EXTENSION DIVISION. 16T 



REPORT OF THE DIVISION OF EXTENSION WORK. 



President F. S. Kedzie. 



Dear Sir — During the year the greatest effort has been continued 

 to improve the extension organization for carrying the service of the 

 College, the Experiment Station, and the U. S. Department of Agriculture 

 to those who cannot come to the College. The Extension Service recog- 

 nizes its great responsibilit}' and duty in attempting to secure the adoption 

 into common practice of the practical and useful information made avail- 

 able by these institutions through years of investigation and research. 

 To carry on this service the organization has five closely related groups; 

 viz., 



1. Department of Specialists. 



2. County Agricultural Agents. 



3. Home Economics Workers. 



4. Boys' and Girls' Club Workers. 



5. ^Market Agents. ' 



Within each count}- having an agricultural agent, farm bureaus have 

 been developed through which the above five groups of workers can reach 

 each town and communit}- of the count}'. 



In brief, the County Farm Bureau consists of a central directing body 

 known as an executive committee. Each member of this committee is 

 designated as the county leader of some one of the agricultural problems 

 chosen for attention during the year and for which he is qualified to act as 

 leader. A committee of one or more farmers is appointed for each of the 

 active communities, each committeeman being chosen as leader of some 

 proposed line of work. Each executive committeeman, together with the 

 community committeeman assigned to the same problem constitute the 

 county project committee. This body outlines the program of the bureau 

 in that special line and carries it forward to completion. 



It has been encouraging during the year to observe that this form of 

 organization has accomplished results on problems needing the combined 

 effort of all farmers within the county. Among such problems may be 

 mentioned the control of grasshoppers, the elimination of scrub sires, 

 the dissemination of improved grains, the control of plant diseases and 

 the formation of marketing organizations. 



The Smith-Lever Act approved May, 1914, not only provides funds 

 for the work, but stipulates that it shall be cooperative with the Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture. This Act defines cooperative extension work in 

 Section II. 



''That cooperative agricultural extension work shall 

 consist of the gi\'ing of instruction and practical demonstra- 

 tions in agriculture and home economics to persons not at- 

 tending or resident in said colleges in the several communi- 

 ties, and imparting to such persons information on said sub- 

 jects through field demonstrations, publications and other- 

 wise; and this work shaU be carried on in such manner as may 

 be mutually agreed upon by the Secretary of Agriculture 

 and the state agricultural college or colleges receiving the 

 benefits of this act." 



The projects approved by the Secretary of Agriculture are listed below 

 and are reported upon by the leader of each as appended hereto. 



