The Guthrie County Extension council soon will begin the process to fill four seats on the council. The elected council, like the hundreds of others across the country, is the grass roots governing body for the Cooperative Extension System. As part of Iowa State University Extension and Outreach, the Guthrie County council works in partnership with local citizens, Iowa State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to carry the land-grant mission beyond the campus in Ames. Candidates for the council will appear on the general election ballot in November. The duties of a council member include hiring county staff, managing the county extension budget and helping select programming. One hundred ISU Extension and Outreach field offices provide local access to extension programs in all 99 counties.  

The nomination process begins with the appointment of a four-member nominating committee. By law, the current council appoints two men and two women to the committee and it cannot include any current members of the council. The committee must be appointed by Aug. 6t, 2012. The committee is charged with nominating candidates for the council, and geographic distribution of the nominees is one factor that they consider. After nominees have been selected, each nominee must turn in to the county elections commissioner a petition signed by at least 25 qualified voters by 5 p.m. on Aug. 29th, 2012.

For more information, contact: Vicki Frohling, Guthrie County/ISUExtension and Outreach at 641-747-2276 , or e-mail frohling@iastate.edu