Recognizing excellence: Connecting resources for positive community change

How do we achieve excellence? We stop what we are doing, stand back, and assess efforts. At this point we are better able to recognize special accomplishments.

Raymond Schindler

Raymond A. Schindler

The Raymond A. Schindler Excellence in Community Development Extension Award is named in honor of Raymond A. Schindler, one of the first Extension CD professionals in Ohio. Hired in 1962 as an Area Extension Agent, Ray began his career in southern Ohio, based in Highland County. He took a collaborative approach to his work, focusing on tourism development, comprehensive planning, planning commissions, and business retention and expansion programs until his retirement in 1988.

Today, we recognize Extension CD professionals with The Raymond A. Schindler Excellence in Community Development Extension Award. The annual award seeks to recognize:

  • long term strengths in teaching and research
  • a long-standing record of teamwork and collaboration in program planning, implementation and evaluation
  • a successful track record in grant awards, cost recovery, or other external funding
Susan Colbert

Susan Colbert

Just last week (January 24), we recognized Susan Colbert with the Raymond A. Schindler Excellence in Community Development Extension Award for her ability to develop and deliver multidisciplinary, evidence-based programs in collaboration with colleagues, stakeholders, private industry and state and federal funding partners that empower others to affect positive change. Since joining Ohio State University Extension in 1998, she has truly demonstrated a record of excellence in creative and scholarly work, teaching and service to community and profession.

Click here to learn more about Susan and her work.


Greg Davis

Greg Davis, professor and assistant director, OSU Extension CD.


The content of this site is published by the site owner(s) and is not a statement of advice, opinion, or information pertaining to The Ohio State University. Neither text, nor links to other websites, is reviewed or endorsed by The Ohio State University.

BIG Skies, BOLD Partnerships

Visiting with a colleague recently, she shared that these uncertain times in our workplace, in our communities, and in the larger world around us require that we ask ourselves what we really are about.

For the past several days, nearly 350 practitioners, academics, and Extension professionals came together to share and learn and discuss how we can make a difference within the various communities we serve in the first-ever joint conference with NACDEP and the Community Development Society (CDS).

Big Sky, Montana, provided the conference venue for over 130 concurrent session presentations, 40 poster presentations and 3 IGNITE presentations. Five keynote presentations were included along with 8 mobile learning workshops focused on culture, local food, leadership and collaborative partnerships for economic development.

June conference surprise

Among the presentations were ten involving a dozen of Ohio’s Extension professionals. Topics and presenters (including those involving out of state collaborators indicated with an *) are listed below:

  • Credentialing Local Planning Officials: Master Citizen Planner Program (Wayne Beyea*, Myra Moss & Kara Salazar*)
  • Entrepreneurial Networking Competencies: Contemporary Perspectives on Social Capital (Julie Fox)
  • Energize Job Retention: Energy Management Strategies as a Component of Business Retention and Expansion Programs (Nancy Bowen, Eric Romich & David Civittolo)
  • Bold Partnering: Join a National Network on Leadership Programming (Brian Raison, Kyle Willams* & Elizabeth North*)
  • A New Tool for Increasing Marina Resiliency to Coastal Storms in the Great Lakes (Joe Lucente & Sarah Orlando)
  • Building Collaborative Partnership Around Critical Community/Stakeholder Issues: Watersheds, Agriculture, and a City’s Source Water Quality (Myra Moss)
  • Maximizing the Gains of Old and New Energy Development for America’s Rural Communities (Eric Romich, David Civittolo & Nancy Bowen)
  • Partnering for Community Health (Becky Nesbitt)
  • Exploring ways of using Community Arts, Cultural and Heritage businesses to stimulate Rural Community Economic Development (Godwin Apaliyah & Ken Martin)
  • Using Farmers Markets as a Tool for Economic Development: Increasing Healthy Food Access While Benefiting Small to Mid-Sized Farms (Amanda Osborne)
  •  A Dialogue Prompt for Housing and Land Use Policy in a New Administration (poster) (Anna Haines* & Myra Moss)

Three Ohioans were also installed as officers on the national NACDEP board: Nancy Bowen (re-elected Treasurer), David Civittolo (elected President-elect), and Brian Raison (elected north-central region Representative).

Two OSUE NACDEP members were also recognized with national and regional awards. Raison received regional and national recognition for using educational technology in developing  ‘A Virtual Farm Market Pilot’ and creating materials for ‘Top 10 Ways to Improve Online Teaching and Learning.’  He received regional recognition in the category ‘Excellence in CD Work’ for his effort, ‘Establishing an Impactful Local Food Council.’ Romich received regional recognition (honorable mention) in the category ‘Distinguished Career.’

