National eXtension Initiative

eXtension’s professional development opportunities are open to all Cooperative Extension faculty, staff and employees. This month we’ll be offering a variety of “30 Minute Sessions” and a new seminar series!

From November 6 to December 15, 2006 we’re doing a 6 week professional development series open to anyone in Extension who is interested in working in any of the wiki’s hosted by eXtension.

The goal of this six (6) week seminar series is to allow you to create a piece of content to share in the CoP or Collaborate wiki. In reaching the goal, you will learn about using a wiki, create an article/page in a wiki using the various features available, which may include appropriate use of lists, links, and graphics. Each week of the seminar series will include a short video segment to introduce and explain the topic, and then activities to allow the participant to practice and learn the skills involved for the topic. Each participant is encouraged to attend “Office Hours” weekly to ensure he/she is on track before the next week of the series.

Plan to participate? Go to the seminar series page and add yourself to the list before November 3rd (Go to the Extension Collaborative Wiki . Click on “Working in MediaWiki – an Article Start to Finish”). Then, the week of November 6 at a time of your convenience, go to the Week 1 link for the Series and jump right in! Questions? Please contact Beth Raney at beth.raney@eXtension.org. We’re looking forward to working with you!

We also offer the following 30 Minute Sessions. Plan to attend any of the MediaWiki sessions to learn more about working in the CoP or Collaborate wikis. “30 Minute Sessions” – Give us 30 minutes and we’ll teach you something useful! These sessions will be held via Breeze at the Learn meeting room. Plan to join the session 5 minutes before the starting time.

* On Thursday, November 9 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time, a “30 Minute Session” MediaWiki Finishing Touches – using templates for final stylistic touches.

* On Thursday, November 9 at 4:00 PM Eastern Time, we’re offering a “30 Minute Session” Finding Stuff in the eXtension Wikis – what’s the most efficient way to find something in the CoP, Collaborate or About wiki?

* On Thursday, November 16 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time, we’re offering a “30 Minute Session” Starting Feeds? Use Atom! — what’s it take to create Atom feeds for news and/or other content? (targeted to IT Staff).

* On Thursday, November 16 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time, a “30 Minute Session” MediaWiki Finishing Touches – using templates for final stylistic touches.

* On Tuesday, November 21 at 4:00 PM Eastern Time, we’re offering a “30 Minute Session” on Jabber – eXtension’s enterprise chat application – any of you can talk to us.

* On Thursday, November 30 at 4:00 PM Eastern Time, we’re offering a “30 Minute Session” Wikimedia Bare Essentials – what you need to get started working in a wiki.

To participate in any of the 30 Minute sessions…

1. Five minutes before the start time, go to the Breeze meeting room at http://breeze.extension.iastate.edu/learn.

2. You will be presented with a login screen that has an “Enter as Guest” option. Select that option and click your mouse on the “Click to Enter” button.

3. Enter your first name, your last name, and your institution/ university, then click the “Enter” button to join the conference.

4. To hear the audio of the workshop and participate in the Q&A portion of the workshop we will be using a built-in teleconferencing capability of Macromedia’s Breeze conferencing software. Once you log into the meeting you will be presented with the option to enter your call-back number, your phone will automatically be called. After entering your number you will be automatically called and joined into the audio portion of the Web conference on your phone.

If you or a colleague would like to get notices about upcoming professional development sessions offered by eXtension, go to https://lists.extension.org/mailman/listinfo/learn and subscribe to the “Learn” email list.

Join us on for one or more of these sessions in November!!

eXtension will host its final national video conference for 2006 on Tuesday, October 24, 2006 from 2:30 to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (1:30-3:30 p.m. Central; 12:30-2:00 p.m. Mountain; 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., Pacific).

The Agenda includes:

1. Welcome & Introductions
2. Update on Information Technology
3. Update on Professional Development
4. Update on Content Development
5. Update on Communications & Marketing
6. 2006 Implementation
7. 2007 Planning & Revelations

To join the video conference, go to: http://real.unl.edu/extension.

To phone in questions call (800) 755-7765
To FAX in questions send them to (402) 472-9724
To email questions, send them to questions@extension.org

TECHNICAL TROUBLE NUMBER: 800-755-7765

The eXtension Information Technology Advisory Committee is currently preparing a survey to go to the Extension information technology leaders at each of our institutions. The survey will address the need for the two-way exchange of information between eXtension and university Extension Web servers. In anticipation of the survey, the committee is collecting the latest contact information for the Extension IT leaders at each institution. No such list of IT leaders currently exists. You can help us by going to http://about.extension.org/wiki/Extension_Information_Technology_Leaders_by_University and completing the information for your institution.

Leaders of the newly named eXtension Communities of Practice are meeting in Louisville KY October 9-12, at a workshop designed to introduce them to all of the eXtension tools, resources, services, and staff available to them as they join eXtension.

Representatives from:

• Beef Cattle
• Corn & Soybean Production
• Cotton
• DAIReXNET
• Diversity Across Higher Education
• Family Caregiving
• Livestock and Poultry Environmental Learning Centers
• Map@Syst
• Pesticide Environmental Stewardship
• Pork Information
• Urban Integrated Pest Management
• Youth Literacy in Science, Engineering, and Technology
• eOrganic

Leaders of each of these Communities of Practice will be introduced to the eXtension staff and learn about how the eXtension initiative works. They will also receive extensive training on teamwork within a virtual environment. Members of the eXtension staff will also make presentations on content development, information technology, communications & marketing, corporate development, and overall eXtension policies and guiding principles.

Also participating in the Workshop are representatives from eXtension’s eight original Pioneer Communities of Practice:

• Building Local Economies of the Future
• Consumer Horticulture
• Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN)
• Financial Security for All
• Fireants
• HorseQuest
• Just in Time Parenting
• Wildlife Damage Management

The workshop will conclude at noon on Thursday, October 12.