Jason Henderson, director of the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service, believes the agricultural outreach program can continue to help communities grow like it always has, but the key to future success is staying true to the fundamental mission of delivering "the latest, greatest technology" to communities.
Appointed to his position nearly a year ago, Henderson was the keynote speaker at the LaGrange County Extension board meeting last Thursday in Wolcottville.
Henderson is an economist who previously served with the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. He grew up on an Iowa dairy farm and earned his master's and doctoral degrees from Purdue.
Speaking to the LaGrange County audience, Henderson said his research with the Federal Reserve Bank revealed why some rural communities grow while others struggle. Those that grow do so because of two reasons, skills and access to technology and innovation.
"Isn't that Extension," he asked. "Isn't Extension just simply educating people from young to old, bringing out the latest innovations and research that's coming off on campus . . .?"
The challenge facing Purdue Extension, he said, is "to do what we've been doing for 100 years, a little bit better."
"In many ways, it's going back to the future," he said. "It's going back to the foundations and fundamentals of what Extension has done in terms of lifelong learning throughout our history."
Henderson said communities have always looked to Extension for help, and it's important for that to continue. He wants the Extension service to partner with communities to help them reach their goals. However, there are two challenges: changing demographics and technology.
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