CAES Newswire

 College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences UGA Cooperative Extension
Menu
Published on 05/20/98

UGA Conferences Tackle Need For Rural Leadership Programs

Of the 159 Georgia counties, 104 don't have ongoing leadership programs, says a University of Georgia expert.

So?

"More than 60 percent of these counties are ranked as severely depressed counties," said Norma Reed of the UGA Fanning Leadership Center. "Counties with sustained community leadership programs are usually better off socially and economically."

Reed and other Fanning Center staff will offer back-to-back conferences July 9-10 in Athens, Ga. The day-long programs target the need for leadership development, especially in rural Georgia counties.

The Thursday, July 9, event is for people who plan adult leadership programs or see the need for them. The Friday, July 10, sessions tackle topics unique to youths.

"When a community sustains its leadership development efforts and involves dispersed segments of its population, it trains more local leaders to take on and solve problems at their lowest levels," Reed said. "That's why communities need to keep growing and grooming their leaders."

But 71 Georgia counties, she said, have had no leadership development programs or only one in the past 10 years. Another 33 have had only two or three programs.

"Georgia has just over 24,000 graduates of community leadership programs," she said. "That's less than 1 percent of the adults 20 to 49 years old."

Reed said the state's communities simply have to develop new leaders.

"The future is too uncertain," she said. "The issues are far too technical. And the pace of change is much too fast to assume that only a handful of leaders can carry out all the complex tasks of contemporary leadership."

Ongoing leadership programs, she said, will help emerging local leaders:

  • Learn more about leadership roles.
  • Practice skills such as managing conflict, solving problems, making decisions and building relationships.
  • Build the vital trust and respect for each other's perspective that enables them to seek common ground in solving local problems.

The July conferences are geared to help local planners reach those goals, Reed said. They're planned so anyone can attend both days. But each is complete on its own.

Each event will begin at 8 a.m. at the UGA Center for Continuing Education in Athens. Each ends at 4:30 p.m. To learn more about the conferences, contact the county extension office. Or call the Fanning Leadership Center at (706) 542-1108. Or fax (706) 542-7007, or e-mail leadership@flc.uga.edu.

Dan Rahn is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Experts/Sources:
Norma Reed
The holiday season can be a time of anticipation and joy, but balancing multiple commitments and personalities across families and friends can be a source of stress for hosts and visitors alike. Like preparing parts of the meal ahead of time to spend more of the holiday with guests, taking time ahead of the day to set expectations can go a long way to ensuring enjoyable gatherings, said Ted Futris, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension specialist and professor of human development and family science in the College of Family and Consumer Sciences. CAES News
Manage holiday stress with kindness, boundaries 11/21/24 Maria M. Lameiras
The holiday season can be a time of anticipation and joy, but balancing multiple commitments and personalities across families and friends can be a source of stress for hosts and visitors alike. Much like preparing parts of the meal ahead of time allows you to spend more of the holiday with guests, setting expectations ahead of the celebration can go a long way to ensuring enjoyable gatherings, said Ted Futris, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension specialist and professor of human development and family science.
Conner Hall CAES News
CAES welcomes 2024 cohort of Rural Scholars 11/20/24 Maria M. Lameiras
The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences welcomed its fourth cohort of students chosen for the CAES Rural Scholars Program this fall just weeks after celebrating the program's first graduation. Georgia Orman, one of four inaugural Rural Scholars in CAES, graduated in May with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education. The new scholars for 2024, all from Georgia, are Ela Ash of Ocilla, Lauren E. Coley of Cochran, Amelia Housley of Canon, and London O’Steen of Ambrose.
Women play a vital role in rural American farming, but much of that work is "invisible," like raising children or household chores, according to a new UGA study. (Getty Images) CAES News
The women and stress behind rural farming in America 11/19/24 Leigh Hataway
Recent research from the University of Georgia suggests the unique stresses from farm life may be taking a toll on one of the pillars of the families that make your dinners possible: the women who keep farming families running. “If we don’t control our food sources, we don’t control our health and safety,” said Anna Scheyett, lead author of the study and a professor in UGA’s School of Social Work. “It’s a matter of national security that farmers survive in the United States. And one of the big factors in helping farms survive is women.”
Mergoum at Creature Comforts CAES News
That's the spirit! 11/18/24 Maria M. Lameiras, Claire Sanders Kinnard
Wheat breeders spend years meticulously crossing varieties to coax the best traits out of each species, carefully propagating plant varieties that are healthier, heartier and better suited for the environments where they are grown. Professional brewmasters are equally painstaking when choosing the components that will give their beers a specific flavor profile.
Contest-winning concept becomes viable business for alumnus who developed solar-powered, self-propelled chicken coop as a student. CAES News
Poultry in motion 11/14/24 Sean Montgomery
Chris Ayers emerged from his orange and black rough-terrain vehicle with an ear-to-ear grin. “This is Chiktopia,” he said, sweeping his arm wide to indicate the back half of a 3,600-square-foot warehouse on his family’s farm in Ball Ground, Georgia. “This is where I manufacture and assemble the chicken coops. Everything is done entirely from over here.”
UGA Grand Farm Site Plan web CAES News
UGA Grand Farm wins stage two of 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund competition 11/13/24 Jordan Powers
Startups in the agricultural technology sector face significant barriers on the path to establishment, including access to training and capital. These barriers are heightened for underrepresented entrepreneurs seeking to start new companies. The University of Georgia Grand Farm, part of a historic partnership between the University of Georgia and Fargo, North Dakota-based Grand Farm, aims to change that.