Extension Contacts: Definitions and Examples for Unifas
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Extension Contacts: Definitions and Examples for Unifas

   

Extension Contacts: Definitions and Examples for Unifas1

Bryan D. Terry and Glenn D. Israel2

The purpose of this fact sheet is to describe how the Unifas software should be used to report Extension contacts. The fact sheet also defines the two types of contacts and provides examples for recording contacts. Accuracy in reporting these contacts is very important because the Extension contact information on race and gender is used to meet state and federal laws on affirmative action. Also, this data is used by the state of Florida as productivity measures for UF. The productivity measures, referred to as Research Delivery Units (RDU) consists of five (5) elements contained in Unifas. These include the number of publications developed, telephone calls, office visits, visits to clientele, and group attendance. For the purposes of this fact sheet, publications developed will not be discussed.

Extension Contacts

The Florida Cooperative Extension Service defines an Extension contact as having an intention to convey educational information and classifies the following as legitimate, reportable contacts:

To comply with accountability requirements, Unifas divides extension contacts into two sections, Clientele Contacts and Group Attendance, within an Extension Program ( Figure 1 ). In addition to the type of Extension contact, classifications for race-ethnicity are defined ( Figure 2 ).
Figure 1. Clientele Contacts and Group Attendance sections of an Extension program in Unifas.
Figure 2. Race-ethnicity classifications.

Clientele Contacts

The clientele contacts section of Unifas is used to record telephone calls, office visits, client visits, Email, radio/TV, Web site contacts, and other direct mail contacts. Clientele contacts are recorded in the Extension module of Unifas for each program. Federal affirmative action rules require clientele contacts to be recorded by ethnicity and gender categories. Unifas contains the categories for ethnicity and gender identification ( Figure 3 ). It is also understandable that many clientele contacts cannot be identified by race-ethnicity and gender. Unifas provides an 'Unknown' (Unk) category to enter clientele contacts where ethnicity and/or gender cannot be determined. For example, race-ethnicity and/or gender identification from telephone calls is often difficult to determine. Use the "Unk" fields for these entries. When inputting clientele contacts into Unifas, the totals for race-ethnicity and gender must be equal. Unifas will display an error message if this requirement is not met.
Figure 3. Data entry screen for Clientele Contacts.

A faculty member also is responsible for reporting clientele contacts for program assistants, support personnel, and volunteers that he/she supervises. Clientele contacts must be input into Unifas on an annual basis; however, it is recommended that clientele contacts be input into Unifas on a monthly basis. For frequently asked questions related to clientele contacts, refer to the FAQ section of this fact sheet.

Example 1: A horticulture agent has four Extension Programs. The agent will need to report the number of telephone calls, office visits, client visits, Email, radio/TV, Web site and direct mail contacts for each program. In addition, the agent will need to report the telephone calls, office visits, client visits, Email, and Radio/TV contacts for any program assistants, support staff, or volunteers such as Master Gardeners.

Example 2: An agent receives 50 telephone calls from other agents and state specialists in one year. In this example, no clientele contacts will be recorded. Only contacts from clientele are recorded in Unifas.

Table 1 provides some other examples for entering clientele contacts.

Group Attendance

Group attendance is a specific type of clientele contact and is recorded in Unifas at the activity level of an Extension program. Group attendance refers to the number of Extension clientele present in group settings. Group attendance is one of the five productivity measures used for UFduring the state budget process.

Group attendance should only be recorded in Unifas when the activity type is one of the following:

• Advisory Council meetings

*In-service training is a special case of group attendance, where agents train program assistants or specialists train agents. Report this group attendance in an Extension program activity with "In-Service Training" as the activity type ( Figure 5 ).

Federal affirmative action rules require group attendance contacts to be recorded by race-ethnicity and gender categories. Unifas contains the categories for race-ethnicity and gender identification ( Figure 4 ). Unifas provides an 'Unknown' (Unk) category to enter group attendance where ethnicity and/or gender cannot be determined. When inputting group attendance into Unifas, the totals for ethnicity and gender must be equal. Unifas will display an error message if this requirement is not met.

Faculty are responsible for providing a sign-in log for all Extension clientele participating in group settings. The sign-in log should contain the name and date of the event together with space provided for clientele to enter their name, address, ethnicity, and gender. It is also understandable that participants will not enter all of the information on a sign-in log. There is no requirement for participants to provide this information.

Example 1: An Extension agent meets 4 times with an advisory council. Report each date that the advisory council met and the group attendance by race-ethnicity and gender ( Figure 4 ).

Example 2: A specialist conducts in-service training for 32 Extension agents, paraprofessionals, and staff. Report group attendance of 32 in an Extension program activity with an Activity Type of "In-Service Training" ( Figure 5 ).

Table 2 provides some other examples for entering group attendance.

Figure 4. Advisory Council Activity displaying Group Attendance in Unifas.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is responsible for reporting?

In accordance with Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, USDA regulations require that each Extension employee involved in the delivery of educational programs is responsible for reporting Extension contacts across ethnic and gender lines. This means that both professionals and paraprofessionals who are working with the public are required to keep a record of Extension contacts (Taylor and Israel, 1994).

What is an Extension Contact?

