OLD SERA47: Strengthening the Southern Region Extension and Research System to Support Local & Regional Foods Needs and Priorities
(Multistate Research Coordinating Committee and Information Exchange Group)
Status: Inactive/Terminating
Date of Annual Report: 02/28/2017
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 11/28/2016
- 11/30/2016
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2015 - 09/30/2016
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2015 - 09/30/2016
Participants
Brief Summary of Minutes
Participants: Provide a list of those who attended the annual meeting with their institutions and email address. For SERAs, also include their primary functional affiliation (e.g. research, extension, or academic programs). Note project leadership (chair, chair-elect, and secretary) for the appropriate members. As an alternative, list the URL for the meeting minutes if that report contains the list of those who were present. If available, include the email address for the project's list serve as well.
Please see attached list of participants in the SERA 47 Annual Meeting, held in Atlanta, Georgia, November 28-30, 2016.
SERA 47 e-mail list: sera47@lists.msstate.edu
Brief summary of minutes of annual meeting:
Rachel Welborn (SRDC) gave an overview of SERA 47.
Eric Young (SAAESD) described the SERA requirements, the most immediate of which is an Annual Report, which is due within 60 days of the end of the SERA Annual Meeting. Eric must approve the report in order to approve the next annual meeting. The annual report should be sent to Eric.
Rachel pointed out that, for the annual report, we need minutes for each work group and the large group sessions.
Dave Lamie (Clemson) presented the history of the work leading up to the approval of the SERA proposal.
Elizabeth Gregory North (MSU) shared the SERA 47 leadership structure, as described in the proposal. Overall leadership is provided by a chair, a vice-chair, and a secretary, each of whom serve a one-year term. After the first year, the vice-chair becomes chair, and the secretary becomes vice-chair, and new secretary is elected. The SERA 47 leadership team also includes 2 co-chairs, one representing Extension and one representing Research, for each of the five work groups.
Leadership Team
Chair: Dave Lamie
Vice-Chair: Elizabeth Gregory North
Secretary: Iris Cole Crosby
Top 10 Issues: Liz Felter and Jennifer Taylor
Developing Learning Communities: Katie Wright, Liz Kramer, and Iris Cole Crosby
Resource Bank: Elizabeth Gregory North and TBD
Impact: Joseph Donaldson and Zola Knowles Moon
Successful Organizational Structures: Dave Lamie and Kenrett Jefferson
The Leadership Team will have a monthly call for the first year, and then reassess frequency. Work group meeting schedules will be determined by the groups. The Leadership Team will meet on the third Tuesday of each month, at 2:30 Eastern/1:30 Central, beginning January 17, 2017.
Rachel requested a one-pager for each work group, which she and other SRDC staff could use to pursue funding opportunities. She asked the groups to include what can be done now, with no additional funds. She encouraged the groups to think, not in terms of how do we get the next grant?, but, instead, to focus on how do we do the next task?
The AFRI grant that SRDC secured to support the meetings and travel expenses of this group has about $40,000 left in it. These funds must be dedicated to supporting meetings and travel. The funds expire in August 2017, but an extension may be possible.
Eric shared recommendations regarding Annual Meetings:
- The entire SERA should meet face-to-face every year.
- The annual meeting should be at least one whole day, not just a couple of hours tacked on to another meeting.
- At the annual meeting, don’t spend the greatest percentage of the time in work groups. We need to work together as the whole group.
- Everyone should come to the meeting with a commitment to be there for the whole time.
- We can change the time frame from late November, if desired, but we should stick to the same time frame for the future meetings.
- We can meet more than once a year, if desired—but it is hard to do.
Rachel explained that, now that the SERA leadership team is established, she will step back from active facilitation of the group. However, she and SRDC will continue to be involved and can help us in various ways, including assistance with hotel contracts, etc., associated with the annual meetings. She recommended that the group look for grant opportunities to underwrite travel for future annual meetings.
Grant Opportunities
Rachel shared information on AFRI grants, and Candace Pollock-Moore (SARE) shared information on SARE grants. More information on SARE grant programs can be found on the web site: southernsare.org under the Grants tab.
Communications
The south-foods e-mail list is a large group that includes many people who are not officially part of the SERA. The group expressed a desire to have a separate list for the SERA 47 group. Rachel will get this set up.
