On behalf of State Administration Office:

• WEDA Awards of Excellence Nominations – Jan Carroll
• 2017 Conflict of Interest Disclosures – please complete by April 15 – Yvonne Bridgeman
• Update to Risk Management/Liability Protection – Judy Barth
• Congratulations to Jane Crayton on eXtension Innovation Grant
• Director’s Administrative Council Meeting Minutes available online

WEDA Awards of Excellence Nominations – Jan Carroll

Please review programs that may be competitive for the WEDA Awards of Excellence, and encourage them to apply.  I have scored applications in the past, and I am happy to work with you in creating an application.  All applications will have to be in to me by April 7, in order that the ones to go forward from Colorado can be selected.

Click here for the submission information for the 2017 Western Extension Directors’ Award of Excellence..  Applications may be submitted only by Lou.  We can submit two entries from Colorado.  We may also submit a multistate entry, in addition to the two state entries.  This award, which is presented through Western Extension Director’s Association with the assistance of the Western Region Programs Leadership Committee, recognizes outstanding Extension programs in the Western region.  Winners will be asked to present at the Joint Summer Meeting.

The due date for all submissions is 5:00 p.m., Friday, April 7, 2017.

2017 Conflict of Interest Disclosures – please complete by April 15 – Yvonne Bridgeman

A reminder that all Administrative Professional employees need to complete their online COI disclosures this month (State Classified employees are exempt from this).

From a computer outside of CSU main campus log in with your eID at: https://secure.colostate.edu and select the ‘Conflict of Interest (COI)’ link.

From a computer on campus you may log in at http://coi.colostate.edu or select Kuali Research (KR) within the AAR portal.

Once logged in, click on the COI dropdown on the top menu and then select ‘Create Annual Disclosure’ (second link from the top as shown below). Answer the questions in the disclosure and click the checkbox next to your name in the Certification section, and then click Submit. Please note that the Save button at the bottom of the screen does not send the disclosure to your supervisor, so you must use the Submit button.

Please plan to complete your disclosure no later than April 15. Feel free to contact your regional office or myself with any questions or issues you come across with using the online COI disclosure system.

Update to Risk Management/Liability Protection – Judy Barth

The Office of Risk Management and Insurance has updated the Liability Protection explanation they provide to CSU Extension.  Click here for the new letter detailing the coverage.  Please note that there are changes to sections f. and g. Please review the entire document so that you are aware of your and your volunteers’ protection.  This document is now available on the Extension website under Staff Resources-Employee Resources-Miscellaneous Resources-Insurance and Risk Management.

Congratulations to Jane Crayton on eXtension Innovation Grant

This is one of five projects that were selected from more than 90 proposals submitted for funding through the eXtension Foundation Innovation Lab.

BeeWise: 4-H STEAM Pueblo project to create Internet of Things beehives to collect and analyze data for citizen science

BeeWise aims to create a robust beekeeping program which integrates quality STEM education with Maker Ed, Internet of Things (IoT), and Citizen Science. The BeeWise program will engage new beekeepers with the technology and education to successfully manage their apiaries. Several schools with FFA programs have discussed housing their own bee colonies. Additionally, the BeeWise program aims to educate the general public on pollinators and allow the public to interact with the apiary locally using an iPad Kiosk or the internet.

Read expanded descriptions here.

Director’s Administrative Council Meeting Minutes available online

The minutes from the March 2, 2017 DAC meeting are now available online at: http://extension.colostate.edu/staff-resources/directors-administrative-council-dac/