Editing Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service

{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox government agency
|agency_name     = Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service
|logo            = Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service logo.svg
|logo_width      = 
|logo_caption    = 
|seal            =
|seal_width      =
|seal_caption    =
|formed          = 1915
|jurisdiction    = [[Texas]]
|headquarters    = [[College Station, Texas]]
|employees       = 1351 full-time, 527 part-time<ref name="EmployeeReport">{{cite web|url=http://agextension.tamu.edu/report/FY08_Qtr1Extension.pdf |title=FTE State Employee Quarterly Report Texas AgriLife Extension Service (#555) for the Quarter Ending November 30, 2007 |publisher=Texas AgriLife Extension Service |accessdate=January 14, 2008 }}{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
|budget          = $113 million (FY 2013, excludes $35 million in local operating funds from county commissioners' courts)<ref>{{cite web|title=About the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service|url=http://agrilife.org/agrilife-agencies/extension-home/}}</ref>
|chief1_name     = Dr. Rick Avery<ref>{{cite web|title=Administrative Leadership|url=https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/about/administration/|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140705161806/http://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/about/leadership/ |archivedate=2014-07-05}}</ref>
|chief1_position = Director
|chief2_name     = Dr. Angela Burkham
|chief2_position = Associate Director - State Operations
|chief3_name     = Dr. Jeff Ripley
|chief3_position =  Associate Director - County Programs
|
|parent_agency   = [[Texas A&M AgriLife]]
|website         = http://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/
|footnotes       =
}}

'''Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service''' was formally established in 1915 after the 1914 passing of the [[Smith-Lever Act]] and in conjunction with [[Texas A&M University]]. Originally named Texas Agricultural Extension Service, then later Texas Cooperative Extension, the name Texas AgriLife Extension Service was adopted on January 1, 2008. A&M was added to the agency name on September 1, 2012 as a result of a Texas A&M University System change to strengthen the association with Texas A&M.<ref>{{cite web|title=AgriLife Agencies Include A&M to Align with Statewide System |url=http://www.myhighplains.com/story/agrilife-agencies-include-am-to-align-with-statewi/d/story/u42AG-b6BEeaan_kbD0B3w |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715004309/http://www.myhighplains.com/story/agrilife-agencies-include-am-to-align-with-statewi/d/story/u42AG-b6BEeaan_kbD0B3w |archivedate=2014-07-15 }}</ref>  The primary mission of AgriLife Extension is to provide educational outreach programs and services to the citizens of [[Texas]]. In conjunction with [[Texas A&M AgriLife Research]], the Extension faculty members conduct research and bring practical applications of those research findings to the people of Texas.<ref name="OverviewFAQ" />

==Programs==

Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, in partnership with federal, state, and local governments, as well as others, serves the state of Texas through relevant, research-backed, community-based education. The mission of AgriLife Extension is to improve the lives of people, businesses and communities across Texas and beyond. The educational programs, activities, and resources of AgriLife Extension are generally organized under one of four broad program areas:

*Agriculture and Natural Resources
*Family and Consumer Sciences
*4-H and Youth Development
*Community Economic Development

==History==
The early history of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service is a blending of the history of the [[Cooperative extension service]] itself, [[Texas A&M University]] and [[Prairie View A&M University]].  The first step towards the creation of Cooperative Extension occurred in 1862 with the passing of the [[Morill Act|Morrill Land-Grant College Act]].  This law granted every state {{convert|30000|acre|km2}} of public land for each of its [[United States House of Representatives|House]] and [[United States Senate|Senate]] members, with the land being used to endow [[land-grant colleges]] for the teaching of agriculture and other practical arts.<ref name="75YearsofCE">{{cite book |title=Taking the University to the People: Seventy-five Years of Cooperative Extension |url=https://archive.org/details/takinguniversity00rasm |url-access=registration |last=Rasmussen |first=Wayne  |year=1989 |publisher=Iowa State University Press |location=Ames, Iowa |isbn=1-55753-267-2 |oclc=18835646 }}</ref> This led to the [[Texas Legislature]] founding the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas (referred to as Texas A.M.C. for short in 1871, which was funded through the Morill Act and was Texas' first public institution of higher education.<ref name="TAMUHandbook">{{cite web|title=Texas A&M University|publisher=[[The Handbook of Texas]]|url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/kct08|accessdate=January 19, 2008|author=Henry C. Dethloff}}</ref> In compliance with the Morrill Act, in 1876 the [[Fifteenth Texas Legislature]] endowed the Agricultural and Mechanical College for the Benefit of Colored Youth (the future Prairie View A&M University) as part of Texas A.M.C.<ref name="PrairieViewHandbook">{{cite web|title=Prairie View A&M University |publisher=[[The Handbook of Texas]] |url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/kcp06|accessdate=January 19, 2008 |author=George Ruble Woolfolk}}</ref> In 1890, an amendment to the Morrill Act was passed to deal with the issue of providing steading funding to the land-grant colleges and to prohibit racial discrimination at any of the funded colleges.<ref name="75YearsofCE" />

