New County Commissioners Prepare for Their Role

Midland County Midland County Extension P: 989-832-6640 E-mail: [email protected] 220 West Ellsworth Street F: 989-832- Web: www.msue.msu.edu/Midland Midland, MI 48640-5194 6758 December 2006 Most recently, teen members of the youth-driven Foundation funds enhance teen job fair discussed the importance and teen job fair significant aspects of the program, with Michigan State University President Lou Anna Simon. Midland County's Teen Job Fair received a welcome boost, thanks to an $18,000 grant from the Rollin M. Contact: Dave Thomas, MSU Extension Educator Gerstacker Foundation, that will help fund the annual 4-H Youth Development event for the next three years.

The Teen Job Fair, a collaborative effort including New county commissioners Midland County’s MSU Extension office and area prepare for their role agencies including the Midland Area Chamber of Commerce, has attracted more than 800 job seekers MSU Extension and the Michigan Association of and some 50 local businesses in its first two years. Counties have co-sponsored “New County The third annual event is scheduled for March 2007 at Commissioner Training” for 36 years. During this the Midland Mall. time commissioners have learned the ins and outs of their roles in local county government. Nearly The Gerstacker grant will go toward marketing the every Midland commissioner has participated in a job fair and providing educational resources to help workshop while in office and some more than once. teens in areas such as interviewing, proper attire, hot career paths and identifying suitable career avenues. Commissioners Jim Bradley, Jim Stamas, Bill Waterman and Jim Leigeb were on hand for the The event is the brainchild of former 4-H'er Tabi 2006 workshop. They agreed that if you walk away Lesh, a Bullock Creek High graduate. Event with one new piece of information each time you organizers say the opportunity for high school attend, it makes you a better commissioner. students to meet with local employers and potentially secure what often is their first job is an invaluable Key points covered during presentations were experience. understanding county government, the framework for governance, board operations and budget and finance. Contact: Elizabeth Szymanski MSU County Extension Director

Michigan State University Extension helps people improve their lives through an educational process that applies knowledge to critical issues, needs and opportunities. Offices in counties across the state link the research of the land-grant university, MSU, to challenges facing communities. Citizens serving on county Extension councils regularly help select focus areas for programming. MSU Extension is funded jointly by county boards of commissioners, the state through Michigan State University and federally through the US Department of Agriculture. Collaboration key for clean MSU Extension professionals who work with these environment temporary food events attended a training session taught by members of Extension Food Safety team The 4-H Youth Development Program team Reaching Lisa Treiber, Jean Nichols, Joyce McGarry and Environmental Awareness and Action in Cindy Warren. Communities (REAACT), in cooperation with the Arnold Center, Inc., an agency serving young people Participants learned how to organize an event, with cognitive and physical disabilities for more than safely deal with volunteer sickness, plan, shop and 30 years, sponsored an electronics recycling drive. safely store the food, properly prepare just the right amount of food for events, maintain the correct The collaboration was spearheaded by REAACT holding and serving temperatures and how to take teens and was Midland County’s first ever electronics care of the leftovers. recycling drive. The group’s efforts were deemed successful as they collected more than 4,700 pounds The target audience was staff members who work of computers, monitors, phones, televisions and other with volunteers on fundraisers, meetings, banquets electronic components. and other events. All participants received a packet filled with posters that can be posted in their work The final pallets of electronics were loaded onto the sites, bi-metallic stemmed food thermometers, truck and two Arnold Center staff members were on charts to document the temperatures of food heated the way to Grand Rapids to the Valley City or cooled, and many more useful tools to share with Environmental Services Corporation. As their committees. environmental issues become increasingly important nationally and beyond, officials lauded the local These tools are critical in making events that youths for participating in such eco-conscious efforts. include food non-eventful, meaning, people do not become ill afterwards because someone who Kohl’s Department Store assisted the recycling drive prepared the food was sick, or the food was handled by providing nine employees to help unload the at an improper temperature. recyclables. This local recycling effort exemplified the growing partnership between the Arnold Center Evaluation feedback indicated that the presentation and 4-H teens. Based on the success, many more will motivated most participants to make one behavior follow. The ambitious group now is exploring the change in using a bi-metallic thermometer. They possibility of launching entrepreneurial initiatives. also requested a brief version of the presentation that they could share with others. Contact: Dave Thomas, MSU Extension Educator 4-H Youth Development The team plans to survey the attendees at a later date and see what was most useful from the training Make your next food event materials for future programming efforts. non-eventful” Contact: Lisa Treiber, MSU Extension Educator Family & Consumer Sciences Standard food safety practices are mandated by law for restaurants and food service institutions. But what about people who are responsible short-term activities like fairs, festivals or banquets?

MSU is an affirmative-action, equal opportunity institution, Michigan State University Extension programs and materials are open to all without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, or family status. Issued in furtherance of MSU Extension work, acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Thomas G. Coon, Extension Director, Michigan State University, E. Lansing, MI 48824