People are the reasons for prosperous entities. who engage the workforce that are the reason for accomplishment. Those in leadership positions are attracted to employee commitment as a means to obtain organization success due to the understanding that this engagement is a major factor for structural success (Lockwood, 2007). As defined by Kahn (1990), employee engagement is the connection of participants of an institution with their roles related to work. Through engagement, these participants display emotion, cognition and physical abilities during the function of their responsibilities. Other research has shown that employee engagement aids leadership in improving or maintaining a competitive improvement (Christian, Garza, & Slaughter, 2011).
Success for organizations such as Mississippi State Extension (MSU-ES) is based upon workforce knowledge. Workforce engagement is an essential core of Extensions operations. Through professionals and specialists, MSU-ES has been active in providing research based programming to improve the quality of life to residents in all 82 Mississippi counties (MSUES, 2019). Extension personnel are partnered with Mississippi State University (MSU) faculty, sometimes referred to as specialists, and residential citizens to evaluate needs related to each community. Utilizing data acquired through needs assessments, Extension personnel in the field connect with educators and specialists on campus to develop and distribute research based information.
The topics covered include agriculture, natural resources, 4-H youth development, community development and, health and human sciences. From research to delivery, leadership throughout Extension serves as a conduit for successful programming. Leaders effect success through examples of openness, ethics, inspiration and enabling others to be successful (Cetron, 1982).
Mississippi State University Extension is a member of the land-grant university system. This system includes state colleges and universities in each state and territory with in the United States including the District of Columbia (Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, 2012). This system offers educational content to a wide array of the population to improve daily lives (Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities, 2012). Leadership throughout an organization highlights the impact of employee engagement as it relates to success of an institution (Biro, 2014).
Through engagement, employees positively impact the value of education MSUES contributes to Mississippians. Acknowledging the connections recognized among leadership and employee engagement, it is logical to assume that understanding the connection among employee engagement and individual leadership style will enhance Extension professional’s ability to lead in means which improve individual engagement as well as the engagement of supervised employees. In doing so, this will increase the value of education and, thus, improve the daily lives of Mississippians. The continual development and success of MSU-ES may be improved through amended efforts engage personnel in Extensions mission.
The proposed research is geared toward developing a training program in leadership for MSU-ES so that those in leadership positions can preserve and increase both engagement and leadership. Though employee engagement has been researched in various workplace settings which include hospital and health care institutions, schools and, many business and financial institutions (Hakanen, Bakker, & Schaufeli, 2006; Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004), research related to levels of employee engagement with Extension professionals have not been recognized. As Extensions mission is engagement, this research on leadership and employee engagement can contribute to that literature.
Traditionally, Extension has provided educational content and support to and for the groups and individuals it assists. The traditional model for outreach is from the state level to the region and, then to county levels. In some areas, specialists are placed into the communities to deliver needed resources. As Extension programming has changed to include more subjects, leadership in programming needs has also increased. Originally, Extension programming was geared toward agriculture, with the majority of the population residing in rural areas (West et al., 2009). As the focus of Extension was agriculture a century ago, forty-two percent of the population was laboring in the farming segment (West et al., 2009). That is no longer the case.
Cooperative Extension has undergone unprecedented transformation during the past 100 years. To accommodate this change, Extension leadership has always evolved to meet the requirements of stakeholders. More recently, this has come at a time of great budget constraints. This challenge has required great leadership in mandated program changes to coincide with state and national concerns. As the first Extension agents were called change agents, Extension has a foundation of evolving to accept new demands (Seevers & Graham, 2012). Extension organizations continue to deliver research-based information and resources through both state and local offices as well as media platforms including online (Bull et al, 2004).
Through evolution of programming, stakeholders have expanded to include non-rural clientele. Due to this need, those in leadership roles have focused more programs to reach these metropolitan audiences. This is done through programming in areas of natural resources and community development as well as 4-H and Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) (Diekmann et al., 2012). Mississippi State University, through the Extension Service, effects change for Mississippians through:
- • Providing research and education in a practical and applicable way
- • Using the latest technology and teaching techniques to serve clients
- • Developing and using volunteers to help disseminate programs and information
- • Cooperating with other groups and agencies
- • Maintaining a culturally diverse staff responsive to the needs of various audiences at all socioeconomic levels (MSUES, 2019)
As needs continue to evolve, so will the leaders in Extension. Leadership has always been integral in the evolution of Extension. With increasing expansion of Extension resources, the financial stress related to serving the needs of diverse clientele with reducing budgets requires strong leadership. Original funding for Extension initiated from the Smith-Lever Act of 1914. It was then matched by each state through the development of land-grant institutions (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2014).
