Armour, SD

Local Extension Educator Roger Barrick asked me to post this employment opportunity on the blog. The person selected to fill this post will be based out out of Lake Andes and will cover Douglas, Charles Mix, Bon Homme and Hutchinson Counties.

Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Educator-Charles Mix County
Cooperative Extension
South Dakota State University
Would you like to help individuals of all ages and families improve their quality of life?  Are you interested in using the best research available to provide financial resource management training, health and wellness information and education regarding human development and family relations to families and adults of every age?   If so, the SD Cooperative Extension Service is looking for YOU!

RESPONSIBILITIES
Develop and deliver programming in the areas of financial resource management, human development and relations across the lifespan and nutrition, health and wellness to individuals and families according to identified needs. In conjunction with other agencies and organizations, provide connections to resources and provide education that will facilitate those being served to make informed choices regarding managing their resources, improving the quality of their life and overall health and well being.  Work with colleagues in the county, Field Education Unit, District and across the state to deliver programs relevant to the target audiences, using well researched programs and materials. Evaluate programs and services delivered to determine effectiveness and efficiency.  Serve as a connector to the land grant system for all individuals in the geographic area served.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:
Bachelor’s degree in family and consumer science, home economics, human ecology or other related field.  Must be able to use a personal computer for basic word processing and email.  Ability to communicate well verbally and in writing is essential.  Must have a valid SD driver’s license and personal auto or be able to obtain both prior to beginning employment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
Master’s degree in family and consumer sciences, home economics, human ecology or other related field and/or experience in teaching and research.

SALARY:
The salary is commensurate with education and experience.

UNIVERSITY/COMMUNITY:
SDSU is a land grant institution and the state’s largest institution of higher education.  The Cooperative Extension Service has a network of educators in nearly every county and specialists in Brookings and Rapid City, primarily.  This position is located in Lake Andes, SD. and serves a multi-county field education unit.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:  June 24, 2008

APPLICATION PROCESS:
SDSU accepts applications through an on-line employment site.  To apply, visit:  http://yourfuture.sdbor.edu, search by the position title, view the job announcement, and click on apply for this posting.  The system will guide you through the electronic application form.  The employment site will also require the attachment of a cover letter, resume, and reference page.  Please contact SDSU Human Resources at (605) 688-4128 if you require assistance with this process.

For questions on the position, contact Corrine Huber at 605-865-3205.

Our fund-raising efforts for the cabins are off to a great start with a $4,000 grant from the Armour Community Foundation and a $5,000 grant from Golden West Communications. We also have donation containers set up at businesses around town and we can see that the spare change is starting to add up!

In other news, the Horizons Cabin Committee traveled to the prison at Springfield Wednesday, April 9, to learn more about the cabins they are building for the state park. It was a great trip!

We were able to see the cabin-building operation and had a super visit with prison officials, who were very willing to share information about the cabins. They gave us a lot of great ideas for the Armour cabins, including some suggestions for building a little larger cabin (14′ x 24′) that has a loft for sleeping. The work done by the inmates is top-notch — they build everything from scratch, including the interior furnishings such as bunk beds and cabinets.

We met with the Armour Lions again and they are on board with the project. We are still uncertain whether we will build the cabins ourselves or have them built by another organization such as the prison. If we end up completing the construction on our own, we are hopeful that the prison officials we’ve been working with will assist us with blueprints and a list of building materials.

At the meeting it was decided to clean up around the Lake on May 6th at 5:00 pm. The Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts will be helping from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm with food and beverages served to them at 6:00 pm. The Community is also asked to help with the Clean-Up Project. Please bring your pick-ups, chain saws, weed eaters and man/women power : ) There will be food and beverages served following the clean-up. Thank you to everyone who help last year! We had such a great turn out we would love to see you there again this year!! If you have any questions please contact Dana Krull at 724-2459

7 p.m.
Tuesday, April 15
Armour Fire Hall

Please attend to participate in a planning session for Lake Alcazar for 2008. Plan to share your ideas, suggestions and comments.

Branding Your Community A Workshop for South Dakota Horizons– Milan Wall, Co-Director and a founder of the Heartland Center for Leadership Development was in Armour on Tusday, March 25^th. About 40 people from the Armour, Wagner, Artesian, Letcher, Woonsocket and Tyndall attended a presentation on Branding Your Community. I was very impressed by the fact that 18 people from Armour attended. We learned the importance of Branding. For example, can you think of facial tissue or gelatin without thinking of Kleenex or Jell-O? It is important to be clear about the difference between a brand and an image. A brand is carefully constructed and managed. An image, however, is much more fluid and in many cases, not controlled or created at all but simply evolved over time. Every community projects a certain image, positive or negative. A community image is really made up from the accumulated perceptions of residents and visitors over time. Every time people visit your town, they take away a community image as part of their experience. How do outsiders see your community? What do they recall after a visit? What do they say about their time in your community?

