Getting to Nationals: How to Develop & Submit Award-Worthy Content
Early Career Development
Alicia Halbritter
Agriculture & Natural Resources Agent
UF/IFAS Baker County Extension
Macclenny
Abstract
The early years of an extension agent can be a stressful time. Early-career agents are expected to figure out the seemingly endless nuances of University extension systems, local governments, allied industry partnerships, and their clientele. On top of their day-to-day demands, newly hired agents are also expected to navigate the professional development expectations of their job, in which they must demonstrate the approval of their peers through presentations, posters, and recognition/awards. Although job performance is often judged on the recognition an agent receives from their professional associations, there is a lack of training on just how to develop and submit recognition worthy content. Early career agents should be presented with the available tools, technologies, and tricks on how to develop superior content and programs. By outlining the techniques Florida extension agents utilize to win an average of 15 national awards and recognition for the past 5 years, the instructors can help early career agents from other states increase the quality of their content and thereby the likelihood of securing program and content awards. Award recognition is beneficial for increasing the confidence of new agents in their personal abilities, helps bring high-level exposure to incredible programs & content, and creates more opportunities for collaboration and growth within our national association. Many judging committees will speak about the high-quality content submissions that are paired with lackluster abstracts, therefore an early-career training that focuses on developing award-worth content must also discuss the correct presentation of that content. Tips and techniques for abstract writing will be discussed in conjunction with content development techniques. The authors developed an in-service training for Florida extension agents in early 2022 to prepare them for the upcoming award submissions season, we would now like to extend this training to the national level to encourage our colleagues in other regions to submit more quality abstracts and increase the excellence of University Extension systems across the country.
Authors: Daniel Leonard, Alicia Halbritter
-
Daniel Leonard Agriculture & Natural Resources Agent, UF/IFAS Extension Calhoun County, Florida, 32603
-
Alicia Halbritter Agriculture & Natural Resources Agent, UF/IFAS Extension Baker County, Florida, 32063