During its early years, despite its name Texas A.M.C. didn't teach any agricultural classes at all, leading to protests by farmer groups and much of college's leadership being replaced. Despite the new curriculum in agriculture and engineering, the college's enrollment continued to drop.  The land-grant colleges around the country were struggling.  With the ample land available in the West, most farmers had little incentive to adopt [[intensive farming]] methods and other advanced agricultural technologies.  As with Texas A.M.C., the agricultural colleges were being criticized for not actually giving their students the training that would enable them to return to their family farms, and instead the graduates were leaving the farm life altogether. For most observers, however, the biggest issue was that there was no solid agricultural research on which to base the practical teaching being attempted, so to fill this need Congress passed the [[Hatch Act of 1887|Hatch Experiment Station Act of 1887]], which provided funding for agricultural experiment stations in each state.<ref name="75YearsofCE" />  This led to the founding of the [[Texas AgriLife Research|Texas Agricultural Experiment Station]] in 1887 at Texas A.M.C. This new organization was given the task of conducting research in all aspects of crop and livestock operations.<ref name="HistoricBrazos">{{cite book |title=Historic Brazos County: An Illustrated History |last1=Borden |first1=Robert |year=2005 |others=Commissioned by the [[Brazos Heritage Society]] |publisher=Historical Publishing Network |location=[[San Antonio, Texas]] |isbn=1-893619-41-9 |oclc=173165657 |chapter=Sharing the Heritage |page=92}}</ref>

The founding of the Experiment Stations was considered a big step towards improving farming, however  the Experiment Station personnel soon realized that without a way to effectively communicate their findings to farmers, all their effort was for not.  While they made attempts at out-reach, the results were limited and required diverting critical funds away from their core mission: research.<ref name="75YearsofCE" /> In 1903, [[Seaman Asahel Knapp]] (1831-1911), a [[US Department of Agriculture]] agent, created two demonstration farms - the Walter C. Porter Demonstration Farm near Terrell, and the Greenville Demonstration Farm near Greenville - where he could show other farmers how new farming techniques and production methods could benefit them.  In 1906, William C. Crider was appointed by Knapp as the first county agricultural agent in Texas (Smith County), and the first in the nation to serve a single county. Tom M. Marks organized the first Boys' Corn Club in Texas in Jack County, and this forerunner of Four-H Club activities became important. Girls' clubs, home demonstration, farmers' institutes, and the establishment of a Department of Extension at Texas A&M followed. The Texas legislature passed laws authorizing the county commissioners' court to provide and fund offices and conduct extension work in agriculture and home economics with Texas A&M. On January 16, 1912, in Milam County, Mrs. Edna W. Trigg became the first woman agent in the state. By 1913 demonstrations, shows, and fairs were common throughout Texas.<ref name="HistoricBrazos" />

As word of the work of Knapp and the others spread, Congress took notice.  Impressed by the success, Congress passed the [[Smith-Lever Act]] on May 8, 1914, which gave states the ability to establish official extension agencies affiliated with their land-grant universities to help "extend" the research findings of the colleges and Experiment Stations in practical ways that helped the citizens in every county.<ref name="ExtensionHandbook">{{cite web|title=Texas Agricultural Extension Service |publisher=[[The Handbook of Texas]] |url=https://tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/amtpw|accessdate=January 19, 2008 |author=Irvin M. May, Jr.}}</ref>  Texas quickly took advantage of this new act, forming the Texas Agricultural Extension Service in June of the same year and associating it with Texas A.M.C.<ref name="HistoricBrazos" /> The Texas legislature formally accepted the provisions of the Smith-Lever Act on January 29, 1915.

