Faculty & Staff
Nebraska Extension is organized and structured to extend the resources of the University to the citizens of all communities. Extension faculty serves in a variety of positions on the UNL campus, in Research and Extension Centers and in local Extension offices. Faculty and staff serve in administrative roles, as Extension specialist, Extension Educators, and Extension Program Assistants. The variety of position descriptions reflects the ability of Extension to focus staff expertise toward very specific or very general program needs, depending upon the situation.
Volunteers
Empowerment of volunteers is an important goal of Extension faculty. Involvement of clientele in program decision making is accomplished primarily through advisory councils and committees. Volunteers are the strength of the Extension program delivery system in both adult and youth programs.
Extension Initiatives
Program Initiatives are adopted at all levels in Extension to emphasize priority programs. Through initiative planning, budgeting, staffing and programming, resources can be targeted to the areas of most concern.
Extension Core Programs
While program initiatives change according to the interests and needs of clientele, core programs receive continuing support. 4-H youth development is one such program that is supported by volunteers and delivered via 4-H clubs, special interest groups, afterschool and school enrichment programs, and camp programs.
Accountability Regions
To better serve all Nebraskans, Extension has organized our Extension Educators into Accountability Regions. Each Educator has a group of counties where they are expected to connect with clientele in their focusarea as well as businesses, organizations and communities to provide a strong linkage to Extension programs, products and services. This organizational system provides a focused Educator in the area of 4-H youth development to work with every county in Nebraska. Focused 4-H Educators are a great resource to counties that may not have had 4-H staff before and can add expertise to counties that already have dedicated 4-H staff. As these Educators cross county lines, they bring opportunities to collaborate with neighboring counties to provide programming, host events and share volunteering efforts. This model will serve to expand programmatic offerings around issues that are identified by stakeholders in program priorities.
All 4-H Educators provide focused expertise in the area of positive youth development that can be shared within the county. The positive youth development model used by 4-H provides a unique, hands-on approach to life skill development through experiential learning. Focused 4-H Educators are equipped to provide training on this model to:
- 4-H Councils
- 4-H Volunteers
- Afterschool Program Staff
- Camp Staff
- Youth Organization Leaders
- Other Community-Based Groups
4-H Councils are urged to work with other counties in their accountability region. Questions to consider include: Can resources be shared? Can the program offerings be shared to more completely serve the interest of a diverse audience? Can the efforts of volunteers and Extension staff be expanded for the welfare of youth and their families? Continued intentions to seek opportunities for join 4-H Councils collaborating together on issues, interests, and programming.