OSU CEAT’s Outreach and Extension hosts Building Extension Public Value Workshop

Friday, April 1, 2016

(STILLWATER, Okla., April 1, 2016) – OSU CEAT’s Outreach and Extension, along with the Spears School of Business and the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, hosted a Building Extension’s Public Value Workshop.

Dr. Laura Kalambokidis from the University of Minnesota developed the workshop in support of the Minnesota cooperative extension. The workshop lasted four hours and covered how to communicate public value to decision makers.

Ed Kirtley, assistant dean of CEAT’s Outreach and Extension, says he utilized the workshop to build messages and public value into CEAT’s Outreach and Extension programs.

“Each participant focused on their program, so it was personalized,” Kirtley says. “By the end of the workshop, we each had a clear, concise message that communicated the relevance and benefit of our outreach programs.”

There were 51 participants from across the OSU campus and Langston University.

“Many participants shared with me that it was the first time they realized the difference between output and impact, and why public value is built through impact.” Kirtley says. “We need to focus more on measuring the impact of our outreach programs as the public and decision makers really want to know if we are making communities better through public funds. The state agencies that can demonstrate impact, or high public value, are those that will receive the greatest support.”

RELEASE CONTACT: Chelsea Robinson | CEAT Marketing | 405-744-5831 | Chelsea.l.robinson@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University is a modern land-grant university that prepares students for success. OSU has more than 36,000 students across its five-campus system and more than 25,000 on its combined Stillwater and Tulsa campuses, with students from all 50 states and around 120 nations. Established in 1890, Oklahoma State has graduated more than 260,000 students who have been serving Oklahoma and the world for 125 years.