ASSESSING THE NORTH CAROLINA MASTER GARDENER PROGRAM

A total of 51 Extension agents were surveyed in the North Carolina Master Gardener program. Thirty-five (68%) agents returned the survey. The highest benefits from participation in the Master Gardener program were expanded outreach of the county office and increased community support. The top three program barriers are limited time, financial resources, and the recruiting/supporting of volunteers. The majority (60% agreed) of agents felt the Master Gardener program was a cutting-edge program and the Master Gardener Association (67.7% agreed) should continue to be supported. The three significant programming thrusts at the county level were new clientele, increased number of volunteers, and volunteer input into the local program. Significant features from the state level were the production of support materials, administrative support, and the N.C. Master Gardener Manual. Future changes/improvements to the Master Gardener program should be done through in-service training, completion of the teaching modules project, and more agent sharing sessions. Most agents (58.8%) have been in the Master Gardener program for 5 years or less, with 42.9% possessing horticulture undergraduate degrees. At least 100 median hours per agent were freed up by Master Gardeners answering phone calls and conducting workshops. The estimated savings to homeowners per county was a $20,000 median.

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Regional public health preparedness teams in North Carolina: An analysis of their structural capacity and impact on services provided

American Journal of Disaster Medicine ◽

10.5055/ajdm.2011.0050 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 6 (2) ◽

pp. 107-117 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Jennifer A. Horney, PhD, MPH ◽

Milissa Markiewicz, MPH ◽

Anne Marie Meyer, PhD ◽

Julie Casani, MD, MPH ◽

Jennifer Hegle, MPH ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Public Health ◽

North Carolina ◽

Human Resources ◽

Administrative Support ◽

Medical Doctor ◽

Local Health ◽

Team Composition ◽

Local Public Health ◽

The North ◽

Structural Capacity

In December 2001, the North Carolina Division of Public Health established Public Health Regional Surveillance Teams (PHRSTs) to build local public health capacity to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from public health incidents and events. Seven PHRSTs are colocated at local health departments (LHDs) around the state.The authors assessed structural capacity of the PHRSTs and analyzed the relationship between structural capacity and the frequency of support and services provided to LHDs by PHRSTs. Five categories of structural capacity were measured: human, fiscal, informational, physical, and organizational resources. In addition, variation in structural capacity among teams was also examined.The most variation was seen in human resources. Although each team was originally designed to include a physician/epidemiologist, industrial hygienist, nurse/epidemiologist, and administrative support technician, team composition varied such that only the administrative support technician is common to all teams. Variation in team composition was associated with differences in the support and services that PHRSTs provide to LHDs.Teams that reported having a medical doctor or a doctor of osteopathic medicine (χ2 = 9.95; p 0.01) or an epidemiologist (χ2 = 5.35; p 0.02) had larger budgets and provided more support and services, and teams that housed a pharmacist reported more partners (χ2 = 52.34; p 0.01). Teams that received directives from more groups (such as LHDs) also provided more support and services in planning (Z = 21.71; p 0.01), communication and liaison (Z = 12.11; p 0.01), epidemiology and surveillance (Z = 5.09; p 0.01), consultation and technical support (Z = 2.25; p = 0.02), H1N1 outbreak assistance (Z = 10.25; p 0.01), and public health event response (Z = 2.19; p = 0.03).In the last 10 years, significant variation in structural capacity, particularly in human resources, has been introduced among PHRSTs. These differences explain much of the variation in support and services provided to LHDs by PHRSTs.

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Evaluation of the effects of the North Carolina Improved Pregnancy Outcome Project: implications for state-level decision-making.

