Posted
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, September 20, 2011
OSU Extension Moves to Washington County Headquarters Building
Caption: Patrick Proden, staff chair for OSU Extension Service in Washington and Multnomah counties, and Board of County Commissioners Chairman Andy Duyck greet Elizabeth Price, Sally Lorenz and Jennifer Rue of the Master Gardeners program. OSU Extension Office Manager Sandra Collinger, back to the camera, is leading a tour of Extension's new location in Washington County's Cameron Public Services Building.
The offices of the Oregon State University Extension Service for Washington County are now operating from the Charles D. Cameron Public Services Building in Hillsboro, seat of Washington County government.
The public can find the Extension Service offices on the second floor of the County's headquarters building in Suite 200 at 155 North First Avenue in Hillsboro.
Phone numbers and email addresses for Extension personnel, programs and offices will not change.
The move brings the full array of Extension Service closer to those services offered by the county government. Extension Service programs include:
- 4-H Youth Development;
- Agriculture;
- Citizen Participation;
- Family and Home;
- Food Safety, Preservation and Storage;
- Forestry and Natural Resources;
- Master Gardener; and
- Nutrition Education.
"Our commitment to educational outreach is central to our 100-year mission across the state and opens a new century of engagement with the citizens of Washington County," said Patrick Proden, staff chair for OSU Extension Service in Washington and Multnomah counties. "In strengthening our partnership with Washington County, OSU Extension Service looks forward to working with the county government more closely and serving our citizens in its new office environment."
"Washington County wholeheartedly welcomes the faculty and staff of OSU Extension to our shared workspace here in the Cameron Public Services Building," said Andy Duyck, chairman of the Washington County Board of Commissioners. "As a county government, our vision is to do our part to support a 'collaborative community' where we work together to solve problems and improve our quality of life. We could not have a better partner in this regard than OSU Extension."
Since the early 1900s, faculty from Oregon's land-grant university, then called Oregon Agricultural College, traveled the state from the city of Corvallis by horse and later by train to organize farmers' institutes and deliver lectures to far-flung communities. Their topics aimed to improve rural life, from food safety and family nutrition to animal husbandry and pest management.
OSU Extension continues with this mission today by providing educational services and programs for rural, suburban and urban communities. Faculty and staff offer research-based knowledge and education focusing on strengthening communities and economies, sustaining natural resources and promoting healthy families and individuals. The work of OSU Extension involves and supports business people, growers, foresters, youth and community leaders statewide.
In addition to providing these services, OSU Extension has a unique agreement with Washington County government to operate the county's citizen involvement program. In combination with citizen advisory committees, citizen boards and other venues for engagement, the citizen participation program staffed by OSU Extension offers citizens throughout the county a means for communicating with and learning about their county government.
More information about OSU Extension Service for Washington County can be found at:
Contacts:
Patrick Proden, Staff Chair and Metro 4-H Administrator, OSU Extension Service, (503) 821-1113, [email protected]
Philip Bransford, Communications Officer, Washington County Administrative Office, (503) 846-8685, [email protected]