National eXtension Initiative

* *  AFRI Program: Applying for eXtension Support **

AFRI Program funds may be requested to develop eXtension Communities of Practice (CoP) for the eXtension system that are consistent with specific AFRI program priorities.  In addition to funds for establishing a new CoP, funds may be requested to support enhancement of existing CoPs to ensure that information and technology transfer reaches potential adopters as quickly as possible.  Most opportunities will be in AFRI integrated programs that support eXtension in combination with research and or education.  To be convincing to the peer review panel, it is recommended that applications that include an eXtension component in their project include a letter of acknowledgement of the CoP from eXtension.  Information about the eXtension application and review process is available at:

* http://about.extension.org/wiki/CSREES_RFA_Information

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eXtension and Research

Since 2004, eXtension (pronounced E-extension) has been a part of the vernacular within the Land Grant University community. This innovative project that brings the advances of technology to the nation’s largest non-formal educational system has captured the attention of university presidents, private industry, the general public, and even the Congress of the United States.

The marriage of technology and innovative programming is not new to the Cooperative Extension System or to Land Grant Universities. Individual research, education, and extension programs have, for years, brought these two entities together to deliver outstanding educational programs based upon sound scientific research and quality educational techniques.

What is innovative about eXtension is the national scope of the project, the collaborative processes in which faculty and staff engage to build content for the initiative, and the opportunities to reach new audiences through the power and reach of the Internet.

While most eXtension content, at this time, is being developed within traditional Cooperative Extension programmatic areas by traditional Cooperative Extension teams called Communities of Practice (CoP)there are great opportunities for other more non-traditional groups to become a part of eXtension. Because the collaborative tools that eXtension offers to content developers allows anyone with a similar interest in content development to work on myriad topics, even those working outside or “adjacent to” traditional Cooperative Extension programming can participate. eXtension’s “wiki” environment-a collaborative workspace that allows registered contributors to write, edit, collaborate, and publish content-opens doors to researchers, educators, faculty, and outreach professionals for program development and delivery.

Core elements of the eXtension Community of Practice program delivery will be Frequently Asked Questions, Ask an Expert, and educational modules.

How can eXtension benefit your research/integrated program?

• eXtension connects your research program with the Cooperative Extension System enterprise including specialists, county educators and agents, directors, and possibly private sector and nonprofit stakeholders.
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• eXtension Identifies groups of end-users who may benefit from the results of your research investments.
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• eXtension offers faster transfer of research-based practices, technology, and decision-support tools to targeted groups of end-users.
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• eXtension facilitates the identification and formation of networks of universities, faculty, specialists, and county staff willing to work for your program goals.
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• eXtension stimulates an inventory of existing educational curricula, development of curricula frameworks designed to serve end-users, and selection of the best research-based information available.
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• eXtension identifies future research topics through technology-based profiles of what user need and what the members of the Community of Practice think they need.

Imagine the opportunities that multi-state research teams could find within eXtension. Technology transfer of the excellent research done as a part of these projects can only be enhanced by the eXtension collaborative model. Researcher and Extension faculty who share the mission of multi-state research projects will find the opportunity to form a Community of Practice around subject matter where they do their work and share an interest. And, where there is a more diverse interest, and perhaps a smaller opportunity for collaborative work, components-such as Frequently Asked Questions or Ask an Expert-can be developed under the multi-state research project umbrella.

Because eXtension is creating new models of programming and development within the Land Grant University system, traditional boundaries or “silos” of work and subject matter are eliminated. Much of eXtension’s content development is multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary and offers the opportunity for a new synergy in bringing educational models and tools to Americans. As eXtension calls for formal Communities of Practice to form through their biannual Calls for Engagement or as less formal opportunities to create or contribute to Communities of Practice become available, those who lead and participate in multi-state research projects should consider joining such efforts. Opportunity abounds.

For more information contact eXtension Associate Directors for Content Carla Craycraft [carla.craycraft@extension.org] or Craig Wood [craig.wood@extension.org].