Sunrise over Big Sky

Leadership, teamwork and collaboration were celebrated and cultivated throughout the conference. And after a very moving final keynote address by Sarah Calhoun of Red Ants Pants, we were reminded again that working together we truly can move mountains. See you next year in Cleveland, June 10-13!

 

 

Greg Davis is a Professor and Assistant Director for OSU Extension Community Development.

Strengths: Building Blocks to Success

Why are people so good at that? Have you ever asked yourself why something seems easy or natural for others to do and yet, for you or a coworker in the next cubicle, that same task is difficult? Everyone has a combination of skills, strengths and knowledge that is unique to them and makes up their “character.” They use this combination daily to interact with coworkers and to accomplish their goals.

Employees who know their strengths and work from them tend to be among the highest engaged employees around the world. According to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace Report, only 13% of employees worldwide are truly engaged at work. In spite of this knowledge, employee engagement has not increased significantly since 2009 when Gallup began reporting engagement worldwide.

Companies that fail to engage their employees are missing out on the powerful results that can come from engagement. Gallup studies show that businesses in the top quartile are 17% more productive, experience 70% fewer safety incidents, experience 41% less absenteeism, have 10% better customer ratings and are 21% more profitable compared to companies in the bottom quartile.

Gallup has identified a straightforward way businesses can get top notch results. Simply manage their workforce by focusing on their strengths! Employees who understand their strengths and apply them in the workplace have discovered a transforming effect on their lives and work. Employees who use their strengths daily are three times more likely to say they have an excellent quality of life and six times more likely to be engaged in their work.

There are numerous “self-assessments” available that focus more on an individual’s personality, or behavior style or preference. Some assessments assign you a color indicative of your personality or relate you to a certain animal, like a lion or an otter, based on behavior patterns. The highly-researched Myers-Briggs Type Indicator inventories psychological types in four dimensions, including: General Attitude (Extravert or Introvert); Perception (Sensing or Intuitive); Judging (Thinking or Feeling), and; Processing of Information (Judging or Perceiving). There are 16 distinct personality types.

The way we perceive, process, and implement information is important and worthwhile information. However, at the Alber Enterprise Center, we have seen a greater return on investment when employees learn to leverage their strengths. “For too long, performance evaluations focused on fixing weaknesses vs maximizing strengths. By exploring the gaps in which you naturally think, feel, and behave, the  CliftonStrengths® can identify and build on the areas where you have infinite potential to grow and succeed,” states Gallup.

Gallup recently completed global research on companies that implemented strengths-based management practices. They discovered that 90% of the groups studied had performance increases at or above the following ranges:

  • 10% to 19% increase in sales
  • 14% to 29% increase in profit
  • 3% to 7% higher customer engagement
  • 6% to 16% lower turnover (in low turnover organizations)
  • 26% to 72% lower turnover (in high turnover organizations)
  • 9% to 15% increase in engaged employees
  • 22% to 59% lower safety incidents

Even at the low end these are impressive gains. To help organizations achieve these outcomes, we encourage corporate and business leaders to consider what Gallup has discovered by studying thousands of work teams and millions of employees.

A focus on employee strengths proceeds from the simple notion that we are all better at some things than others and that we will be happier and more productive if we spend more of our time doing those things. Gallup has identified 34 work related strengths which they divided into four leadership domains:

Executing (make things happen)
Influencing (reach a broader audience)
Relationship Building (create entities greater than the sum of parts)
Strategic Thinking
(focus on what could be)

The CliftonStrengths®  assessment yields in-depth analysis of  your Top 5 strengths. These highly customized insights will help you understand how each of your Top 5 talents play out in your life on a personal level, and what makes you stand out compared to millions of people they have studied.

If you or the organizations you work with are interested in learning more about discovering strengths, the staff at Alber Enterprise Center would be delighted to have further conversations with you.

Gary Kuhn is an Organization Development Consultant with the Alber Enterprise Center located at The Ohio State University at Marion.

SMALL TOWNS, BIG DREAMS: Do you have what it takes?

Small Town 2016-06-02Many small towns want to improve their current condition for a number of reasons. What we often hear from residents and leaders is: “We are tired of our “best and brightest” leaving the area for college and never returning because we have no jobs/careers for them,” or “Our retired residents have to seek appropriate housing in other communities because there isn’t any here,” or “The youth that remain are not “work ready” and opioid use among them has become a real problem.” Some of these towns have existing community or economic development plans that, while they might offer viable solutions, were never fully implemented (the old “the plan sits on the shelf” complaint).

