National Association of Conservation District Employees

Conservation Districts have had an interesting year so far. We have struggled with budgets, programs, federal shut down, and extreme weather activities across the United States. Most of us have felt an impact at the federal, state and local budget level and districts have answered the challenge by reducing budgets to continue to work to conserve our natural resources.

In March I attended the National Quarterly Conservation Partnership Meeting in Washington, DC. I was honored to have Vice President Irene Moore join us for the meeting. The leaders discussed the importance of maintaining our effort to put conservation on the ground. Chief Dave White spoke on the impending budget cuts and the possible federal shutdown. We were saddened to learn of the zero funding from both the President and Congress budgets for RC&D and Small Watershed Programs. All Partnership members offered letters, link to web sites, etc. in support for funding of these programs. NACD discussed the 2012 Farm Bill effort including the ten principles emerging from the work of the NACD Farm Bill Task Force. NCDEA worked with the Chief White to resolve the struggle that Conservation Districts were having with Quick Book approval for use on government computers. NASCA spoke on the struggles that states were facing with budgets issues. We all agreed that our voice needed to remain strong and unified for Conservation.

I attended the Kansas Conservation District Employee Organization State Wide Conference; there we talked about sharing conservation education ideas. Also presenting the History of Conservation District Employee History was Past NCDEA President Kay Wasinger. I have also spoken with several of our state presidents regarding conservation programs.

We have held conference calls as well as begun working with the NCDEA committees and started working on the Mid Year Board Meeting. I have asked each committee chair to begin reviewing the workload for their committee. We will have most of our committees meet face to face prior to the NCDEA Mid Year Board Meeting scheduled for June 23 - 24 in San Antonito, Texas.

It is an honor to work with each of you in delivering the conservation message.

Connie Richmeier,
NCDEA President

March 2011
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Greetings,

2010 ended on a high note with the very successful National Leadership Conference held in Louisville, KY. What an exciting time to be involved in Conservation.

We started a new year with a several new members to our NCDEA Board. Your NCDEA Board includes;

Connie Richmeier, KS, President,
Irene Moore, OH, Vice President,
Linda Smith, KY, Treasurer,
Bryan Evens, SC, Secretary,
Ed Hoxsie, NY, Member At Large and NE Regional Representative
Cindy Moon, IL, Past President
Jeanette Kennedy Hale, AR, SC Region Rep.
Mamie Caison, NC, SE Region Rep.
Joe Perry, OH, NC Region Rep.
Rhonda Vetsch, NP Regional Rep.
Carolyn Kelly, WA, Pacific Regional Rep.
Brenda Smythe NM, SW Regional Rep.

We also said goodbye to Pam Hawkins, NC, and Sharon Underwood, AR. Thanks to both Pam and Sharon for their dedication to NCDEA! We are a stronger NCDEA because of their leadership and dedication.

NCDEA was honored to present two awards at the NCDEA Annual Meeting,

Bryan S. Evans, NC, Pitt County Conservation District, 2011 National Conservation District Professional
James Lacy, KY, Wolfe County Conservation District, 2011 National Conservation District Board Supervisor

Congratulations on your outstanding leadership in the field of conservation.

NCDEA held 2 tours in Nashville, TN, in conjunction with the NACD Annual Meeting, a Fontanel Mansion Tour and the Stone River National Battlefield Tour. We also held a Tuesday evening social called starring David Ferrell to support the Don Aaron Scholarship program along with a 50/50 raffle. We also held an ‘Effective Communication’ Workshop on Wednesday, February 4, 2011.

In March I attended the National Quarterly Conservation Partnership Meeting in Washington, DC.

We have begun working with the NCDEA committees and started working on the Mid Year Board Meeting. We are looking forward to yet another busy year of growth through the partnership and NCDEA. This year I would like to work on leadership development and building a strong professional NCDEA. I would also like to continue to work on keeping our partnerships strong.

Connie Richmeier,
NCDEA President

December 2010
Printable Version

NCDEA has been involved at all levels with Partnerships.   NCDEA was also invited to attend the White House Conference of the Great American Outdoors in April. Since that time NCDEA and Conservation District Employees have attended the Great American Outdoors meetings all across the county. Our own Ed Hoxie, NE Regional Representation also met with USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack during one of the meetings.

