An exploration of a rural Arkansas K-12 educational leader's and community's social media use

This exploratory qualitative case study was designed to examine a rural Arkansas K-12 educational leader's and community's communication using social media. Hoffman and Novak's (1996) model of marketing communications in a hypermedia computer-mediated environment served as the conceptual framework for analyzing the leader's social media use from the perspectives of students, parents, and faculty/staff members. The rural K-12 school was located in the northwest region of Arkansas. The study's participants included an educational leader nationally recognized for her use of technology and her students, parents, and faculty/staff members. Through information-gathering questionnaires, interviews, focus group sessions, observations, and document gathering, data were collected and triangulated. Three themes emerged through data analysis. The themes included: recognition of and appreciation for Mrs. Johnson's authentic proficient professional social media use on sites such as Twitter; the power of connectedness both in her relationships with students and with others around the nation through social media; and the positive impact of Mrs. Johnson's professional social media use on the school and its stakeholders, including the faculty/staff, students, and its reputation. These themes furnish an understanding of the phenomenon of a rural K-12 educational leader's professional social media use as perceived by faculty/staff, students, and parents. This study's findings indicated that a rural K-12 educational leader's students, parents, and faculty/staff positively perceive the leader's professional social media use as a sign of leadership in technology use, a model of responsible social media use, a fount of resources and ideas to be shared, and as a source of school pride and culture. Professional social media use may also function as an instantaneously accessible personal learning network for educational leaders, supplying them with peer-connections, concepts, and information free from geographical limitations. While students, parents, and faculty/staff members may be novice users of technology or social media, they believe that the educational leader's professional social media use benefits the students and the school

5 steps to buying meat direct from the farm

Written by Jennifer Lutes (Field Specialist in Agricultural Business), Kyle Whittaker (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment), Eric Meusch (Field Specialist in Livestock), Rachel Hopkins, (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment), Amie Breshears (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment)."If you plan to buy an animal to have processed into packaged meat, then the process can present some learning curves. This publication can help you navigate that process in five steps. Identify desired meat products. Purchase animal from livestock producer. Find a processor that fits your needs. Understand your costs. Consider timing."--Page 1.Jennifer Lutes (Field Specialist in Agricultural Business), Kyle Whittaker (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment), Eric Meusch (Field Specialist in Livestock), Rachel Hopkins (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment), Amie Breshears (County Engagement Specialist in Agriculture and Environment)New 5/22Includes bibliographical reference

Common Core State Standards (CCSS) – Higher Education’s Role In Developing Education Professionals: An Evaluation of the Network for Instructional Support and Enhancement (NISE) Program at the University of Central Missouri

With the implementation of Common Core State Standards (CCSS), K-12 teachers, counselors, and administrators will be held accountable for meeting the explicitly defined standards of college and career readiness for every high school graduate.  An equivalent and reciprocal challenge is also placed upon universities to prepare future education professionals to successfully meet the expectations for CCSS downstream outcomes.  This will require significant changes to higher education processes to ensure rigorous teacher preparation which includes not only best practices in pedagogy, but also full understanding of the standards set forth by the CCSS.  However, opportunities for developing in pedagogy and CCSS do not commonly exist.  In an attempt to improve pedagogical rigor of new faculty members, the Network for Instructional Support and Enhancement (NISE) Program at the University of Central Missouri was initiated in the fall semester of 2012.  Comprised of an orientation and mentoring process, this study provides an evaluation of the programs strengths, deficiencies and specific suggestions for enhancing the program.  The research is limited because it was conducted at the mid-point of the pilot delivery of the complete program.   Qualitative analysis was conducted on data collected from university senior leaders, NISE Program committee members and new faculty about their perceptions of the program’s delivery and impact