So, what’s a town to do? Here are some suggestions based on my experience working with many communities throughout Ohio:

Overcome fractured goals by building inclusion into your community’s dialogue about the future:

If you are a local leader, have you discovered your residents’ vision of the future? I use the word “discover” because, chances are your residents already have a picture of what they would like your town to be. And, although there may be some divergent views, there is also a core set of beliefs and desires that can lead to consensus to set major goals. The task of local leadership then becomes setting the stage for open and inclusionary dialogue about the future. Inclusion is important. By reaching out to all sectors of the community to include their desires and hopes, a shared vision of the future can be discovered.

Engage a broad range of residents in both planning and implementation:

When residents are engaged in determining their community’s future, they become invested in results and clearly discover their place in making the plan a reality. By taking actions every day through their workplace, community organizations, leadership roles, businesses and their own personal life, they work individually and collectively to achieve success. Time spent engaging residents results in less time spent “selling” the plan to the community, leading to faster implementation. When the community is engaged throughout the process, there develops a much larger base of volunteers to draw upon to move goals forward.

Identify outcomes you want to achieve, and develop indicators of success to use in measuring progress toward reaching these outcomes:

A community plan is a living document. It is important to monitor progress toward reaching goals and modify strategies as needed. Indicators of success developed during planning and goal setting are used to stay on track with plan implementation and make changes as needed. An indicator should be easy to understand, relevant and measurable. It should be widely shared with the community, with progress reported at least annually. Indicators provide a way for residents and organizations to see the results of their contribution toward community goals.

An example of how this inclusionary focus may play out in a community is as follows:

  • Together the community sets a vision and goal of retaining youth that receive post-secondary degrees.
  • During the inclusionary planning process an objective is established to expand job opportunities in the medical field.
  • Using an inclusionary method to establish indicators helps various sectors of the community discover their roles in reaching the shared vision and implementing objectives.

So as an example, perhaps the high school career counselor presents medical careers as possible paths to pursue. Economic developers accept the development of a business park for medical industries. Builders identify construction of senior housing alternatives like condos and assisted living. Medical providers participate in local job fairs.

By building inclusion into community planning at every stage of the process, from development to implementation, big dreams can be achieved by small towns.

(Submitted by Myra Moss, Associate Professor and Extension Educator, Heart of Ohio EERA)

The Future is Ours: Involve us now in our Community Readiness Processes

In most communities, people say that they care about their youth and believe that there should be youth programs. Another view is that young people themselves can shape the communities in which they live. Most youth are in some way affected by the community in which they live  and they have much they can contribute to that community’s growth and prosperity.

Community Readiness 2016-04-21

Youth in Fayette County participated in a discussion on the future of OSU Extension in rural communities.

In Fayette County, youth are involved in programs such as Junior Achievement and 4-H Youth Development to stimulate lifelong learning of values and skills. Recently, the youth aged 14 to 30 were engaged in deliberating the future role of OSU Extension in communities like Fayette County. This effort focused on enhancing skills, building confidence, and fostering a sense of ownership to prepare them for what lies ahead. Among the discussion was the following:

  • What are three words that would describe your community?
  • What are the strengths of your current community?
    • What are the strengths of the community you want to live in in the future?
    • What are the resources needed to get the ideal community?

Participants indicated a desire for a close-knit group full of caring and giving residents ready to help others. They also thought the community (technologically, socially or within the government) needs to continue to move forward.

These fruitful discussions presented a significant opportunity for advancing Extension education and programming, and contributed significantly to the development of Extension programs and policies as it looks into the future. Also, a continuous engagement of the youth in Extension programs provides an opportunity for long-term involvement and ownership of community and Extension programs.

Reference:

Brennan, M. A., Barnett, Rosemary V., Baugh, Eboni (2007). Youth Involvement in Community Development: Implications and Possibilities for Extension. Journal of Extension, Vol 45 (4).

(Submitted by Godwin Apaliyah, Extension Educator, Fayette County & Miami Valley EERA)

Holy Toledo! Local Government Leadership Academy graduates 15th Class

The quality and long-term sustainability of any community depends on the caliber of its local leadership. One thing we can do to ensure a deep pool of qualified leaders is to engage individuals in leadership development, and the Toledo Local Government Leadership Academy is one such program.

