I NTRODUCTION
Oklahoma State University (OSU), a Carnegie top-tier research university, is well-known for improving our quality of life by bringing new technologies, processes, and research to the marketplace. Under the leadership of President Burns Hargis, OSU embraces a culture of collaboration and innovation. Continuing that tradition, OSU submits this proposal in partnership with the Extension Foundation (EXF). As a land grant university (LGU), OSU is an eligible entity for the New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE) funding opportunity offered by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), and, therefore, serves as lead applicant and fiscal agent for the NTAE project described below. NTAE funding will allow OSU and its partners to advance the following strategic goals established by USDA for 2018-2022: Goal 1: Ensure USDA Programs are delivered efficiently, effectively, with integrity and a focus on customer service. Goal 2: Maximize the ability of American agricultural producers to prosper by feeding and clothing the world.
Goal 3: Promote American agricultural products and exports. Goal 4: Facilitate rural prosperity and economic development.
Goal 5: Strengthen the stewardship of private lands through technology and research. Goal 6: Foster productive and sustainable use of our National Forest System Lands. Goal 7: Provide all Americans access to a safe, nutritious, and secure food supply. In addition to advancing the strategic goals, OSU and its partners are committed to using NTAE funding to enable a technology-conscious nation to make use of the valuable information and education that the CES has to offer. To that end, the proposed Enhancing Electronic Extension (E3) project will expand upon the progress Extension Foundation has achieved during the past twelve years of NIFA-funded initiatives as well as implement innovative strategies that impact the future.
Extension Foundation Organizational History
In 2004, Cooperative Extension directors and administrators established the Extension Foundation with a singular directive: to increase Extension professionals’ effectiveness in addressing issues of importance to the nation. Key strategies to achieve this mission included: advancing the use of technology to engage learners; bringing together existing knowledge and
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