Effective communication is vital to the mission of Extension, and your public- facing websites built in Cascade, play a crucial role in this. It is essential for all counties to input newsletters, news articles, and events into Cascade. Doing so will ensure the following benefits:
Consistent Communication: Cascade ensures unified messaging across all counties, maintaining our brand's integrity and trustworthiness.
Accessibility: By using Cascade, your events and newsletters are easily accessible to a broader audience, reaching more community members.
Collaboration: Cascade serves as a centralized repository, fostering collaboration and resource sharing among counties, which enhances our collective impact.
Data-Driven Decisions: Consistent data entry into Cascade provides valuable analytics for informed planning and resource allocation, ensuring our efforts are targeted effectively.
Compliance: Entering information into Cascade ensures counties meet their obligations, maintain compliance, and uphold stakeholder trust.
By fully utilizing Cascade, we will enhance communication, streamline the processes of delivering information and gaining followers/connections, and better serve our communities. Let's keep our communities engaged and informed— start entering your events and newsletters into Cascade today!
Contact Lily Morrissey, morrislc@purdue.edu, for assistance with your county website.
By: Steve McKinley, Staff Development Specialist
We are excited to welcome the Purdue Extension family to the Tippecanoe County 4-H Fairgrounds on December 4-5, 2024 for the annual Purdue Extension Professional Development Conference (PDC)!
Please visit the PDC Website for more details regarding the conference. The PDC website has information about registration, hotel accommodations, success stories, educational sessions, the Sched App, departmental/program showcase, the keynote speaker, awards and much more.
PDC Registration
PDC Registration will open September 1 and continue through the end of the day on October 25. There is no registration fee to attend, but registration is required so we can have an accurate meal and head count.
Hotel Accommodations
Those who need housing during PDC may request accommodations through the PDC Registration survey. Carie Herbst is coordinating housing for PDC; you will not contact the hotel directly. Room requests must be made by October 25.
Sched App: 2024PDC
In an effort to help you find information related to the conference in an easier format, we have developed a Sched App. Download the “Sched” app to your smartphone or similar device, and connect to the event, “2024PDC”.
Department / Program Showcase
PUCESA is coordinating a Department / Program Showcase at PDC, from 1-2:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon. The goals of the showcase are:
We hope that all Departments/Programs and relevant administrative leads will register for a display at the showcase! Please complete the Qualtrics form no later than September 15, 2024.
Award presentations
By: Lara Dodds, Marion County Extension Director
Each October, in recognition of National Farm to School Month and National Apple Month, Hoosiers, big and small, come together to create “The Crunch Heard ‘Round the State.” On any October date of choice, school groups, community groups and businesses crunch into a locally or regionally produced apple at the same time while learning about everything from healthy eating to food production, agriculture careers, and more. States across the Midwest region participate in the Great Apple Crunch, impacting more than a million Crunchers annually.
In partnership with the Indiana Department of Education and Indiana Grown for Schools, Purdue Cooperative Extension provides Hoosier Crunchers information, learning activities and videos that promote agriculture, healthy kids, and resilient, equitable food systems. Apple Crunch offers an excellent opportunity to incorporate fun and hands-on agriculture in the classroom, but it is not just for kids! Adults can also explore healthy eating and local food sourcing while enjoying organized apple-themed activities such as an apple pie baking contest, a trip to a local orchard, or some locally brewed ciders during a chili cookoff! The sky above the apple orchard is the limit!
To get started, pick your Crunch event date, and think about who your Crunchers will be and with whom you might partner. Consider forming a Crunch Committee to help brainstorm ideas and share the work. Then complete the registration form so we can count your Crunch event toward our 200,000 Hoosier Crunchers 2024 goal. The sooner you register, the sooner we can mail you some Crunch stickers. We will also send you a Crunch Guide with some ideas, but you know your Crunchers best of all, so be creative with your event and plan something fun that promotes and supports local agriculture!
Be sure to take plenty of pictures and videos at your event, and make sure, at some point, everyone stops for a Crunch countdown where everyone takes a bite of their apple simultaneously! Be ready to hear that CRUNCH!
Please help us spread the Crunchtastic fun of Indiana Great Apple Crunch before and after your event by sharing on social media! Please be sure to use the hashtags #IndianaAppleCrunch & #F2SMonth.
Visit the website to learn more and register at https://www.applecrunchin.com/
Do you have questions or need some additional support? Contact your Captains of Crunch: Laura at LJDodds@Purdue.edu