American Journal of Public Health ◽

10.2105/ajph.74.6.549 ◽

1984 ◽

Vol 74 (6) ◽

pp. 549-554 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

M D Peoples ◽

R C Grimson ◽

G L Daughtry

Keyword(s):

Decision Making ◽

North Carolina ◽

Pregnancy Outcome ◽

State Level ◽

The North

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Consumer Horticulture Outreach: Communication Challenges and Solutions

HortTechnology ◽

10.21273/horttech.24.3.266 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 24 (3) ◽

pp. 266-269

Author(s):

Ellen M. Bauske ◽

Gary R. Bachman ◽

Lucy Bradley ◽

Karen Jeannette ◽

Alison Stoven O’Connor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

State Level ◽

Critical Issue ◽

Extension Agents ◽

Annual Conference ◽

Master Gardener ◽

The North ◽

Social Media Site ◽

One Stop ◽

Communication Challenges ◽

American Society

Communication is a critical issue for consumer horticulture specialists and extension agents. They must communicate effectively with the public interested in gardening, with Extension Master Gardener (EMG) volunteers and with other scientists. A workshop was held at the Annual Conference of the American Society for Horticultural Science on 22 July 2013 in Palm Desert, CA, with the intent of sharing tips and techniques that facilitated consumer horticulture and EMG programming. Presentations focused on communication. One program leader reported on the North Carolina Master Gardener web site, which integrates an online volunteer management system (VMS) with widely available web tools to create one-stop shopping for people who want to volunteer, get help from volunteers, or support volunteers at both the county and state level. Another program used the state VMS to house videos providing continuing education (CE) training required for EMG volunteers. This training is available 24 hours per day and 7 days per week. Agents created the videos by recording live presentations with widely available, screen capture software and a microphone. Features that make the social media site Pinterest a strong tool for gathering together focused programming resources and professional collaboration were outlined. Finally, the use of a compact, subirrigated gardening system that uses peat-based potting mix was suggested as a means to simplify communication with new urban gardeners and address their unique gardening issues.

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The Transition from State to Local Funding for Virginia Master Gardener Volunteer Management

HortTechnology ◽

10.21273/horttech.10.1.77 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 77-81

Author(s):

Sheri Dorn ◽

Paula Diane Relf

Keyword(s):

State Level ◽

Work Team ◽

Master Gardener ◽

Volunteer Training ◽

Volunteer Program ◽

Training Materials ◽

Service Training ◽

Local Funding ◽

Management Changes

Management changes brought about by 1996 budgetary action shifted local Master Gardener (MG) program management from state-funded local agents to a structure of coordinators consisting of locally funded agents, locally funded nonagent coordinators, and volunteers willing to take on additional responsibilities. The Virginia Cooperative Extension (VCE) MG volunteer program is currently available in 76 unit offices. The unit programs are managed by 46 MG coordinators, including 8 locally funded agents, 8 locally funded technicians, and 30 volunteers. Currently, there are 2747 MG volunteers (trainees, interns, and MGs). To provide consistent, state-level direction and leadership to this less experienced group of local coordinators and to prepare them for their jobs as MG program managers, current management materials were extensively revised and expanded and new resources were developed. These efforts to ensure that everyone understood the purpose and focus of the VCE MG program resulted in revision of MG program policies, development of new volunteer training materials, establishment of a state-level MG planning and work team, new management guidelines, in-service training for coordinators, an administrative website and electronic discussion listserv available only internally to agents and coordinators, and a state MG newsletter focused on the role of MGs as community leaders and educators.

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Developing a Plant Clinic Database as an Educational and Predictive Tool for Master Gardener Programs

HortTechnology ◽

10.21273/horttech.11.4.661 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 11 (4) ◽

pp. 661-665 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Larry Joh ◽

David V. Barkley

Keyword(s):

North Carolina ◽

Learning Opportunities ◽

Master Gardener ◽

Predictive Tool ◽

Extension Agent ◽

The North ◽

And Control ◽

Crop Diagnosis ◽

North Carolina Cooperative Extension ◽

Answering Questions

The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service's New Hanover County Center provides the Plant Disease and Insect Clinic staffed by the Horticulture Extension Agent and Master Gardener volunteers. Residents bring in samples of weeds, diseases, and insects for identification and control recommendations. After the problem is diagnosed, a record of the information is used to construct a database that includes the date, phone number, crop, diagnosis, and control for each sample submitted. Between January 1993 and December 1999, Master Gardener volunteers entered more than 4,000 entries into a searchable/sortable electronic database to identify patterns of plant disorders. The database should be a useful tool for predicting local disease and insect cycles and aiding Master Gardeners in answering questions at the clinic and over the telephone. In addition, examination of historical records and entry of data into the database are excellent learning opportunities for new Master Gardeners.

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