Overview
An important part of the USDA agricultural research and education
system is Extension activities that deliver research findings to
farmers. One indicator of the level of Extension activities is the
allocation of personnel. This data product provides two datasets
reflecting Extension staffing:
- Total Extension staffing
- Extension staffing by four major program
areas.
Total Extension staffing data are presented in terms of full-time
equivalent staff (FTEs) for the 48 contiguous U.S. States and for
4 major regions for the 1977-97 time period. Program area allocations
are only available for 1977-92.
Resources employed in Extension work are recorded as full-time
equivalent staff years. Data on professional Extension
full-time equivalents (FTE's) by State from 1977 to 1997 have
been developed from information on Extension programs and budgets.
Extension FTEs totaled 14,890 in 1997, versus 16,990 in 1977, a
12 percent decline. Year-to-year changes have been modest, but
most extreme between 1982 and 1987.
Trends in Extension FTEs varied across regions and States. Nearly
three-quarters of Extension FTEs are in the North Central and Southern
regions, which also had the greatest declines in FTEs over the
period (16 percent and 15 percent). In contrast, the West and the
Northeast experienced more modest declines of 2 percent and 6 percent.
Seventeen states had more Extension staffing in 1997 than in 1977.
In 1997, Texas reported the highest professional extension FTE's
(1,004), followed by North Carolina (801), and New York (695).
Data Sources
Unlike the allocation of research expenditures in the USDA
agricultural research system, which is captured in the Current Research
Information System (CRIS), no easily accessible data exist for Extension
staffing. This is likely due to the greater burden in allocating
the time of Extension experts, who are more likely to work on multiple
issues on a daily basis, compared with researchers. Historical trend
information on Extension staffing is piecemeal, and must be assembled
from a variety of published and administrative documents.
The major data sources used in compiling this dataset were:
- National Summary of Level of Efforts in the Cooperative Extension
System for FY 1984-87 with Trend Data for 1974-87. Prepared
by Helen Young, Program Analyst, Program Development Evaluation,
Extension Service, USDA, August 1988.
- Plan of Work reports from Extension Service files, State Extension
Information Management System (SEIMS). Bart Hewitt, Program Analyst,
Partnerships, provided 1992-93 data.
- USDA-CSREES, Funds Management Branch. Annual report, Table 3,
Fiscal Years 2000 and 2001.
- USDA. Salary
Analysis of Cooperative Extension Service Positions, December
2000. Human Resource Division, 2001.
- Sonny Barber, Personnel and Data Information Specialist Salary
Analysis Reports for 1993-2000.
Media and Naming Convention
The two tables in the Extension staffing database are in Excel
spreadsheet format. File names are listed and described below.
Labels describing program areas have changed over time, but Extension
program areas can generally be classified into four major program
areas:
- Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR)—These
are grouped into a single category because of the overlap between
the two areas. For example, adoption of resource conserving farm
production practices could be classified in either category.
The agriculture area includes crop production and management,
livestock production and management, farm business management,
and agricultural marketing. Extension information and activities
in the natural resource area are likely to have a more public
good nature, benefiting society beyond individual producers.
This is especially true for agricultural practices that are viewed
as sustainable and for which there is little profit motive for
the private farm operator.
- Community Resource Development (CRD)—These activities
are important both in communities with economies dependent on
agricultural production and those with nonagricultural economies.
Social scientists, such as economists and sociologists, dominate
Extension activities in community development.
- 4-H & Youth Development Programs (4H)—Traditional
4-H programs for youth are focused on agricultural production
activities. However, the overarching goal of all youth programs,
both agricultural and nonagricultural, is youth development.
- Home Economics and Human Nutrition (HEHN)—These
programs are targeted to issues that affect all populations,
and rely significantly on the expertise of consumer economists
and nutritionists. Also included are programs associated with
food safety.
Data Files
Extension staffing, by State and region
Updates
No update is planned for these data.
Related Resources
Regional Trends in Extension
System Resources, AIB-781, April
2003.
Regional Trends in Extension Resources—This paper,
presented at the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Meetings
in Orlando, FL, in February 2002, describes trends in staffing
derived from these data. The paper is available from Mary
Ahearn, 202-694-5583.
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