In 1948, Texas A&M formed the [[Texas A&M University System]], incorporating the Extension agency and six related agencies which are still part of the system today.<ref name="OverviewFAQ">{{cite web|url=http://www.tamus.edu/overview/faq.html |title=Agency Overview FAQ |publisher=[[Texas A&M University System]] |accessdate=November 10, 2009 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090904110054/http://tamus.edu/overview/faq.html |archivedate=September 4, 2009 }}</ref> In 2001, Texas Agricultural Extension Service changed its name to Texas Cooperative Extension, feeling the new name would better reflect its mission and its focus on serving all Texans.<ref name="HistoricBrazos" />  In 2007, [[Elsa Murano|Dr. Elsa Murano]], who was overseeing Texas A&M Agriculture as a whole, implemented another name change. After paying for a consultation from an outside firm, she also undertook to change the name of Texas A&M Agriculture, and Texas Agricultural Experiment Station.  On January 1, 2008, Extension's name officially changed to Texas AgriLife Extension Service. The agency felt that "AgriLife" better reflected the agency's foundational message that "agriculture is life."<ref name="NameChange">{{cite web |url=http://www.mywesttexas.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19213517&BRD=2288&PAG=461&dept_id=475591&rfi=6 |publisher=Midland Reporter-Telegram Service |work=MyWestTexas.com |title=Extension service changes name to better reflect agency's mission |accessdate=January 19, 2008 |date=January 19, 2008 |author=Deborah Benge Frost}} {{Dead link|date=April 2009|fix-attempted=yes}}</ref>

On September 1, 2012, following the recommendation of Texas A&M University System Chancellor [[John Sharp (Texas politician)|John Sharp]], the agencies of the Texas A&M University System formally added "A&M" into their names. Texas AgriLife Extension Service became Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service on this date. The purpose of this effort was to create a unified branding which better associates the A&M System entities with Texas A&M University.<ref>{{cite news|title=Agrilife Extension Service and Related Agencies Change Name|url=http://www.garzapost.com/story/2012/sep/17/agrilife-extension-service-and-related-agencies-ch}}</ref>

==Organizational model== 
Texas A&M AgriLife Extension is the largest extension service in the US and a leading employer in the Brazos County.<ref name="HistoricBrazos" />  Headquartered at the Texas A&M University campus in [[College Station, Texas|College Station]], AgriLife Extension develops much of its own curriculum, which it then teaches across the state through its network of over 600 county extension agents located in 250 of the 254 [[List of Texas counties|Texan counties]] and its nearly 350 extension specialists.<ref name="WhoWeAre">{{cite web|url=http://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/about/|publisher=Texas AgriLife Extension Service|title=What is Extension?|accessdate=January 19, 2008}}</ref>  Together, these agents and specialists, aided by more than 150,000 volunteers, education the public through classes, publications, web sites, television series, and other outlets in the areas of [[agriculture]], family and consumer sciences, human [[nutrition]] and health, environmental and natural resources, community development, and [[4-H]] and youth development.  Through its various programs, AgriLife Extension reaches over fifteen million Texans annually, and the Texas 4-H program is the largest in the nation and makes up one-sixth of the national enrollment numbers.<ref name="HistoricBrazos" />

==See also==
*[[Texas A&M University]]
*[[Texas A&M University System]]
*[[Cooperative extension service]]
*[[Agricultural extension]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
*{{Official website|http://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu/}}
*{{Handbook of Texas |id=amtpw | name=Texas Agricultural Extension Service}}

{{Texas A&M University System}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Texas AandM AgriLife Extension Service}}
[[Category:Organizations established in 1914]]
[[Category:State agencies of Texas|AgriLife Extension Service, Texas]]
[[Category:Texas A&M University System]]
[[Category:1915 establishments in Texas]]