initiatives

Yesterday, I celebrated USDA’s 150^th Anniversary with the people of Manhattan, Kansas. For 150 years, USDA has supported the tremendous growth and success of American agriculture, conserved natural resources and built stronger communities and a stronger America.  That legacy gives us a lot to be proud of.

As part of their 2012 annual 4-H National Conference approximately 300 high school student leaders from across the United States, U.S. territories, and Canada gathered in the greater Washington, DC area.  4-H seeks to promote positive youth development, facilitate learning, and engage young people in the efforts of the USDA to produce “real results for real people.”  The conference aims to empower and mobilize the 4-H students to create positive, meaningful change in their communities.

Two new Forest Service films have been honored with prestigious Silver Telly Awards for excellence in non-fiction filmmaking.

Working in the dirt is no big deal for 4-H member Josh Tice. However, it’s not every day he gets invited to help First Lady Michelle Obama plant a cherry blossom tree in honor of the 100^th anniversary of Japan’s gift to the United States.

Josh, and his mom and dad, Deana and Josiah, were on hand last Tuesday for the event in Washington, DC. Josh was one of six young people selected to participate alongside the First Lady. During the event, Josh was able to meet Mrs. Obama and even give her a hug. Naturally though, his 4-H side shined through as he said his favorite part of the event was scooping up dirt for the actual planting.

On March 14-15, employees from the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) participated in the New Mexico State University (NMSU) Employment Extravaganza in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Thanks to advertisements in the school newspaper and other local media outlets, the event had a great turnout.  The school’s career office passed out plenty of literature to make sure the students and their potential employers made solid connections.  AMS was one of nearly twenty organizations, spanning from local government offices and non-profits to large Fortune 500 companies like Walmart, to attend the school’s last career fair of the academic year.

This year marks the 40^th anniversary of the passage of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 addressing gender equity in educational programming. For the first time, this groundbreaking legislation mandated equal opportunity for women in all fields of federally funded public education. The passage of Title IX changed the American education system in ways unimaginable just decades earlier.

The Wisconsin USDA Interagency Conference, hosted by the Federal Women’s Program (FWP), is also celebrating its 40^th year of existence.

Students at the Columbia Heights Educational Campus (CHEC) will soon be able to enjoy the fruits of their labor.  The District of Columbia Daughters of the American Revolution (D.C. DAR) partnered with USDA to bring a People’s Garden to this school in Washington, D.C.

Twenty-four university students will attend USDA’s 2012 Agricultural Outlook Forum Feb. 23-24.  The students are the recipients of corporate and USDA sponsorship aimed at promoting the education of the next generation of agriculturalists.  The Forum titled, “Moving Agriculture Forward,” is USDA’s largest annual event and will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott Hotel in Arlington, Virginia.  “USDA welcomes the next generation to participate in the Forum so they might see opportunities to excel to even greater heights in their careers,” said Secretary Vilsack.

This year, sponsoring corporations and USDA agencies include: CHS, Inc.; Farm Credit; USDA’s Economic Research Service, Agricultural Research Service, and Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Three years ago this week, on February 12, 2009, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack commemorated President Lincoln’s 200th birthday by creating  the first USDA People's Garden at the “People’s Department.”  This People’s Garden at Department headquarters in Washington D.C., initially started as an opportunity to showcase what we do at USDA, and to unite communities, raise awareness about sustainable agriculture practices, connect people with where their food comes from, and educate on protecting our environment and conserving resources. It was USDA’s way of walking its talk by providing an example to the rest of the country.  We’ve grown quite a bit in a short period of time. Thousands of USDA employees and over 700 local and national organizations are participating in over 1,500 gardens.

Last night, the People’s Garden along with Abraham Lincoln, in honor of our namesake and USDA’s 150^th Anniversary, recognized employees, agencies and partners for their contributions to the Initiative at The People’s Garden ‘Golden Shovel’ Award Ceremony and Reception.  And the categories are…

The White House has called upon all federal agencies to “keep it simple” when it comes to writing. Here at USDA, we are committed to communicating clearly so that we can provide you with the most useful information possible.   As Secretary Tom Vilsack has said, “Using plain writing is indispensable to achieving our goals of providing first-class customer service and ensuring access to our programs.”

Officially implemented this past fall, the Plain Writing Act of 2010 requires all federal agencies to write “clear, concise, well-organized” documents “that the public can understand and use." This is a part of the Obama Administration’s larger effort to create a transparent government that promotes public participation. To ensure that USDA meets our obligations, we are training our employees on writing techniques that avoid the complicated language that can confuse and frustrate the public we serve.