Near the end of June, shortly before stink bug season began, I had the pleasure of following Virginia IPM Coordinator Ames Herbert during one of his “typical” days. I’m being facetious, of course, because there are no typical days in the life of anyone in Extension. In fact, as Ames and I headed out to a grower’s field to examine an infestation of grasshoppers, he said, “I’m an IPM Coordinator who doesn’t have time to coordinate.”
As Virginia Tech deals with cutbacks, Ames said, administrators are refraining from filling positions. With fewer Extension agents to visit growers, Extension specialists are having to do more, with fewer resources.
How are cutbacks affecting your land grant university, and how are they affecting your ability to teach growers and others about IPM?
Filed under: Budget Tagged: | Extension, IPM Coordinator, University budgets
