The Indiana State Board of Animal Health (BOAH) will be hosting a webinar for Purdue Extension professionals on the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). The webinar, designed for our internal Purdue Extension audience, is scheduled for Thursday, April 3, from 3 to 4 p.m. (ET). The link to the Zoom webinar is: https://purdue-edu.zoom.us/j/97605648871?pwd=sL8hDzXTrvaxsfeRAn2tsocbzzHi0z.1. We will also send a calendar invite for the event. The webinar will be recorded and posted on the Extension Hub for those unable to attend the live session.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) continues to challenge Indiana’s poultry sector at all levels, large and small. BOAH staff members value the partnerships and insights from Purdue Extension statewide.
Indiana State Veterinarian Kyle Shipman will host a webinar focused on the aspects of HPAI of concern to Extension Professionals so that they can communicate with producers, community members and local officials about the situation. Topics covered in the webinar will include:
Dr. Shipman will allow time for questions after the presentation. Questions may be submitted in advance to Denise Derrer Spears: dderrer@boah.in.gov.
Please note that this webinar should NOT be shared with our Extension clientele (e.g., volunteers, producers, families). If your clientele are interested in learning more about HPAI, BOAH has a couple of webinar recordings, available on its YouTube channel, geared toward small flock owners: https://youtu.be/CV7eQCfN__g?si=qEnyVxd0NYzUwZ-h (featurubf Darrin Karcher); and another that addresses wild bird and human health topics: https://youtu.be/54wCkBRQ6AQ?si=IpDSNpKAUaHetHZW. Please share the links to these videos as often as you’d like.
The Digital Transformation Team (DTT) has been working to provide digital education programming for communities in Indiana as well as within our Extension family. The DTT is a collaboration between Purdue Center for Regional Development and Purdue Extension, with team members across all four program areas. It seeks to implement Indiana’s Digital Equity Plan through providing education to achieve the plan’s vision.
“This past year the team has expanded from three members to 12, and we have been working on programming that will be launched in the upcoming months,” said Gina Avila, community development educator and co-lead of the DTT. “Our team sees an opportunity for Extension to further advance access and adoption of digital technology in Indiana, which will help strengthen our communities and improve Hoosiers lives.”
The DTT will launch the Digital Skills Lessons pilot program to provide digital education to all Hoosiers. The program was highlighted at PDC and will have a comprehensive program overview at IEEA. The DTT invites all educators across all program areas to attend the IEEA program presentation, “Bridging the Digital Divide with Digital Skills Lessons — All Program Areas” on Friday, April 25th from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. ET. Visit the Digital Skills Lessons program page to learn more.
Also, at IEEA on Friday, April 25th from 8:25 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. ET, the DTT will introduce “Tech Talks for the Extension community: A series of tips, tricks and aha moments to help up your tech game!” Tech Talks will soon be available on the HUB for all Extension, including county support staff and administration. Our Extension family will learn from peers and our very own subject matter experts within the Purdue system to improve their daily workflows and program delivery.
The DTT recently received two grants to bring the Digital Ambassador Volunteer program to Indiana. The program is based on the Purdue Extension Master Gardner’s volunteer model and will train participants across the state to act as digital experts in their communities. Volunteers will learn about digital applications and adult learning concepts to serve as experts for families, friends, and fellow community members. Educators interested in becoming a trainer for the Digital Ambassador Volunteer program are invited to attend the Trainer the Trainer workshop on May 15-16th in Boone County. To sign up for training, contact Gina Avila, ghavila@purdue.edu or Cheyanne Geideman, cgeidema@purdue.edu. Seats are limited.
To ensure compliance with USDA guidelines, federal civil rights law, state law, and university policy — and to better serve all Indiana residents — we are implementing a new requirement for all outreach materials. Moving forward, specific accessibility and inclusion statements must be included to ensure that our programs remain open and welcoming to all.
As part of this effort, a new mandatory field has been added in Cascade when entering events. This field must be completed to ensure that reasonable accommodations are available for individuals attending Purdue Extension events. It will also clarify who attendees should contact regarding dietary, language access or other accommodation needs.
To assist with this process, please review our training video, which provides a step-by-step guide on adding this required content in Cascade. The video is permanently available on the Hub > Communications > Cascade page.
For technical assistance with adding this content, please contact Lily Thill at morrrislc@purdue.edu. For guidance on where and how to include these required statements, please reach out to Cassandra Salazar, Extension community and staff engagement administrator, at salaza14@purdue.edu.
On March 16, 2025, Purdue CARET representatives from across Indiana traveled to Washington, D.C., to advocate for federal funding that supports research, Extension and teaching within the College of Agriculture.
Federal support for these vital programs originates in the Farm Bill and is distributed through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), specifically via the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. NIFA plays a critical role in providing both capacity and competitive funding to Purdue University and other land-grant institutions nationwide.
Among NIFA’s funding opportunities, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) is the USDA’s largest competitive grants program. In 2024 alone, Purdue Agriculture secured $8,031,463 in AFRI funding, underscoring the college’s leadership in advancing innovative agricultural research.
In addition to competitive grants, capacity funding supports foundational operations across the College of Agriculture. These funds include:
During their time on Capitol Hill, Purdue CARET members met with federal legislators to express appreciation for their continued support and to emphasize the importance of sustained investment in agriculture research, education and teaching.
To learn more about the Purdue Council for Agricultural Research, Extension, and teaching — visit extension.purdue.edu/purdue_caret
Here’s a reminder to make sure your Youth Protection Trainings are up to date! Everyone is responsible for taking both the program director and program staff training in Ideal-Logic. You can check the status of your trainings by logging into POMP-X. In the top right corner, click on Profile. Under the Trainings tab it will tell you the status of your trainings. Each training is valid for two years.
Campus Extension Training is coming in April. For those specialists and campus professionals who did not take the February Youth Protection Update training designed for Field Extension, there will be a training in mid-April. Please watch for an e-mail from Henry Quesada and Malea Huffman.
As summer approaches, and there is more youth programming, please reach out to Malea Huffman if you have any questions regarding youth protection procedures!