GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Epsilon Sigma Phi, the national honorary fraternity for Extension, has announced that three University of Florida Extension faculty are among the organization’s top honorees for 2013.

Amy Harder, an Extension specialist in the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, was named the southern regional winner of the Early Career Service Award. Her work focuses on ways to improve Extension educators’ competency and program quality by coordinating program reviews and leading professional mentoring programs. She also is the coordinator of the graduate and undergraduate Extension education programs at UF/IFAS.

Pasco County’s family and consumer science Extension agent, Mary E. “Betsy” Crisp, has been named the southern region’s Continued Excellence Award winner. Crisp has worked for Extension for more than 25 years, and is a licensed dietitian, ServSafe instructor/proctor, and arthritis instructor. Her Extension program is extremely visible in the community, as she presents about 150 programs, reaching nearly 7,000 citizens each year in the areas of food, nutrition, health and safety. Recently, her Family Nutrition Program has brought in grant funding to support several program assistants and many volunteers, helping more than 136,000 people improve their eating habits.

Marion County Extension Agent Norma Samuel will share honors for the International Service Award with former co-worker Barbara Brown of Clemson University. Samuel has had outstanding Extension programs in her role as the horticulture agent in Marion County. She has led teams of UF Extension faculty who started 4-H Clubs in Antigua and Barbuda and the Bahamas. She also led another team to establish a Pesticide Certification Program in Antigua and Barbuda.

Epsilon Sigma Phi encourages professional development and recognizes achievement. Florida’s Alpha Delta Chapter has members from the University of Florida and Florida A&M University that include county agents, Extension specialists and administrators in agriculture, family and consumer science, 4-H youth development, and natural resources.

The UF/IFAS winners will be honored at the national conference Sept. 18. This year’s conference will be part of the Joint Council of Extension Professionals’ Galaxy conference, to be held in Pittsburgh from Sept. 16-20.

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Contact

Source: Dan Culbert, 863-763-6469, indianco@ufl.edu

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