The Agricultural Telecommunications Program

What Is the Program?

The Agricultural Telecommunications Program is a national grants program to develop an agricultural communications network using leading-edge technologies. It was originally authorized in Section 1673 of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade Act of 1990 (Public Law 105-185). It provides financial assistance through the USDA for the production and delivery of educational programs in agricultural extension, research, and academic programs. U.S. institutions of higher education are eligible to receive the grants.

The act was amended in 1998 (Section 245) naming the ADEC Distance Education Consortium as program administrator. Applications to ADEC for funding must describe the telecommunications network and programming proposed. This year ADEC designed and rapidly deployed an efficient Internet-based proposal process, which could save millions of federal dollars.

What Are the Program Objectives?

Encourage institutions of higher education to share resources in applying modern technologies such as the Internet and wireless delivery to:

1. assure that producers, processors, researchers, and the public have immediate access to knowledge.

2. improve the competitive position of U.S. agriculture in international markets.

3. respond to food safety and environmental concerns.

4. improve the training of students for careers in agriculture and food industries.

5. identify new uses for agricultural commodities and increase demand.

What Does the Program Require?

In 1999 ADEC received 95 proposals from 42 institutions in 36 states requesting a total of nearly $16 million. The importance of this program is growing as agricultural institutions seek to revamp existing education programs using new technologies. Because these new designs are expensive for one institution to implement, multi-institutional strategies and collaborative use of a comprehensive communications network including Internet and satellite transmission are essential.

What Are the Results?

• Dollars provided by the Agricultural Telecommuncations Program resulted in the Tri-State Agricultural Distance Delivery Alliance (TADDA), which includes Washington State University, Oregon State University, and the University of Idaho. Six courses reach learners at any location, and nearly fifty more are in the development stage.

• Texas A&M University collaborated with Utah State University and the University of Kentucky to develop a nationally recognized program in international agribusiness marketing. It reaches food marketing firms, food processors, and other extension audiences.

• New Mexico State University successfully implemented a multimedia program called "Marketing from a Rural Environment,@ which focuses on place-bound minority learners.

• The University of Arizona developed a comprehensive and dynamic Internet-based resource on rangeland management.

• Mississippi State University extended the reach of the Web to all state and county offices.

• Ohio State University developed an internationally recognized system for quickly targeting and accessing appropriate horticulture information.

What Is ADEC?

The ADEC Distance Education Consortium includes 58 state universities and land-grant institutions. All member institutions benefit from this collaborative initiative begun in 1989. The consortium=s coordinating office is located at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Through rapid program development and use of distance learning technology, ADEC is developing the knowledge marketplace for U.S. food and agricultural producers, processors, and consumers.

ADEC Members

Alabama A&M University
Alcorn State University
University of Arizona
University of Arkansas
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
University of California
Clemson University
Colorado State University
Cornell University
CSREES-USDA
University of Delaware
Delaware State University
Diné College
Dull Knife Memorial College
University of Florida
Florida A&M University
University of Georgia
Haskell Indian Nations University
University of Idaho
University of Illinois
Iowa State University
Kansas State University
Kentucky State University
University of Kentucky
Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwa Community College
Langston University
Louisiana State University
University of Maryland-College Park
University of Maryland-Eastern Shore
College of the Menominee Nation
Michigan State University
University of Minnesota
Mississippi State University
University of Missouri at Columbia
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
University of Nevada-Reno
University of New Hampshire
New Mexico State University
North Carolina A&T State University
North Carolina State University
The Ohio State University
Oklahoma State University
Oregon State University
The Pennsylvania State University
Purdue University
Rutgers University
South Dakota State University
The University of Tennessee
Tennessee State University
Texas A&M University
Texas Tech University
Tuskegee University
Utah State University
Virginia Tech University
West Virginia University
Washington State University
University of Wisconsin-Madison
University of Wyoming

For more information, contact
Janet K. Poley, President
ADEC Distance Education Consortium
University of Nebraska
C218 Animal Science
PO Box 830952
Lincoln, NE 68583-0952
Telephone: 402-472-7000
Fax: 402-472-9060
E-mail: jpoley@unl.edu
Web site: http://www.adec.edu