Extension's role different, still vital

摘要

LIFE has a funny way of dishing out changes. Seems like they always come when we least expect it. As our cover story points out, there's a lot of change on the horizon for University of Illinois Extension. When budget cuts made it clear a change was necessary, my initial thoughts went to Extension's agronomic expertise. Sitting down with Aaron Hager, an Extension weed specialist, I learned just how much his role has changed over the years. Two decades ago, his phone rang nonstop with questions from farmers. Today, most of his questions come in via e-mail, but they're not from farmers. Instead, he spends most of his time answering questions from retailers. "When farmers get recommendations from retailers, it's quite possible that some of that information comes from Extension," Hager notes. "So, the way the information is disseminated has changed a lot. Not that it's a bad thing, just different."