Extension oversight: preliminary budget snapshots, $11,550 carryover request and a new area director hire

At the committee meeting staff presented preliminary budget snapshots and a request for specific carryovers while saying most budget categories were on target.

The director reported the program ended the year close to budget overall and was underspent in travel and operating categories. Staff requested a carryover of $11,550 earmarked for an outdoor classroom project and 4‑H fencing; installation of the fencing remains pending city ordinance approval, the director said.

“...we ended the year on target, with revenue, labor, and capital categories, and we underspent in traveling and operating categories,” the director said, and added the carryover had not yet posted in the county financial system.

Staff told the committee they will provide monthly budget snapshot spreadsheets going forward so members can monitor the program’s fiscal status between annual budget cycles.

In personnel news, the director announced the hiring of a new Area Extension Director, Liliana Ramirez Gonzalez, who has worked in extension for 11 years and will be mentored through the transition; staff described county assignment shifts as part of the transition plan. The meeting transcript lists a start timing as “the 20 third,” but no clear calendar date was provided in the record.

Committee members also discussed a separate personnel item: resignation from a 0.25 regional dairy educator position that had been shared across four counties. Members debated whether to seek recent graduates or more experienced ag agents, noted high workloads for staff covering multiple counties, and generally supported refilling the position to restore outreach capacity for farmers.

The committee approved routine meeting minutes earlier in the session and adjourned by voice vote; no formal funding approvals or hires were voted on at the meeting itself.