Irene Moore, Vice President, and I attended the NACD Legislative Conference. We also attended the Communication and District Operation Committee Meetings.

NCDEA was invited to attend the North East Regional Meeting; Irene Moore attended on behalf of NCDEA. We were also invited to attend the KACDE Conference, where I gave 2 presentations on Strategic Planning, Water Conservation Festivals Planning as well as NCDEA Updates. The KY Conservation District employees also planted an Olin Sims memorial tree at the Jebez Conference Center.   I also attended the SE Regional Meeting in Pigeon Forge, TN and the Northern Plains Regional Meeting along with Rhonda Vetsch.

NCDEA was held several conference calls, including for ongoing committee work. We selected a scholarship winner, Aaron Matthew McGinnis, Albion, Indiana.

NCDEA also completed a policy and procedures manual. I would like to Thank Linda Smith, Treasurer, for her hard work and dedication to NCDEA and especially on this project.

NCDEA Awards committee has also been hard at work with winners to be announced at the February 1, NCDEA Partnership Luncheon.

NCDEA was invited to serve on the NACD Farm Bill Task Force. This Task Force has met weekly by conference call with several good recommendations forthcoming in Nashville.

NCDEA will also be held an additional meeting in conjunction with the Leadership Conference. This meeting will be dedicated to working on the Streamline initiatives.

The National Conservation Partnership Leaders held two quarterly meetings, the first was held in Durango, Co in conjunction with the NASCA Annual Meeting. The second was held at the National RC&D Headquarters in Washington, DC. Both meetings were dedicated to working on strengthening our partnership and the Leadership Conference. The Leadership Conference held December 14 – 15 in Louisville, KY was a great success with over 200 attending. All partners played an important role in making it a complete success.

Annual Meeting Plans:

Planning is underway for the 2011 NCDEA Annual Meeting to be held in conjunction with the NACD Annual Meeting, Nashville, TN., January 30, to February 2, 2010.

To date our meeting schedule is:

          NCDEA Board Meeting – Saturday, January 29, 12:300 PM – 5:30PM
          NCDEA Tour/s – Sunday, January 30, 1:00PM – 5:00PM
          NCDEA Board Meeting – Tuesday, February 1, 7:00 AM – 9:00AM
          Partnership Luncheon – Tuesday, February 1, 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM
          Evening event – Tuesday, February 1, 9:00PM – 11:00PM
          Training Workshop – Wednesday, February 2, 9:00AM – 12:00 noon

I look forward to seeing each of you in Nashville at the NACD Annual Meeting.

Connie Richmeier, NCDEA President

June 2010
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Greetings,

What an exciting time to be a part of NCDEA.

In January and February we held our annual meeting in conjunction with NACD at Orlando, FL. We were able to recognize two conservation district employees, Bob Dobbs, of NJ and Tommy Brooks of NC with our annual employee award. We also recognized Jerry Scheele of WA as conservation district supervisor of the year. In addition we had two very successful field tours and a fundraiser one evening of the meeting. On the last day of the conference we also hosted a one half day training workshop for district employees and supervisors.

In mid March NCDEA was invited and served on a panel at the NRCS 2010 Joint Professional Employees Organization and Special Emphasis Program Managers Training Conference in Kansas City. Also participating in a partnership panel session was NACD President, Steven Robinson NASCA President, Mark Clark, and NRCS Chief Dave White.

In late March, The National Conservation Partnership Leaders Quarterly meeting was held in Baltimore, MD. The Maryland Association of Conservation Districts along with Elmer Weibley, District Manager with the Washington Conservation Soil Conservation District, attended as well as representatives of their state conservation agency. Accomplishments regarding the Chesapeake Bay Initiative were presented to the national leaders. The Maryland leadership spoke of the thousands of rivers within the six state watershed and how the Chesapeake Bay Initiative was defining the partnerships in the watershed. From landowners, local conservation districts, state and federal partners, all are sharing in the setting of, goals, program delivery, and the successes in resources management.