Toledo Local Govt Leadership Acad 2016

Toledo Local Government Leadership Academy – Class of 2016

This educational offering marks the 15th year of an outstanding local partnership with the Toledo Regional Chamber of Commerce, Ohio State University Extension and the Ohio Sea Grant College Program and is the longest running local government leadership academy in Ohio. The 2016 class had twenty-eight graduates from various local government backgrounds. Since 2002, the Toledo Local Government Leadership Academy has produced over 300 graduates.

The Ohio Local Government Leadership Academy is designed for elected officials from county, municipal, and township governments, and for appointed individuals who serve on local government committees, commissions, boards or task forces. The purpose of the Academy is to provide useful programs that will enhance the leadership and decision-making skills of public officials. The Academy curriculum includes eleven workshops. A leadership certificate is presented to each individual who completes seven of the workshops.

General Workshop:

All participants in the Academy must complete the basic course, Public Officials and Public Service, which includes:

  1. Duties and Responsibilities of Public Officials
  2. Codes of Ethics
  3. Standards of Conduct
  4. Conflict of Interest
  5. Open Meetings Laws / Executive Sessions
Elective Workshop Topics:

To earn the Leadership Certificate each candidate must complete five additional workshops from those listed below. Most workshops are designed for two hours.

  1. Conducting Effective Meetings
  2. Communicating and Working With the Media
  3. Communicating and Working With Citizens
  4. Building Sustainable Communities
  5. Team Building (between each other/ other officials / and staff)
  6. Conflict Management and Dispute Resolution
  7. Leadership Skills and Styles
  8. Effective Decision-Making
  9. Intergovernmental Relations: Opportunities and Challenges for Cooperation
  10. Technology in Local Government
Schedule:

The Academy workshops can be offered on a local or regional basis as requested. The Academy will be sponsored by a local or regional organization or association that will be responsible for making all local arrangements, including facilities, equipment and securing participation. Enrollment fees will be determined by the sponsoring organization. Expense reimbursement will be paid to the instructor(s) for travel and workshop materials.

For more information, contact Joe Lucente, Assistant Professor and Extension Educator, Ohio State University Extension and Ohio Sea Grant College Program.

15 minutes could save your … strategic plan

We’ve all experienced it, or heard about it. A team spends weeks or months developing a strategic plan, and nothing happens with it after the glossy document gets printed. Why does this great new plan just sit on the shelf gathering dust? Business scholars over the past two decades have been researching why plans fail to be implemented.1 The overarching theme of their conclusions: people resist change. How do we address this challenge? Through a structured plan for execution. Your team needs to commit to the plan, yet they are busy with their daily duties (the “whirlwind”) and they don’t take time to focus on the strategic plan.

WIGs 2018-02-04An effective execution plan starts with committing to a series of 15-minute segments on planning and implementing the strategic plan. Franklin Covey’s 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX)2 is one formula to follow. The four disciplines are:

  1. Select one or two “wildly important goals” (WIG) that drive your strategic plan and can be measured and tracked.
  2. Identify the activities that lead to achieving the WIG(s), ones that your team can influence.
  3. Create a compelling scoreboard: simple, visible to the team, shows the lead and lag measures, and tells immediately if you are winning.
  4. Establish a weekly cadence of accountability in which each team member commits to working on one or two of the lead activities as well as reports on the efforts toward the WIG.

This 4DX plan is easy to implement by committing to 15-minute segments for each discipline:

  1. 15 minutes to identify and establish your WIG from your strategic plan. If you need two WIGs, spend another 15 minutes on the second one.
  2. 15 minutes per WIG to list all of the leading activities required to meet your WIG.
  3. 15 minutes to determine how you will show (scoreboard) the team’s progress toward leading activities and WIG and where it will be displayed.
  4. 15 minutes per week – the same day/time each week – for the accountability meeting.

We facilitated a strategic plan for one of our clients a year ago. After following up with them to see their progress, they reported that the leadership team implemented a few goals but felt they needed our help to really drive the plan throughout their organization with all employees. They embraced 4DX and are starting to see results.

This works! Try it, and let me know how it works for you.

If you need help in setting up your 4DX plan, the Alber Enterprise Center can show you how. Call 740-725-6325.

(Submitted by Myra Wilson, Program Director, Alber Enterprise Center at Marion)

1:

Govindarajan, V., & Trimble, C. (2010). The other side of innovation: solving the execution challenge. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing.

Gudmundsson, H., Ericsson, E., Tight, M., Lawler, M., Envall, P., Figueroa, M., et al. (2012). The role of decision support in the implementation of “sustainable transport” plans. European Planning Studies, 20(2), 171-191.

