Sessions about Academic Programs

This breakout session will demonstrate new technologies used to enhance education and research through 3D simulations. The DEAL Lab at CIT is working with a system which interfaces a 3D portable system with a 3D immersive environment to enhance the student, instructor or researcher's educational experience with a virtual model or environment. The group is comprised of people who have been developing educational modules of this nature for several years. These specialists have consequently developed a vast knowledge, respect from the campus community and vested interest in the field. This technology has evolved into a much more affordable system over recent years and its applicability for educational use is undeniable. Our team is currently focusing efforts toward the generation of more 3D media. The group has been working with the departments of Entomology, Biochemistry, Veterinary Science and Animal Science, to render learning modules to teach complex visual concepts for students. Some of the key features of this 3D demonstraton are the 3D immersive environment, portability and enhanced content development.

Agricultural journalism and communications can be more than writing about cows. However, the curricula progression from introductory agriculture courses and basic writing and visual literacy courses to the specialized, major-related courses can discourage students wanting to get into the glitz and glamour the programs can offer. The Agricultural Leadership, Education, and Communication department at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has developed an early field experience for students emphasizing career exploration and networking opportunities. This session will provide an overview of the multi-faceted early field experience program and will allow for a discussion of what other programs do for introducing students to the opportunities in agricultural journalism and communications.

Think research is inaccessible or even otherwordly? Not when it comes from members of the ACE Research SIG. Check out this session with posters from the presentations selected as the top efforts for the 2007 ACE Preconference Research Symposium. Presenters will focus on what their research means to communications practitioners on the ground.

Listening is often the most important communication skill identified by business leaders; yet, we spend little time teaching it. In this session, we will be providing information about training resources for listening skills and discuss applying those materials to training Extension professionals and others. In addition, we'll go through a couple of training exercises and brainstorm means to make the exercises even more effective.

With more and more Americans eating out, it is critical that all foodservice workers learn about safe food handling. Without proper training, workers might improperly handle food and as a result foodborne illness could occur. The National Restaurant Association (NRA) estimates that a single foodborne illness outbreak could cost a restaurant an estimated $75,000. Chinese is the third most commonly spoken language in U.S. foodservice operations, following English and Spanish. In many areas of the U.S., food safety educators only speak English and so it is difficult for them to effectively train Chinese–speaking foodservice workers. This website was designed to help food safety educators reach this important group — Chinese-speaking foodservice workers. The website is divided into two sections — Student Tools and Educator Tools. All materials are based on the 2005 FDA Food Code

America is badly “out- of- shape”, according to health scientists; and it's not just grown-ups, but young people, too. Researchers predict that, if things don't change, today's children will grow up to be less healthy than their parents! Eat, Move, Learn enables you to take up this important current issue while also addressing national academic standards for sixth grade science... all in a way that comes alive in the classroom. Eat, Move, Learn is organized around the idea that we must "balance" the energy we take in through our food and the energy we spend in physical activity. Eat, Move, Learn helps you and your class to analyze the problems of food and fitness, find promising solutions to energy imbalance, and design a study to test your ideas. Eat, Move, Learn consists of 4 modules and 13 lessons that a class can use sequentially or individually.

This session will showcase an exercise DVD developed for children that is an exciting story based adventure. Find out what it took to get this complex animation and live action project off the ground. We will discuss the production process we used from script, to storyboard, to filming an actor on green screen, a new keying process, an the integration of Flash and AfterEffects for the final compositing.

Peer-review gives Extension publications the experts’ seal of approval, letting your audience know that the information they’re reading is technically sound, reliable, and current. But a peer-review “seal” will only be respected if the system that you use to review content is solid and transparent. Slow or inefficient peer review can also discourage researchers from submitting manuscripts for review. A panel of experienced editors will discuss the ins and outs (and ups and downs) of managing peer review, including working with associate editors and authors, creating and distributing forms, and handling deadlines. Presenters will give short presentations about their own peer-review systems, followed by a facilitated discussion and plenty of time for Q&A. Sample documents will be provided. Please upload peer-review information to share with your colleagues at: http://acepeerreviewinfo.wikispaces.com/space.menu

Last year, 27 agricultural communications students and faculty took a trip. And they discovered something: people communicate about agriculture in Scotland, too. Now that got the faculty thinking (which usually causes some trouble). Could professionals in countries other than Scotland teach students a thing or two about agricultural communications? Would a bunch of students and faculty have anything of interest to share with communicators in another country? Then the faculty started thinking even more (and that can really cause some trouble). What if they organized another trip to some place like Greece, Russia, or Azerbaijan? And what if they took both students and ACE professionals so they could all travel together, experiencing new cultures and learning from each other? “Sounds like fun,” they said. “Let’s do it!” This session will explore how agricultural communications faculty, professionals, and students can combine international travel with professional development. The session will begin with a review of the 2006 ACE/ACT Scotland Study Tour and will end with a brainstorming session about the next ACE/ACT international study tour in 2008.

During 2006, the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Office of Communications expanded our role in supporting our college’s recruitment efforts. In the face of declining enrollment and shrinking degree offerings, an energetic new dean gave refreshed purpose and creative freedom in the recruitment of freshman and transfer students. A writer, marketer, graphic designer and college recruiter met to outline a plan for the development and mass distribution of new, catchy materials to target audiences. We are gaining students, and interest in the college among middle and high school students is increasing. Thanks to a directed effort to tell our story around the entire state, we are rapidly changing students’ opinions of the college. Walk away armed with a plan of action to target your key audiences, prioritize your production of printed and electronic materials and find new ways to spark interest in your programs.