A community brand can be used to promote a town event, to create consumer loyalty and encourage folks to shop locally, or attract new businesses and families. The best use of a community brand is to make connections by representing the community values and special features.

We were split into groups where we had to opportunity to talk about our community. In doing this we discussed several questions. What do we want to be know for? What are our community’s key unique assets? How is our image connected to our key assets? Who are our customers? How can we get their attention? How can we move them from attention to action? We also discussed Tips for Branding, keep it simple, build recognition and exceed your promise.

This is just another tool that can be used to help fulfill our hopes and dreams for our community.

The Armour Round-Up Committee has joined forces with the Cabin Committee to raise money to build two cabins near our Lion’s Park / Lake Alcazar. In previous blogs, we’ve let you know that one of the Horizons projects is to install two cabins at Lion’s Park to provide recreational opportunities for Armour families and visitors.

Our cabin committee had originally planned to have inmates at the Springfield penitentiary build the cabins, which would be moved to sites that would be prepared by Horizons volunteers. As we’ve moved forward with the project we’ve learned that the prison will not have time to build cabins for Armour this year. That’s the bad news. The good news is that they have invited our Horizons group to the penitentiary to tour the cabins they are building and will share building plans and materials lists with us. A group of Horizons volunteers plans to build the cabins here in town.

We’ve now begun our cabin fund-raising campaign and that’s where the Round-Up Committee comes into play. They have installed donation containers at area businesses such as Wilson True Value and the X- Press Mart. Patrons can donate their change from purchases or pocket change for use on the cabin project. We’re very enthused about this joint effort and hope that Armour residents will show their generosity.

If you have any questions about the Cabin project, you can contact Todd Vogt at 724-2400 or Bob Goodnow at 724-2105. Please contact Dana Krull if you would like to make a donation for the cabins at 724-2459 or by e-mail: danakrull at unitelsd.com

Market Your Area — A Horizons Regional Seminar
Tuesday, March 25
Armour Blue Moon
5:30 p.m. — Dinner
7-9:15 p.m. — Seminar

The Heartland Center in Lincoln, NE, helps local leaders respond to current and future challenges in their community by bringing people together to learn how to become better decision makers.

Milan Wall, Co-Director of the Heartland Center for Leadership Development, is a management and communications expert with more than 30 years experience in dealing with the critical issues facing American society and culture. Milan will work with SD communities to discover strategies useful for marketing their areas to future residents and businesses.

This event is free and open to the public. Please call Donna Brenner at 724-2818 by Monday, March 24, if you plan to attend so we have an accurate count for the meal. Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend this seminar!

An organizational meeting for a having and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) class in Armour will be held at 6 p.m. at the Fire Hall. I think the plan is to gather in Armour and then drive to Corsica or Stickney to meet with the instructor. Armour’s EMT service is staffed solely by volunteers. There are only a few EMTs to provide coverage 24-hours a day. New EMTs are desperately needed, so anyone interested in taking the course should try to attend tonight’s meeting.

I am just writing to say thank you to all those that do blog on the website. I know it takes time but I can definately see an improvement in our community ever since Horizons has started. People become more active when they see progress and there has definately been progress. We are a small town and I love small town but we need to keep moving forward or our small town will not exist anymore. I took part in the Welcome Banquet in February and I was glad that people came to support the newcomers and the citizens of the month. I hope that each year it will grow not only with new families but also with the current families showing their support and neighborliness to the newcomers. Thanks to all who were involved.
Nicole

There’s always been kind of a standing joke here in Armour when we’re trying to make get started on a community project. One of the first steps to get the ball rolling is to find volunteers to be in charge … and, inevitably, the Same 10 People are in charge … STP = same 10 people. As I think about our Horizons work, I know there are now more than 10 people involved in all the projects we’ve got going. And some of them had not been attending many community meetings before we started our Horizons work.

How has your community leadership expanded?

Horizons has enabled Armour to experience a diversification of its leadership roster. The core group of people who has always been involved is still around, but there are more people who have stepped up to accept responsibility for our various efforts. One fact of life in a small town is that a certain percentage of the younger demographic is going to work out of town because they can find better paying jobs in larger communities. Horizons reeled some of those folks in and, I think, reconnected them to the community.

What changes have been made in who is now involved in leadership positions?

I think Horizons gave some people who were “background” volunteers the incentive to take a more active role in various projects. I think everyone involved in Horizons has probably heard the comment, “Nobody ever asked for my help before.” That’s not so true anymore.

Throw in your two cents by hitting the comment link.