Voters will elect five members of the Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Greene County Extension council from a slate of five candidates at the Nov. 6 general election.
“The council members elected this year will be involved in bringing educational opportunities to Greene County for the next four years,” Lori Mannel, County Extension director said. ISU Extension and Outreach Greene County educational programming is a cooperative effort involving local citizens, Iowa State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Extension council members are elected at large, and all voters in the county are eligible to vote for five candidates.
Candidates on this year’s ballot include Bruce Bahnson and incumbent Pam Olerich of Jefferson, Kyle Niles of rural Paton, Jill Rasmussen of rural Jefferson, and Jessi Riley of rural Rippey.
Council members whose terms expire this year are Jacob Bohnet of Paton, Joe Gannon of rural Rippey, Loel Larson of rural Jefferson, Olerich, and Marilyn Parker of rural Churdan. Carryover council members whose terms continue beyond the end of 2018 are Tom Heater, Doug Rieder and Bob Smith, all of Jefferson, and Shari Minnehan of rural Churdan.
Successful candidates will take office in January 2019. Extension council members make policy, programming and budget decisions for ISU Extension and Outreach Greene County.
County councils contribute to a unique attribute of ISU Extension and Outreach – they bring research-based programs in human sciences, agriculture and natural resources, 4-H youth development, and community and economic development from Iowa State University to local communities. Council members and some 17,000 Iowa volunteers work with ISU Extension and Outreach to increase the staying power. Through partnerships, they provide resources, research and education to assist Iowans.
ISU Extension and Outreach has 100 field offices, providing local access to extension programs in all 99 counties. For more information, visit www.extension.iastate.edu or contact Lori Mannel at 515-386-2138.