Additional Goals
- SARE Professional Development Program (PDP) grant proposals
- Funding strategies (SARE, AFRI, others), SNAP-Ed Policy Systems & Environmental Approaches—should we have a group to focus on this?
- Strategic positioning of our local foods network
- Think beyond USDA—health, obesity, economic development foundation, etc.
- Economics (economic impacts) and behavior change impacts
- Food equity, accessibility, social justice
Funding Opportunities
AFRI
2016: announced January 7, proposals due March 24
- Education & Literacy
- Food Safety
- Food Security
- Foundational
- Plant health, production, products
- Animal health, production, products
- Food safety, nutrition, health
- Renewable energy, natural resources, & the environment
- Ag systems & technology
- Ag economics & rural communities
- Water
- Sustainable Bioenergy & Bioproducts
- Childhood Obesity Prevention
- Climate Variability/Change
Large Group Homework
- One-pager for each Work Group to Rachel by December 15.
Include:
- What could a student do? (and what level: undergrad, grad?)
- What expertise/resource is needed?
- What are the low-hanging fruit? What can you get done within 6 months?
- How are you addressing equity, access, and opportunity?
- Send one paragraph summary for each Work Group to Elizabeth.
Accomplishments: In this section focus on intended outputs and outcomes. This information should be built around the activity's milestones, as they were identified in the original proposal. The report should also reflect on the items that stakeholders want to know, or want to see. Also, describe plans for the coming year in no more than one or two short paragraphs.
As a group, we have developed one-paragraph descriptors for each of the Work Groups, and three of the Work Groups have developed one-pagers to be used in seeking additional resources and support to further the work. We have also developed templates for Microsoft PowerPoint and Word, so that members can present information in a consistent manner to brand the SERA in a professional manner.
The Work Group on Strengthening Impact Measurement has launched a survey of existing literature related to objective measures of impact of local foods work. They have received 16 citations, sources, and recommendations so far and are currently analyzing these submissions. The Work Group leaders have also enlisted the aid of the agriculture librarian at the University of Tennessee, who will be networking with other librarians at SERA 47 institutions to add to this body of literature.
The Work Group on Top Ten Issues has initiated a Delphi Study to identify to most pressing issues facing our institutions related to local foods systems. They have asked each institution represented in the SERA to identify faculty and staff most knowledgeable about local foods issues to be included in the study. They have also developed a draft of the first round of questions.
The Work Group on the Local Foods Resource Bank has developed a survey to identify desired attributes, content, and features of an online resource database related to local foods. A link to the survey will be sent to Extension and Research faculty and staff throughout the region and results will be used to design the database. Also, the members of the Work Group are developing a guide to local foods programming for Extension agents and an online training based on that guide.
The Work Group on Successful Models has developed an interview protocol to conduct key informant interviews with administrators and faculty and staff to identify, document, and evaluate the current organizational and staffing models at member institutions to address local foods issues.
The work of the Work Group on Learning Communities is, of necessity, delayed until the work of other groups is further along. The learning communities will be organized in response to the top ten issues and/or the staffing groups identified by the other Work Groups.
Plans for the coming year include completing and sharing the literature survey related to impact measurement, conducting the Delphi study to identify the most pressing issues facing our institutions, to complete the survey of desired characteristics of the resource bank and designing the database, and beginning the interviews to identify successful models. We plan a face-toface Annual Meeting in August 2017 in Atlanta, Georgia. At that meeting, we will further the current work of the Work Groups and consider the “Additional Goals” identified in our 2016 Annual Meeting and decide how to address them.
Impact Statements: This section should include at least one statement describing the economic, environmental, health, or social impact of the project?s activity. Ideally the statement should describe a quantifiable economic, environmental, health, or social change that occurred due, in part, to the project?s activity, including data related to that change. Frequently this is not possible because the data is not available or the activity is too recent or preliminary to have had a recognizable impact. In these cases, provide a statement describing potential impact or an anecdote describing a single documented occurrence.
Because we are still in our first year, we do not yet have impacts to share.
Publications: List publications for current year only (with the authors, title, journal series, etc.). If the list exceeds the maximum character limit allowed, an attachment file may be used.