The Florida Cooperative Extension Service defines an Extension contact as having an intention to convey educational information (Taylor and Israel, 1994). Unifas provides two sections within an Extension program to record Extension contacts. Clientele contacts include telephone calls, office visits, visits to clientele, letters/email, radio/tv, and web site contacts. These contacts are recorded at the Extension program level. Group attendance refers to the Extension clientele present in group settings. These contacts are recorded at the Activity level of an Extension program.

How often should I report Extension contacts?

It is recommended that clientele contacts and group attendance be recorded monthly in Unifas. Unifas allows users to enter information as often as needed.

How do I report In-Service Training that I conduct for other Extension professionals and paraprofessionals?

Create an activity in the most appropriate Extension program and select "In-Service Training" as the activity type.

How should I report contacts where the subject matter I am teaching crosses two or more Extension programs?

Make a judgment call and record the contacts in one Extension program or split the contacts among multiple Extension programs.

How do I maintain an accurate count of my Extension contacts?

The recommended procedure for maintaining accurate clientele contacts is to keep a monthly log of telephone calls, office visits, visits to clientele, letters/email, radio/tv, and web site contacts close to your telephone for easy access. Doug Mayo of Jackson County Cooperative Extension has created an Extension contact log to keep track of his clientele contacts. We have an adapted version of this log and it is available at: http://pdec.ifas.ufl.edu/contactlog.

As for Group Attendance, a sign-in sheet is required for all participants of group events. The sign-in sheet should contain the title and date of the event, the participant name, address, ethnicity, and gender. A group event log is available at: http://pdec.ifas.ufl.edu/contactlog.

Figure 5. Reporting Group Attendance for In-Service Training.

References and Further Information

Tables

Table 1. Common situations for counting clientele contacts.

Situation

Number of Contacts

 Where to Report in Unifas


 Radio Button
In response to a telephone call, a secretary reads part of an educational pamphlet to the client and subsequently a faculty horticulturalist describes recommendations.

2

 Clientele Contacts


 Telephone
An automated phone system counts the number of incoming and outgoing phone calls.

0

 Not Reported
A secretary gives an educational pamphlet to a client who visits the Extension office and subsequently a faculty horticulturalist describes recommendations.

2

 Clientele Contacts


 Office visit
A Secretary maintains a log of each person who walks through the Extension office

0

 Not Reported
A faculty member sends educational information by email and then stores the email in a separate email folder

1

 Clientele Contacts


 Email
During a visit with one producer, the agent receives an invitation for lunch at the local diner. The agent meets 10 more producers who receive educational information.

11

 Clientele Contacts


 Client Visit
A County Extension Director attends a meeting with county financial services and talks with 10 people to learn about vendors, deadlines, and personnel issues.

0

 Not Reported
An agent visited 25 buyers at a livestock auction in order to build relationships.

0

 Not Reported
An agent had a five minute broadcast every weekday morning at 7 a.m., which reached 30,000 listeners as shown through the ratings.

7,800,000

 Clientele Contacts


 Radio

Table 2. Common situations for counting group attendance.

Situation

Number of Contacts

 Where to Report in Unifas
4-H co-sponsors "Ag in the Classroom" which have 100 different participants each day for five days. Each child attended 10 30-minute classes taught by 10 teachers. (5 days x 100 children x 10 instructors).

5,000

 Report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program.
According to 4- H club records, a 4-H club met 9 times during the year. Club minutes document that total participation at the 9 club meetings was 205. Note: club attendance should be documented; estimates should be avoided.

205

 Report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program.
Three Master Gardeners taught a workshop on making rain barrels to 50 people on three different occasions. (3 volunteers x 50 participants x 3 activities).

450

 Report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program.
An agent determines that 400 of the 500 newsletters placed at an Extension fair booth were distributed.

0

 Do not report Newsletters distributed as group attendance.
Total fair attendance at the county fair is determined to be 9,500.

0

 Do not report fair attendance. Attendance at a county fair is not in itself an Extension contact.
An FCS agent teaches a series of 3 workshops on family budgeting, preparing wills, and purchasing life insurance to 30 county employees. (3 events x 30 participants).

90

 Report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program.
Two agents teach to a group of 90 participants of a pesticide safety workshop for 1 hour each. The agents are not part of a team program.

90

 Each agent should report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program.
Two 4-H agents teach a group of 100 volunteers in providing safe an secure learning environments for youth. This is a "Team" program and both agents are listed in the Personnel section of the Extension program.

100

 Report contacts in the Group Attendance section of the most appropriate activity of an Extension program. Each agent should have days expended for the activity in the Activity Days section. This will insure that each agent gets credit for the contacts.


Footnotes

1. This document is AEC 377, a publication of the Program Development and Evaluation Center, Agricultural Education and Communication Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date May 2006. Visit the EDIS Web Site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2. Bryan D. Terry, coordinator, statistical research, and Glenn D. Israel, professor, Agricultural Education and Communications Department; Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611. The authors wish to thank Larry Arrington, Marilyn Norman, Nick Place, and Doug Mayo for their contributions to this fact sheet.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.


Copyright Information

This document is copyrighted by the University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) for the people of the State of Florida. UF/IFAS retains all rights under all conventions, but permits free reproduction by all agents and offices of the Cooperative Extension Service and the people of the State of Florida. Permission is granted to others to use these materials in part or in full for educational purposes, provided that full credit is given to the UF/IFAS, citing the publication, its source, and date of publication.