In April, NCDEA was also invited and attended the White House Conference on the Great American Outdoors. Two key discussions were held on conserving working land for the benefit of all Americans and Connecting people to our lands, water and wildlife. President Barack Obama presented remarks and signed the American’s Great Outdoors memorandum. This Conference was a supported by the Department of Interior, Department of Agriculture, Environmental Quality Protection Agency and the Council on Environmental Quality.

Also in April, NCDEA participated in a number of events in conjunction with celebrating the 75^th Anniversary of NRCS including co hosting a dinner with past Chiefs of the NRCS. NCDEA also attended the national 75^th Anniversary event in which a panel of past chiefs spoke of past programs and accomplishments. NCDEA was honored to participate in this historic event.

Your NCDEA Board held two conference call meetings since my last update and we are preparing for the Midyear Board meeting to be held June 10-11, 2010 in Phoenix, AR.

NCDEA also held two State Presidents calls - May 18 and 25, 2010.

We have appointed a new committee for Policy & Procedures which is being chaired by Treasurer Linda Smith.

NCDEA has received several Don Aron Scholarship applications which will be reviewed by the Scholarship Committee in Phoenix.

NCDEA is involved with the planning of the upcoming National Leadership training Conference in Louisville, KY the week of Dec 13, 2010. Please watch for more information to be released soon.

NCDEA received the Legacy of Conservation Award for outstanding leadership in the field of conservation signed by Sec. Thomas Vilsack, Secretary of USDA.

Connie Richmeier,
NCDEA President

March 2010
Printable Version

Greetings,

We started the new year with a bylaw change that added a Regional Rep to serve on the Executive Committee. Sharon Underwood was elected by the board to serve as a member of the NCDEA Executive Committee. We also welcomed a new Vice President, Irene Moore from OH in the North Central Region and said goodbye to Tim Riley from DE in the Northeast Region. Thank you to Tim Riley for your dedication to NCDEA! We are a stronger NCDEA because of Tim’s leadership and dedication.

NCDEA was honored to present three awards at the NCDEA Annual Meeting,

          Robert Dobbs, Camden County Soil Conservation District, 2010 National Conservation District Professional

          Tommy Brooks, Lee Soil and Water Conservation District, 2010 National Conservation District Professional

          Gerald Scheele, Spokane County Conservation District, 2010 National Conservation District Board Supervisor

Congratulations on your outstanding leadership in the field of conservation.

NCDEA held 2 tours in Orlando Fl, in conjunction with the NACD Annual Meeting, an Open Air Safari Coach Tour and the Harry P. Leu Garden Tour. We held a Tuesday evening social called ‘Singing with the Likes of Sinatra’ to support the Don Aaron Scholarship program. We also held a ‘Creative Tools for Successful Districts’ Workshop on Wednesday, February 3, 2010.

In March I attended the quarterly National Conservation Partnership Leaders’ Meeting in Baltimore, MD. The Maryland Conservation Partnership presented their efforts on the Chesapeake Bay activity. With thousands of rivers and streams in one watershed and thousands of miles of shore line this effort could be the focus of conservation activities that will be the pilot for the county. I would like the thank Elmer Weibley, District Manager, Washington County Soil Conservation District, Hagerstown, MD for his work with the Chesapeake Bay Project and contributions made during the meeting.

We have begun working with the NCDEA committees and started work on the Mid Year Board Meeting. We are looking forward to yet another busy year of growth through the partnership and NCDEA. This year I would like to work on leadership development and building a strong professional NCDEA. I would also like to continue to work on keeping our partnerships strong.

Connie Richmeier,
NCDEA President

January 2010

What an honor it has been to work with you and for you as your NCDEA President. We are very fortunate to have a board and executive director that are dedicated to delivering conservation programs, maintaining positive working relationships with our partners and the professional development of Conservation District employees.

In conjunction with the NACD Annual Meeting held in New Orleans, NCDEA held two bus tours on Sunday. Attendees had an opportunity to see a beautiful scenic Oak Plantation while the other tour took two buses though the Bayou.