Because we are still in our first year, we do not yet have publications to share.
Accomplishments
Publications
Impact Statements
Date of Annual Report: 12/01/2017
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 08/01/2017
- 08/02/2017
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2016 - 09/30/2017
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2016 - 09/30/2017
Participants
Brief Summary of Minutes
Dave Lamie and Elizabeth Gregory North presented an overview of SERA 47 using the power point presentation that was developed.
Eric Young described the SERA requirements, the most immediate of which is an Annual Report, Eric must approve the report in order to approve the next annual meeting.
The results of the Delphi study that identified the top ten issues was presented by Quisto Settle and it was discussed by the group. The top ten issues team completed their tasks and the team members transitioned to other work groups.
Leadership Team
Chair: Elizabeth Gregory North
Vice-Chair: Iris Cole Crosby
Secretary: Karen Vines
Top 10 Issues: Liz Felter and Jennifer Taylor
Developing Learning Communities: Leslie Hossfeld, Liz Kramer, and Iris Cole Crosby
Resource Bank: Elizabeth Gregory North
Impact: Joseph Donaldson and Zola Knowles Moon
Successful Organizational Structures: Dave Lamie and Kenrett Jefferson
The Leadership Team will have a monthly call for the first year, and then reassess frequency. Work group meeting schedules will be determined by the groups. The Leadership Team will meet on the third Tuesday of each month, at 2:30 Eastern/1:30 Central, beginning January 2018.
Eric shared recommendations regarding Annual Meetings:
- The entire SERA should meet face-to-face every year.
- The annual meeting should be at least one whole day, not just a couple of hours tacked on to another meeting.
- At the annual meeting, don’t spend the greatest percentage of the time in work groups. We need to work together as the whole group.
- Everyone should come to the meeting with a commitment to be there for the whole time.
Grant Opportunities
Rachel shared information and an update on AFRI CARE grant proposal that SERA-47 was working on, each team contributed to the proposal. T Candace Pollock-Moore shared information on SARE grants. More information on SARE grant programs can be found on the web site: southernsare.org under the Grants tab.
Communications
The south-foods e-mail list is a large group that includes many people who are not officially part of the SERA. A separate email list was set up for the SERA 47 group by Rachel.
Additional Goals
- SARE Professional Development Program (PDP) grant proposals
Accomplishments
<p>The AFRI CARE grant application was completed and submitted with SRDC as the lead. The Adelphi study by the Top Ten Issues team was completed and data summarized. The results indicated the following Top Ten Issues within the Southern Region Land Grant System: profitability, support for local food systems, education of public, farming practices/knowledge, marketing and promotion, accessibility/affordability, lack of farms and farmers, regulations, infrastructure, coordination of efforts. The Learning community team is on program at SSAWG meeting in Tennessee.</p>Publications
Impact Statements
Date of Annual Report: 11/12/2018
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 09/18/2018
- 09/19/2018
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2017 - 09/30/2018
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2017 - 09/30/2018
Participants
Clemson University – Leslie Hossfeld, Dave LamieLouisiana Ag Center – Carl Motsenbocker
Mississippi State – James Barnes, Christine Coker, Russ Garner, Elizabeth Gregory North, Steve Turner, Rachel Welborn
North Carolina State University – Meredith Weinstein
Oklahoma State University – Quisto Settle
University of Arkansas – Amanda Philyaw Perez
University of Arkansas Pine Bluff – Iris Crosby
University of Maryland Eastern Shore – Virginie Zoumenou
University of Puerto Rico – Vivian Carro
University of Tennessee – Knoxville – Janie Burney
Virginia State University – Debra Jones
Virginia Tech – Eric Bendfeldt, Ed Jones, Joyce Latimer, Karen Vines
Brief Summary of Minutes
Accomplishments
Publications
