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Special Teams Meeting September 26, 2005 Portland, Oregon

Special Teams Meeting September 26, 2005 Portland, Oregon. Frank Clearfield Social Sciences Team Leader East National Technology Support Center. Outline. Staffing Roles Past Performance Work Competed or in Progress Linkage With States. Staffing (cont.). Core Team East – Gail Brant

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Special Teams Meeting September 26, 2005 Portland, Oregon

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  1. Special Teams Meeting September 26, 2005Portland, Oregon Frank Clearfield Social Sciences Team Leader East National Technology Support Center

  2. Outline • Staffing • Roles • Past Performance • Work Competed or in Progress • Linkage With States

  3. Staffing (cont.) • Core Team • East – Gail Brant • Vacancies – Central, West • States with social scientists - IL and NH • Social Sciences Coordinators

  4. 2. Roles • Policy • Technology Development • Social Sciences • Verification • Work with other special teams and core team on joint technologies • Support to NHQ • Technical Assistance • Leads to field based technology development

  5. 3. Past Performance • Social Sciences Institute Web Site http://www.ssi.nrcs.usda.gov/ • Interactive programs • Locally Led Planning • Social Capital • Leadership Instrument • Participation Rates • SEQUOIA

  6. Past Performance (cont.) • Surveys – web and other types • Is There a Better Way? (Employees and Customers) • NRCS employee satisfaction • Earth Team (employees, volunteers) • CSP survey on use of technology • Farmer evaluations of TSP’s; TSP evaluations of web certification

  7. Past Performance (cont.) • Training: Leadership, Consultation with American Indian Governments, Unconscious Discrimination, Sexual Harassment, Outreach, Locally Led Conservation Planning • “Developing Your Skills to INVOLVE COMMUNITIES in Implementing Locally Led Conservation” contains a video, self-evaluation instrument on web or CD, nine training modules on CD • Evaluations (EQIP outreach programs, CSP)

  8. Past Performance (cont.) • Approximately 40 fact sheets concerning locally led planning and social interaction • Marketing (workbook and 7 guidebooks) • Social Sciences Manual

  9. 4. Work completed or in progress • All Employees Web Communication Survey • All Employees Strategic Planning Survey • Focus group sessions (i.e., Design Engineers, Soils marketing group for strategic planning purposes) • National Maps of Limited Resource Farmers, Minority Farmers, Beginning Farmers, and Social Capital

  10. Work completed or in progress • Outreach Training Course • Delivered outreach training in NC • Developed procedures for states to gather input from TSP’s • Assistance to Indiana to return their employees focus to core conservation planning functions • Oral History • Social Sciences Handbook

  11. Work completed or in progress • Conservation Issue brief on LRF and Minority Farmers and Ranchers • Morphed into 4 briefs • Training on sexual harassment and unconscious discrimination • Presentations – Chesapeake Bay adoption diffusion issues, Leadership, Earth Team, communications survey, etc.

  12. 5. Linkage With States • Limited due to staffing numbers • Past 10 years damaged the relationship between states and technical experts in some fields • Social scientists have recently worked more with big picture and policy issues • National headquarters staff call us regularly • Most states now have social sciences coordinators

  13. Linkage With States (cont.) • National issues are a macrocosm of state issues • We ALL need to be more alert to possible cooperative work with states, core teams, and special teams • Common Areas of Interest: outreach, physical and social effects of practices/programs, participation, locally led conservation planning, evaluations, equity issues, discrimination issues, leadership, social impact assessment, etc.

  14. Contact Information • Frank Clearfield • frank.clearfield@gnb.usda.gov • http://www.ssi.nrcs.usda.gov/ • 336-370-3336 • 336-420-9502 (cell)

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