A Critical Time for Extension Leadership in Public Policy Education Programming

We conducted research to examine 1862, 1890, and 1994 land-grant and Sea Grant Extension program leaders' perceptions about Extension public policy education (PPE). Most agreed that PPE is important work. Existing PPE has focused on issue-oriented community development, natural resources, or agriculture topics. Our results indicate that there is no clear priority, funding, or support for Extension PPE and that most programs lack associated policies or staff training. For Extension to fulfill its role in society, increased focus must be placed on PPE through administrative support and professional development that empowers everyone in Extension to build PPE into their work.