Currently, Extension is funded from national, state, county and outside sources. These outside resources are needed to compensate for diminishing federal funding (Bennett, 2011). To compensate for this loss, leaders in program areas of Cooperative Extension across America have made efforts to improve programming and increased outsourced funding. If not for this outsourced funding, many extension programs would not be available.
Extension is the largest public education system outside of the classroom (Bowling & Brahm, 2002). With the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, a third role was added for universities to disseminate education in agriculture, mechanical arts, and home economics to those in need. This included not only those enrolled in higher education but farmers and homemakers as well (Franz et al., 2010).
Additional funding was provided from the federal government for state curriculum to be implemented to improve society through education (Campbell, Comer, Edwards, Hillison, 2006). Extension disseminates unbiased researched based educational content through a means which clientele is able to learn (Rader, 2012). Though Extension has not always displayed success when reaching clientele, it has always evolved to adapt new means of distributing educational content. Farmers, homemakers, youth and the general public depend on researched educational content to improve their daily lives (Angima, and Stokes, 2019).
Extension programs have aided in transforming agrarian societies during times of need through educational content derived from experiment stations. This knowledge was provided to farmers throughout each state collectively and individually (Gould & Ham, 2002). Researched knowledge from Extension is widely utilized without debate but, history in Extension shows that was not always the standard. During the origination of extension, there was a lack of organizing (Peters, 2002) which led to trust issues among those who needed education in agriculture and those who provided it (Barnes & Haynes, 2006).
Two decades ago, the Kellogg Commission released a report stating that Land-Grant institutions must evolve its means of dispensing researched based information (Kellogg Commission on the Future of State and Land-Grant Institutions, 1999). This consists of solving current practical problems (Peters, 2002). It is widely understood that County Extension Directors (CED) understanding of programming is essential for the success of Extension (Jayaratne, Owen & Jones, 2010). However, many lack the leadership ability to effectively administer programming (Sanders, 2014). Leadership is recognized as an individual’s ability to address unforeseen situations, adjust to situations, or effect change while leading others (Day, 2000; McKee, Odom, Moore, & Murphrey, 2016). Those in leadership roles are continuously looking forward.
Leaders’ thoughts encompass what can be done. They possess an understanding of what team work can accomplish. Those in leadership roles are confident about the future and believe in organizational success. However, visualizations viewed only by leaders are not enough to move organizations forward. Those in leadership roles have to convey their visions and communicate their thoughts. In doing so, others will have the opportunity to receive and adopt the changes needed to implement those visions. Programs related to developing leadership skills are understood as a means to improve skills addressing unanticipated complications and initiating change. These programs can also positively impact the process of leading others (McKee, Odom, Moore, & Murphrey, 2016).
Leadership programs are vital for Extension personnel to be successful. Those who serve in leadership roles in Extension are often responsible for program implementation, budgets, policy making, and stakeholder issues. They also serve as the liaison between agents and Extension administration (Sanders, 2014). Additionally, due to the retirements of baby boomers, there is an even stronger need of leadership. This is highlighted by the need for having leadership programming to improve the needs of new employees (Moore & Rudd, 2005). Due to Extensions model of promoting from within, programming in leadership can be of positive benefit (Jayaratne, Owen & Jones, 2010).
There is an understanding that competency and skill set of Extension personnel is of great importance for Extension leaders (Jayaratne, Owen & Jones, 2010). However, few in leadership roles possess the competency required to be successful (Sanders, 2014). Numerous issues abound regarding the success of designed and implemented programming. Previous research has shown that some Extension personnel have not had support in their leadership roles. Research has also shown that funding reduction has reduced programming in areas of professional development. Additionally, for agents, leadership development has to compete with other programming deemed more important (Campbell, Grieshop, Sokolow and Wright 2004). Unfortunately, this has impacted the skill sets related to leadership.