<p>Settle, Q., & Morrison, C. C. (2017). <em>SERA 47 Delphi Report</em>. Retrieved from SERA 47 Dropbox:</p><br /> <p>Woods, T., Rossi, J., & Davis, A. (2017). Local Food Vitality Index: Measuring Consumer Attitudes toward Food System Attributes. <em>Journal of Food Distribution Research, 48</em>(1), 33-41.</p><br /> <p> </p><br /> <p> </p>Impact Statements
Date of Annual Report: 02/12/2020
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 12/12/2019
- 12/12/2019
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2018 - 09/30/2019
Period the Report Covers: 10/01/2018 - 09/30/2019
Participants
Clemson University – Leslie Hossfeld, lhossfe@clemson.edu , Dave Lamie, dlamie@clemson.eduFlorida A&M University- Jennifer Taylor, Jennifer.Taylor@famu.edu
Louisiana Ag Center – Makenzie Miller, makenziemiller@agcenter.lsu.edu
Louisiana State University: Carl Motsenbocker, Marcus Coleman macoleman@agcenter.lsu.edu
Mississippi State –Christine Coker, cec117@msstate.edu
North Carolina State University – Eric Young, eyoung@ncsu.edu , Hannah Dankbar, hcdankba@ncsu.edu
University of Puerto Rico – Vivian Carro-Figueroa, vivian.carro@upr.edu
Southern Rural Development Center- Steve Turner steve.turner@msstate.edu, Russ Garner, russ.garner@msstate.edu
Oklahoma State University Quisto Settle, qsettle@okstate.edu
University of Arkansas Pine Bluff – Iris Crosby, crosbyi@uapb.edu
University of Maryland Eastern Shore – Virginie Zoumenou, vmzoumenou@umes.edu
University of Puerto Rico – Vivian Carro-Figueroa, vivian.carro@upr.edu
University of Tennessee – Extension – Janie Burney, jburney@tennessee.edu
Tennessee State University- Leslie Speller Henderson, lspeller@tnstate.edu
Virginia Tech –Ed Jones, ejones1@vt.edu, Neal Vines, nvines@vt.edu & Karen Vines, kvines@vt.edu
Brief Summary of Minutes
Accomplishments
<p><strong>Conference presentations</strong>:</p><br /> <p>SERA 47 Group presentations will be held at the Agriculture Food and Human Values Society (AFHVS) annual conference in Athens, Georgia.</p><br /> <p><strong>Core Competencies for local Foods Systems</strong>: Hannah Dankbar gave a presentation on Core Competencies for local Foods Systems. The presentation is posted on the Google drive.</p><br /> <p><strong>Values around local foods, Subcommittee Reports</strong>. The revised values proposed by the subcommittee was reviewed by the group. A motion was made to accept the revised version of the values by Vivian Carro-Figueroa and seconded by Jennifer Taylor.</p><br /> <p><strong>Working group reports: </strong>Four working groups shared their work with the group: </p><br /> <p><strong>Strengthening Impact Evaluation</strong>–Hannah Dankbar reported that the group submitted Pre-Proposal to SARE-PDP, but were not invited to submit full proposal. They are still working on the indicators. The next steps of the group include: Increasing membership and getting funding to build capacity to carry out POW. Please see the full report in the google drive. Please see more details on the group impact in a PowerPoint file in the 2019 Annual Meeting on google drive. </p><br /> <p><strong>Resource Bank Group</strong>–Karen Vines initiated a collaboration with eXtension. Neal Vines was also invited by Karen Vines as a consultant. He will bring an IT perspective to the Resource group repository work. </p><br /> <p><strong>Successful Models</strong>– Quisto reported on a survey sent to all land grant universities. The response rate was 21%. Please click on the link below for more details.</p><br /> <p><a href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/9oqczgnrqwmg3yn/Successful%20Models%20Survey%20results.docx?dl=0">https://www.dropbox.com/s/9oqczgnrqwmg3yn/Successful%20Models%20Survey%20results.docx?dl=0</a></p><br /> <p><strong>Learning Communities</strong>– Leslie reported the following:</p><br /> <p>The need of a chair for the group<strong>. </strong>They are planning to put a 45 minute webinar together discussing key issues they are facing on their campuses. The ultimate goal of the group is to provide a venue/sharing space to build a learning community amongst SERA-47 participants; and to get to know one another better through sharing projects/ideas/implementation initiatives on each of the land grant campuses. </p>Publications
Impact Statements
Date of Annual Report: 02/15/2021
Report Information
Annual Meeting Dates: 12/09/2020
- 12/11/3030
Period the Report Covers: 12/01/2019 - 12/11/2020
Period the Report Covers: 12/01/2019 - 12/11/2020