Indiana CCA News
Indiana CCA Newsletter December, 1998
Happy Holidays from your Indiana CCA Board of Directors. Best wishes for a happy and safe Holiday and a great New Year.
CEU Opportunities...Be sure to check out the attached announcement about the CCA continuing education (CEU) program scheduled in conjunction with the 1999 Indiana Agribusiness Expo scheduled for January 18-20, 1999 in Indianapolis. Also, mark your calendar for February 24, 1999. On February 24th the Indiana CCA will sponsor a CEU program offering two hours in soil and water management, three hours in nutrient management and one hour in crop management. The meeting will be held at the Marten House hotel in Indianapolis. We’ll send you another mailing about this program when it is finalized. Both of these meetings are great opportunities to get some quality CEU’s. We are also planning meetings for June and December 1999. We’re going to do our best to help you get your credits. Send any suggestions for speakers or requests for topics to the Indiana CCA office.
Are you in need of Soil and Water Management CEU’s? Check out a new program offered on the web by NRCS. They are offering a training program called Introduction to Water Quality on their website. ( http://www.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov./iris/water_qual/netinfo.html). This is a great way to pick up some "self directed" CEU’s. The CEU committee has not yet assigned credits for this program, but you are allowed to get 5 hours of "self directed" CEU’s. This program will provide at least that much.
CCA Web Site...CEU opportunities will soon be posted on the Indiana CCA web site. (www.inagribiz.org) In the next month or so we will start listing programs that have sent in requests for CEU credits. Contact persons will be listed so you can inquire about attending various programs. We will also start posting this newsletter and other information. Again, suggestions, ideas, and information for the web site are welcome. If you have something you would like to post, let us know. We’ll try to accommodate you.
In mid January you will be receiving a nomination form for the Indiana CCA Board. We need to fill one vacancy with a candidate from retail fertilizer. Nominees must be a CCA in good standing and work in the retail fertilizer sector. When you get your nomination form, you will have about two weeks to nominate a candidate of your choice. Nominated candidates will be contacted and their qualifications reviewed. Qualified candidates will be voted on by the Indiana CCA membership. We went through this same process to replace Board members last year and it worked well. Thanks for your input. Remember, this is your organization.
Congratulations to Lance Murrell. Lance was recently chosen as one of two winners of the inaugural, American Society of Agronomy and American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF) Excellence in Crop Advising Award. This award was recently founded by the ASA and AFBF to recognize outstanding crop advising service by CCA’s. Two national winners are chosen each year. The award includes transportation and expenses to the 1999 AFBF national convention being held in Albuquerque, NM. Lance is definitely one of the outstanding CCA’s in the country and the award is well deserved. He is the agronomist for The Anderson’s Inc., Walton, IN, and is also a new board member with Indiana CCA. Again, congratulations Lance.
If you would like to nominate someone for AFBF’s year 2000 Excellence in Crop Advising Award, contact AFBF at 225 Touhy Ave., Park Ridge, IL 60068, or call the Indiana CCA office.
EQUIP...Environmental Quality Incentive Program...As we mentioned in our last newsletter, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has recognized the CCA as one certification program that qualifies it’s members to participate in the "USDA Approved Vendor Process". CCA’s will have the opportunity and are encouraged to assist producers in developing Nutrient and Pest Management Plans for the Environmental Quality Incentive Program. (EQIP) The EQIP provides incentive funds for producers who will agree to develop and carry out nutrient and pest management plans on their farms. Third Party Vendors, CCA’s in many cases, may be compensated for developing the plans, scouting, soil testing, and otherwise assisting the producers in completing their nutrient and pest management plans.
Recently a few members of the Indiana CCA Board met with officials of NRCS to discuss plans to certify Indiana CCA’s as approved vendors in the EQIP program. NRCS is planning on holding several training sessions in the near future, to train you about the EQIP program. As CCA’s you will be certified to help farmers draw up nutrient and pest management plans for EQIP. We will let you know as soon as possible, when and where these training sessions will be held, but you might want to contact your local NRCS office to see if they know when sessions for your county are planned. Check the web site too. If you would like more information about EQIP, contact your local NRCS office. This is strictly a voluntary program, but it is an excellent opportunity for CCA’s. Again, as we get more regulation of local soil and water conservation issues, the value of your CCA credentials will increase. You are a qualified and trainable resource for our industry. Keep up the good work.
Hope to see you at one of the upcoming training sessions.
Kim Polizotto, Chairman
Indiana CCA Board of Directors
