Plan to attend MAEA Spring Conference, set for March 5 and 6 at the Kellogg Center. The Professional Improvement Committee of MAEA has worked hard to offer some excellent in-service educational opportunities.

Other highlights of Spring Conference are a dinner, set for Monday evening with a visit from Acting Director Maggie Bethel and also Senator Debbie Stabenow (invited). The MAEA Business Meeting will be Tuesday morning at 8:30 a.m. and the Conference will end with the Dean’s Luncheon.

Please look over the program and send your registration to Ira Krupp, Chairman MAEA Spring Conference, 333 Clinton Street, Grand Haven, MI 49417 by February 26.

I just received the special awards edition of the County Agent. This issue has a listing of all our State Committee Chairs, as well as the forms for applying for NACAA Awards. I have been impressed with these awards since I started with MSU Extension with the quality and quantity of programming that other MSU Extension Agents do. I urge you all to apply for NACAA Awards for your activities. Every year the President and Committee Chairs urge members to "Take Time to Apply." This year I urge you to think for a moment about the other programs that your fellow agents do and tell them about it. If you know of a fellow agent’s effort or program that you think is above average, tell them and urge them to set aside the time to apply for awards. We are in the middle of our busiest time of the year. I am putting on or attending Extension programming almost every day in February. Your positive comments may cause an agent to apply and win some recognition that he deserves. It will certainly make them feel better about the job they do and we all need positive feedback and encouragement during this stressful time of the year.

The Program Recognition Committee receives the award applications. Hannah Stevens chairs the Communications Awards Committee and Paul Marks chairs the Extension Programs Committee. They have the duty to solicit and collect award applications and choose a state winner, passing them on to the NACAA Regional Committee Vice Chairs. MAEA members have won National Communication Awards for the last two years I attended National Meetings. I am sure that each of you has done something in the last year that you are proud of. Apply for a NACAA Award and share it with other agents.

In my last column I wrote about our current committee structure in MAEA that mirrors the NACAA committee structure. The NACAA committees are composed of State Association members, Regional Vice Chairs and National Chairs. The Regional Vice Chairs serve for two-year terms and each year there are new openings. Two of our members were chosen as Regional Vice Chairs last year: Van Varner in Agricultural Economics and Julie Pioch in Public Relations and Agricultural Issues. This year there are numerous openings in the Professional Improvement Council, Animal Science, Horticulture and Aquaculture. In Extension Development there are openings in Early Career Development and Administrative Skills Development. In Program Recognition, there are openings in Communications, 4-H Youth and Professional Development. I would like to nominate a MAEA member for each of these posts. If you are interested in a position, or think you know of someone who would be good, please contact me so we can discuss it.

This issue of the newsletter also contains the announcement of the MAEA Spring Conference to be held during ANR Week on campus. I hope you will all try to attend. We will have an Association Dinner on Monday night. Maggie Bethel, our new Director, will speak to us on her hopes for MSU Extension and the search for a new Director to replace Arlen. We have scheduled an Association Meeting on Tuesday morning before the Dean’s Luncheon so the membership can discuss some of the issues of interest to members. I hope to see you all there.

Application season for association awards is now here. You have until March 15 to deliver your application for the following five Search for Excellence awards to the MAEA Extension Programs Committee Chair, Paul Marks. These Search for Excellence Awards are in the areas of: (1) Crop Production; (2) Environmental Protection Through Responsible Use of Pesticides; (3) Farm and Ranch Financial Management; (4) Livestock Production; and (5) the Poster Session. Four of these awards are very similar to AoE Team subject matter and therefore I challenge AoE team co-chairs to be sure their team is well represented. The Outstanding Pesticide Applicator Training Award referred to in the most recent issues of Pesticide Notes (Jan-Feb 2001) from MSU can be combined with #2 above and apply for both with one application.

In all of these applications, It is important to review the criteria found in the December 2000 special edition of The County Agent magazine. Also, be sure to include a copy of the application form found on page #1 of the magazine for every application. If you do not "toot your own horn" on this one, it will not likely get noticed.

Let’s make sure Michigan is well represented in the award program at the Am/PIC August 5-9 in Albuquerque. Send Paul your applications at MSU Monroe Extension, 963 S. Raisinville Road, Monroe, MI 48161 to arrive no later than March 15, 2001.

Hannah Stevens, Chair of the Communications Committee, is asking 2001 members for your application for the PRIDE program and the Communications Awards by Thursday, March 15. This means they must be in the mail by Monday, March 12 if you are using the regular mail. You will be hearing from other committee chairs about other awards which you may see listed, but you do not have to wait. State Chairs are listed throughout the issue and that tells you where you send your applications. One bright applicant has already sent me his! Remember to allow time to catch your CED’s signature, and to allow your MAEA dues (clearly marked whose dues are being paid) to reach Paul Wylie by March 15. If you did not receive the special edition, let me know and I will send you a copy.

The Awards program is designed to recognize superior communications efforts. All of us in Extension do good work, and deserve to be recognized (and rewarded!) for our efforts. Not only do the national winners get a handsome chunk of wood to hang on their wall, but there are some great cash prizes as well: National winner gets $500, national finalists - $250. State winners are recognized at Fall Extension Conference.

If you have co-workers who are too shy to toot their own horns about how good they are, or if they are so well paid by Extension that they do not need the cash award, then appeal to the educator in them. There are many of us Extension staff who are trying to meet client needs, and are re-inventing the wheel needlessly. If we can see some examples of ideas that work, we can steal them (er, borrow them) and adapt them to our local needs. In the end, all of our clientele become the winners.

Please send your entries to Hannah Stevens, MSU Macomb Extension, 21885 Dunham Road, Suite 12, Clinton Township, Michigan 48036.

It is not too early to begin planning to attend our 2001 NACAA Annual Meeting/Professional Improvement Conference. This year’s meeting is in Albuquerque, New Mexico, August 5 through 9. More information can be found through our MAEA web site at http:///www.msue.msu.edu/maea/ then click on the link to the NMACAA web site. As your State Chair for the National Meeting, I would like to encourage you to consider attending. Please let Stan know if you are considering attending the meeting.

Please do not let financial barriers keep you from attending these important professional improvement meetings. There are numerous ways to help you cover the cost of attending the meeting. You will be receiving information soon on scholarships, awards and first time attendees incentives that can help. Round trip airfare does not need to be expensive. I was able to purchase tickets for just over $225 (including taxes)! Call me to find out how.