NCDEA held two board meetings: one on Saturday afternoon and one on Tuesday morning before the NACD general session. In addition to regional reports, nomination and election of new officers, treasurer’s report, status on projects and fund raising, the board also made plans for a mid-year board meeting and continued support to advance the work of conservation districts. Regional board members were installed. Reports and comments from NCDEA representatives to the NACD committee reports were also presented. Other items addressed included updating the NCDEA Strategic Plan, by-law changes regarding regional boundaries and review of policy and procedures.

We hosted a Luncheon on Tuesday – “Partnerships For Tomorrow”. The keynote Speaker, R. Neil Sampson, talked on the importance of our conservation partnership. We heard remarks from our conservation partners; gave recognition to our NCDEA employee of the year, Phil Griswold from New York (see more information on the NCDEA web site); and our NCDEA District Board Member award recognized Pat Sueck of Pennsylvania. Along with the conducting of our annual meeting, new officers were sworn in.

Wednesday NCDEA conducted a Workshop, “Building A Positive Future For Your District” for 50 attendees: The Panelists for this four part workshop were:

Irene Moore, District Administrator, Jefferson SWCD, OH
Jerry Scheele, District Chairman, Spokane County CD, Spokane, WA
Don Underwood, Executive Director, Mississippi SWC Commission, Jackson, MS
Robert Dobbs, District Manager, Camden County SWCD, West Berlin, NJ
Cliff Lundin, Chairman of the Sussex County SCD, Andover, NJ
Peter Vigil, District Manager, Taos SWCD, Ranchos de Taos, MN
Brent Van Dyke, District Supervisor, Lea SWCD, Hobbs NM
and NACD Alternate Board Member from NM.

In addition to the activities reported on in New Orleans above, NCDEA was able to provide considerable assistance to the NACD annual meeting this year for planning and conducting concurrent sessions including providing moderators as well as volunteer staff help for a number of the activities such as the legislative auction.

NCDEA held several conference call meetings, to guide the actions of the association, in addition to the mid year Board Meeting which was held in Columbus, OH.

I attended three National Conservation Partnership Leaders meetings in Washington DC and Charleston, West Virginia. A new partnership agreement was signed in Charleston, WV. We are working on a National Leadership Training to be held this year as well as other conservation issues relating to the partnership.

NCDEA provided members to the NACD foundation committees.

Communications – Cindy Moon, IL
Stewardship and Education – Pam Hawkins, NC
District Operations and Member Services – Connie Richmeier, KS
Natural Resources Policy – Rick Kirchner, DE

Operating with the Natural Resources Policy Committee, will be Resources Policy Groups. Two groups already established are:

Forest Resources Policy Group – Garth Davis, WA
Urban and Community Policy Group – Ed Hoxie, NY

A third is a Coastal Resource Policy Group and we will name a member for this one in the near future.

Tim Riley, Vice President, NCDEA, was appointed to the NRCS Employee development committee. We have also been asked to serve on short term task forces and sub- committees in addition to our own NCDEA committee work.

I also attended and participated in the NACD Legislative Conference and the National Association of State Conservation Agencies (NASCA) meetings.

NCDEA completed work on a new Strategic Plan for 2009 to 2012. We are excited for new challenges ahead of us.

Tim Riley and I will begin calling or meeting, face to face with each state employee association presidents to strength our working relationship and to learn what issues and opportunities exist in each state,

We completed streamline visits in two states with a third one to follow next year. I would like to thank Cindy Moon, Rhonda Vetsch, Mendel Wade, and Rich Duesterhaus for the outstanding work they did with the streamline projects.

Your national board is dedicated to building the professionalism of district employees, serving our customers and continuing to help districts provide an important part of the conservation delivery system.

As my first year draws to a close, I see many opportunities for NCDEA.

Connie Richmeier,
NCDEA President

NCDEA Streamlining Visits with Kansas Field Offices

Cookeville, Tennessee Field Office Kiowa County, Kansas Field Office

Osborne County, Kansas Field Office Ness County, Kansas Field Office

Archived President Notes