News Update
November 13, 2013
New Children’s Ag Book Available
Rebecca, Sheridan and Rianna Chaney are proud to announce the fifth book in the “The Chaney Twins’ Ag Series.” This book, Our Star Goes West, follows the girls’ beloved cow Star from their farm in Maryland to their new home on a 3,500-acre ranch in south-central Nebraska.
The book introduces new experiences for the girls like branding day, roping, watering cattle being fed on cornstalks, swimming in the huge cattle watering tanks, showing, livestock judging, gathering cattle and how ranchers and cattle help the environment and wildlife.
All five books in the series are 32 pages and are full of captivating and fun color photographs by professional photographer and the books’ co-creator Kelly Hahn Johnson of Sharpsburg, Md. The easy-to-read text geared toward preschool and elementary-aged children has been selected by numerous Farm Bureau groups, Ag in the Classroom programs, and county and state cattle women’s organizations across the country as their “Accurate Ag Book.”
The first four books and lesson plans are on the USDA National Resource Directory for Agriculture in the Classroom, in addition to the American Farm Bureau Literacy list. Lessons plans are available in free downloadable form at www.pabeef.org. Books are $12 each, or discounted to $50 for the five-book “bundle” special, plus shipping. Special discounts are available for larger box orders for ag groups.
For more information or to place an order, go to www.rebeccalongchaney.com or call 308-785-8064. You can also contact Rebecca at chaneyswalkabout@aol.com.
Books for Christmas should be ordered by Dec. 9.
USDA Announces Funding to Improve Rural Housing
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack Nov. 12 announced that recipients in 45 states, the Western Pacific and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will receive grants to make housing repairs and improve housing conditions for limited income rural residents. Acting Under Secretary for Rural Development Doug O’Brien announced the selections on Secretary Vilsack’s behalf.
“Providing safe, reliable housing to rural residents is key to maintaining stable communities and creating jobs,” O’Brien said. “USDA has developed strategic partnerships with tribes, community organizations and nonprofit groups to improve the living conditions for thousands of rural residents.”
Funding is being provided through USDA Rural Development’s Housing Preservation Grant program. Funds are provided to intermediaries such as local governments, public agencies, federally-recognized Indian Tribes, and nonprofit, faith-based and community organizations. These organizations then distribute the grants to homeowners and owners of multi-family rental properties or cooperative dwellings who rent to low- and very-low-income residents. Funds are not directly provided to eligible homeowners by USDA.
Grants may be used to make general repairs, such as installing or improving plumbing, or providing or enhancing access to people with disabilities. Funds may also be used to make homes more energy efficient.
The announcement includes a $38,860 grant to Bishop Sheen Ecumenical Housing Foundation Inc., in Rochester, N.Y., to assist 12 very-low-income households. The grant will be used to repair foundations, roofs and electrical wiring, and make energy efficiency and accessibility improvements. Coupled with funding from Rural Development, the foundation’s effort will make a significant impact in rural New York. ACTION Inc. in Athens, Ga., has been selected to receive a $30,000 Housing Preservation Grant to help very-low income and low-income elderly households make repairs.
For more information, please view the full release here.
NFU Releases Free Renewable Energy Education Curriculum
National Farmers Union (NFU) released Nov. 12 curriculum that it says will help students separate fact from fiction when it comes to renewable energy. This curriculum, developed by NFU, is available free to organizations, schools, institutions and businesses whose focus is to build cultural awareness and acceptance of renewable fuels.
Lessons are available for use with students in high school grades 9-12, as well as separate lessons for both college and adult students. Each module contains three unique areas of focus, for a total of nine different lesson plans. The sessions are tailored to appeal to the specific audiences and use a variety of educational activities to engage students in the learning process. The lessons come with separate guides and resource sheets to assist teachers in understanding and implementing the curriculum.
For more information, please view the full release here.
Savell Receives Regional National Teaching Award
Jeffrey Savell, regents professor and E.M. “Manny” Rosenthal chair in the department of animal science at Texas A&M University, recently received a regional national teaching award for food and agriculture science from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities.
The award was presented at the association’s 126th annual meeting, which honored university faculty for the use of innovative teaching methods and service to students.
Sponsored by the USDA, the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the association’s annual awards include stipends of $5,000 for the national winners and $2,000 for regional and new teacher honorees to be used for improving teaching at their respective universities.
“When alumni recall their college days, they often think of teachers who had the biggest impact on them,” said Ian Maw, the association’s vice president of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources. “The teachers presented with these awards will be fondly remembered for their service to students, to the teaching profession and to their chosen disciplines. The value of these teachers to their universities cannot be overstated.”
Since joining the department of animal science at Texas A&M University in 1979, Savell has been involved in teaching a wide variety of classes and mentoring a number of present and future leaders in academia, government, and industry. Since 1982, he has has taught more than 8,000 students, some of whom are second generation, in his Animal Science 307 “Meats” class.
He also teaches an undergraduate livestock and meat marketing class, a graduate course in carcass composition and quality, and team-teaches a graduate and undergraduate course in Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP) and a first-year seminar class on Texas barbecue.
Savell has been involved with National Beef Quality Audit.
For more information, please view the full release here.
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