Hahn, W., & Powers, T. (2010). Strategic plan quality, implementation capability, and firm performance. Academy of Strategic Management Journal, 9(1), 63-81.

Kotter, J. (1996). Leading change. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

Larian, L., Day, M., Backhurst, M., Berke, P., Ericksen, N., Crawford, J., et al. (2004). What drives plan implementation? Plans, planning agencies and developers. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 47(4), 555-577.

2:

McChesney, C., Covey, S., & Huling, J. (2012).  The 4 disciplines of execution: achieving your wildly important goals.  New York:  Free Press.

Transforming communities through the use of IDAs

OSU Extension strives to improve the quality of life among all central Ohio residents through research, service and training. In Franklin County, we strive to fulfill our mission by forging unique partnerships and innovative programs.

Financial Training - IDAs 2015-12-03 - croppedOSU Extension forged a partnership with Increase CDC (Community Development Corporation) and the Ohio CDC Association and offers Individual Development Accounts (IDAs), a savings incentive program designed to help low-moderate income, working individuals accumulate assets (home ownership, microenterprise or post-secondary education).

Those who successfully complete OSU Extension’s financial literacy and asset specific training offered by OSU Extension, corporate, civic and collegiate partners are eligible to receive $1,000, if they save at least $500 while enrolled in the program.

Help us build strong communities by strengthening the lives of individuals! Limited slots are available, so don’t delay and call (614) 247-1983 today!

(Submitted by Susan Colbert, Program Director, Expansion and Engagement, Franklin County)

Bridging Fathers and Families through Financial Literacy

We’ve all seen the statistics:  Being actively involved with our children reduces problems and leads to positive outcomes. One area that often leads to a disconnection in this area is with non-custodial parents. This is (statistically) often the father.

Child support plays an important role in the finances of many families, both for the custodial parents or other family members caring for children who receive payments, and for the noncustodial parents (usually fathers) who pay child support. Both can benefit greatly from financial education and from access to asset-building tools such as Individual Development Accounts (IDAs).

Susan 2015-07-09Towards that end, OSU Extension is proud to report that they are one of three organizations selected in the state of Ohio to receive funding from the Ohio Department of Commerce. OSU Extension will use this grant funding to help non-custodial parents, especially fathers, gain access to financial education, counseling and economic empowerment opportunities, thereby helping them remain compliant with the orders of the court, but moreover remaining active in the lives of their children.

Studies have shown that non-custodial parents (especially fathers) who are actively involved in the lives of their children have a positive impact on the health, behavior, grades and delinquency of their children. Do you know someone (or an agency) who could benefit from getting involved? Please contact us. For details, call Susan Colbert at (614) 247-1983.

(Submitted by Susan Colbert, Program Director, Franklin County Expansion and Engagement)

Resilience in Rural Communities

The places we call home are continuously challenged with wide-ranging issues.  The effects of such issues can oftentimes be greater on rural communities in particular than their suburban or urban neighbors. One approach to mitigate these effects involves building resiliency. Resilience refers to the capacity of an individual or community to cope with stress and adapt positively to change. It is a positive approach to promote greater well-being in rural communities.

Building a resilient community can serve as a protective factor from developing problems. Rural resiliency can also help communities when unforeseen factors occur such as floods, drought, mud slides or large company shut downs.

Resilient Communities 2015-06-18Community resilience is a complex construct with many interrelated factors. One issue impacts and overlaps many things. For example, social, environment and economic issues may seem different, but they all have an impact on each other. Economic issues impact all facets of a community. Infrastructure as a part of an economic issue includes water, transportation, and telecommunications are important tools. These economic issues are important to allow people in the community to carry out daily activities. Infrastructure as a part of rural resiliency is necessary to help the community function and provide support service to many different aspects such as housing and employment. The absence of these services within a community is detrimental to the quality of life of a community and its members.

What can members of a community do to enhance resiliency?

  1.  Know how to access the support and services that are available.
  2.  Collaborate with a wide variety of groups to apply for funding.
  3.  Share resources and facilities collaboratively.
  4.  Anticipate problems and brain storm solutions.
  5.  Identify gaps in infrastructure and support services.
  6.  Develop short term and long term goals.

There are many resources available for communities to enhance rural resiliency. If you have any questions or would like more information contact Cynthia Bond at bond.227@osu.edu.

(Submitted by Cindy Bond, Assistant Professor and County Extension Educator, Guernsey County & Crossroads EERA)