Personnel
Awards
Cooperative Extension Service
Excellence Awards Program
Policy Number: C.E.S.P. 1-74
Date Revised: 7-7-2004
Supersedes: 6-16-2004 |
Summary: Establishes policy for six major awards intended to foster
teamwork, professional development, diversity, and innovation and creativity.
Extension Excellence Awards
The Extension Excellence Awards are intended to recognize candidates’
efforts and achievements over time. Awards are given in the following
categories:
Diversity
The Diversity Award recognizes efforts toward the promotion of an Extension
culture that values, respects, accepts, and enables employees and clientele who
are different with regard to national origin, race, color, age, disability,
gender, socio-economic class, religion, and/or urban or rural location.
Classified and non-classified employees are eligible. Teams and individuals may
both compete. Winner receives $5,000 in program enhancement funds.
Issue Team Award
The Issue Team Award recognizes exceptional achievement by a team composed of
employees from across departmental and county boundaries. Issue teams are
formed for a specific project or convened to address a particular issue.
Classified and non-classified employees are eligible. Only teams may
compete - individual employees are not eligible. Program enhancement
funds of $5,000 will be awarded to the winning team. Team members will determine
a plan for spending the award dollars, subject to approval by the Associate Vice
President for Agriculture – Extension.
County Team Award
The County Team Award recognizes the county whose staff best demonstrates a
consistent and cohesive team approach to programs and county office operations.
Only teams consisting of an entire county office (classified and non-classified
staff) may compete. Program enhancement funds
of $5,000 will be awarded to the winning team. Team members will determine a
plan for spending the award dollars, subject to approval by the Associate Vice
President for Agriculture – Extension.
Unit Team Award
The Unit Team Award recognizes the section or department whose classified and
non-classified staff best demonstrates a consistent and cohesive team approach
to the programs and operations of the unit. Only teams consisting of an
entire unit (department or section) may compete. Program
enhancement funds of $5,000 will be awarded to the winning team. Team members
will determine a plan for spending the award dollars, subject to approval by the
Associate Vice President for Agriculture – Extension.
Early Career Awards
The Early Career Awards are intended to recognize, reward, and motivate
employees who, early in their careers with Extension, have demonstrated
initiative, involvement, leadership, and excellence in support of the mission
and goals of the Cooperative Extension Service. Individual classified and
non-classified employees with 0-5 years service with ACES are eligible.
The recipient in each of the three categories below receives a bonus check of
$1,000 (gross amount) to use at the employee’s discretion. The three awards will
be funded outside the organization.
- County Extension Agent
- Non-Classified Employee (from a program or support area)
- Classified Employee
Innovation Award
The Innovation Award recognizes dynamic new thinking or processes that
enhance Extension’s mission and/or operations. It recognizes departures –
entirely new ways to approach a problem – rather than rewarding successes
achieved using established approaches or technologies. Classified and
non-classified employees are eligible. Teams and individuals may both
compete. This award is not necessarily conferred each
year. An individual recipient receives $2,000, whereas a winning team
divides the $2,000 award among the team members (gross amount). The award
will be funded outside the organization.
The Committee
The Associate Vice-President for Agriculture-Extension appoints a ten-member
Extension Excellence Awards Committee, with representation from among the
various categories of employees: classified; non-classified Ag, FCS/4-H
and Support Services; LRSO; county; and past award winners. The
Associate Vice-President for Agriculture-Extension designates the committee
chair.
Committee members are on staggered four-year appointments. In addition
to the ten voting members, there is an ex officio member who will remain on the
committee over time to coordinate and provide administrative continuity and
stability. After the first year, the ex officio member will not be
eligible to vote or serve as committee chair.
Membership on this committee is recognized as a job responsibility, with
appropriate allocation of time, travel, and professional development credit.
Travel associated with committee membership will be supported by Administration
through county and departmental budgets.
Nomination and Selection
In January, the committee will call for suggestions of employees and teams
who might qualify as candidates for the Extension Excellence Awards. The
committee will contact suggested candidates and request documentation of the
project, program, team effort, innovation, or achievement that will be
considered for the competition. The committee will recommend recipients
for each award to the Associate Vice-President for Agriculture-Extension.
Winners will be announced and presented with their awards at the annual Employee
Recognition Luncheon.
Award winners may not be nominated for subsequent annual awards on the basis
of the same award-winning project, program, or achievement.
Teams may only be nominated for one team award per year. Employees
may be nominated for an individual award and also nominated as member of a team
competing for a different award.
Administration reserves the right to cancel or reduce the amount of the
awards when budgetary constraints adversely affect Extension’s operations.
Forms
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