unfold, the U is asking county officials across the state to discuss how to share Extension Service resources and to give input on the options the service is offering.

Commissioners from county boards and Extension Service committees met for about one hour in groups based on how the new pair structure would work. For example, commissioners from Brown County discussed possible plans with commissioners from Redwood County, as did representatives of Sibley, Nicollet, Nobles, Watonwan, Cottonwood, Jackson and other counties.

What came from those discussions weren't so much new policies -- or even official decisions -- but ideas on how individual counties are going to approach the U's decision and the Extension Service's proposed plans.

"We haven't made any decisions," said Nobles County Commissioner David Benson. "But we have a framework."

Said Extension Service Assistant Dean Dick Senese, "The goal is to strike a balance between a state system and one tailor-made for counties."

Sense and Markell said plans will begin to materialize after the Extension Service makes its reassignments and layoffs in February.