Improving Extension Programs: Putting Public Value Stories and Statements to Work

Extension has begun to embrace the public value movement that originated in public administration circles. The motivation appears to be driven by external accountability rather than internal interest in improving programming and results. The development of public value statements and stories can be used throughout the program cycle and for other program and professional tasks to help address internal and external cries for the articulation of public value. Extension workers should use public value statements and stories in their work on a daily basis in a variety of ways to enhance their effectiveness and the transformative impact of their programs. The public value movement found throughout public administration has spread to Extension work in the last decade. As a result, numerous presentations and workshops have been conducted to help Extension staff learn the differences between private and public value derived from programming and how to measure and articulate public value through the creation of impact statements and stories. (Franz, 2011; Kalambokidis, 2004; Kalambokidis 2011). The focus on public value in Extension work appears to be externally fueled by accountability requirements rather than an internal norm to improve Extension programming. Public value should be included in a variety of ways in the Extension programming cycle and related products to improve programming processes and results. Figure 1 shows that Extension educators approach programming in a variety of ways. This model focuses on "process" and "content" as the determinants of approaches to Extension work. Process refers to the ways educational programs are delivered. Content refers to the information shared to drive a learner's change in knowledge or behavior. Combining these two determinants creates four domains describing approaches to Extension work (Franz & Townson, 2008). Nancy K. Franz Associate Dean for Extension and Outreach Director, ISU Extension and Outreach to Families Iowa State University Extension and Outreach nfranz@iastate.edu Figure 1. Extension Educational Approaches Public value most often is realized through the transformative education approach to Extension work. Social, economic, and environmental condition changes desired for public value require transformative education practices, including critical events and critical reflection (Franz, Garst, Baughman, Smith, & Peters 2009). However, Extension workers sometimes fail to use transformative approaches to realize public value. They also fail to measure and articulate program value in spite of a variety of potential uses of public value statements and stories to improve programming and gain recognition for their good work. Program Improvement and Public Value Stories and Statements Most Extension systems have been creating public value statements and stories for reporting program impact to stakeholders. The development of these stories requires strong and persistent leadership to help staff and faculty change because measuring and articulating public value requires an intentional process and behavior changes that can take time (Franz, 2011; Kalambokidis, 2004; Kalambokidis, 2011). Public value stories and statements can be used in many important ways to improve programming by: Framing questions for program needs assessment and environmental scanning Selecting programs to develop based on the importance of the issue for the public and the organizational capacity available to deliver it Building public value into program design using logic models to set condition outcomes (i.e., public value) and determine what outcomes will be measured Including time in program delivery to reflect on and measure the public value of the program June 2013 Improving Extension Programs: Putting Public Value Stories and Statements to Work JOE 51(3) ©2013 Extension Journal Inc. 2 Conducting and analyzing data after the program to determine anticipated and unanticipated public value Specific daily uses of public value statements and stories include: Media releases Policy change proposals Reports and publications Conference presentation and poster proposals Volunteer recruitment Partnership development