This morning I received an email from eXtension with their upcoming Learn seminars, and thought this one was particularly fitting for the Next Generation Extension participants.  Enjoy!!!

Peaks and Pitfalls of Extension Scholarship in an Online World
Link for information: Learn.extension.org/events/1643
Link for webinar:  http://connect.cals.uidaho.edu/fourh
July 14, 1:00 CT

Presenter:  Eric T. Stafne, Associate Extension Professor, Coastal Research and Extension Center, Mississippi State University

Methods to engage Cooperative Extension clientele are developing rapidly.  Social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, videos, webinars, and blogs have opened up new venues for extension personnel to generate important information and deliver it in an expeditious manner.  There is no question that these methods are found useful by the information consumers; however, many universities fail to adequately address them in the promotion and tenure process.  Therefore, those in Cooperative Extension who are engaged in this area know the importance of delivering this information via digital methods to their audience, yet are unsure of the career value of the effort.  Junior faculty members must decide whether or not to pursue these avenues of information delivery based on often outdated and vaguely worded promotion and tenure documents.  For example, this ambiguity has caused participation issues within eXtension communities of practice, where digital information delivery is standard practice.  It is well understood that the traditional peer review process is the currency of the academe. However, this traditional system does not necessarily represent the vanguard in academic scholarship.

This webinar is sponsored and hosted by the National Association of Extension Program and Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP). For more information on NAEPSDP, please visit our website at http://naepsdp.tamu.edu/