WEDA – Excellence in Extension Programming

Nomination Deadline: 11:59 pm on January 31st each year.

2026 Request for Application (Word)

The purpose of the Western Extension Directors Association (WEDA) Awards of Excellence is to recognize Extension outreach educational programming that has achieved outstanding accomplishments, results and impacts in addressing contemporary issues through innovative outreach in one or more of the 13 states and 4 territories, whose institutions are WEDA members. It is anticipated that recipients of the award will include mature programs with documented impacts.  Furthermore, recipients of the award will demonstrate high impact of programs; visionary leadership and anticipation of emerging issues for clientele and the system; commitment to diversity; and integration of programs in partnership with university colleagues and outside clientele. Awardees should be recognized as a leader at their university, in the communities served, and in their respective field of expertise. They should demonstrate the ability to garner a continual flow of resources for sustainable Extension programs and use innovative teaching methods. The nominee must be an active Cooperative Extension System professional (state, regional and/or county) with at least 50 percent EFT/FTE university appointment in Extension as of the deadline of the nomination. The nominee must have responsibility for Extension programming for a minimum of five consecutive years. Administrative EFT/FTE professionals or members of ECOP are not eligible.

WEDA Awards:

For 2026 the WEDA Excellence in Extension Programming Awards are:

• Excellence in Extension Programming – Individual. Prize $500.00
• Excellence in Extension Programming – Team. Prize – $500.00 (Team to determine distribution of $500.00.)
• Innovative Programming that Addresses New Audiences. Prize – $500.00

The WEDA Excellence in Extension Programming awards may be given annually to recognize up to a total of three programs which represent the work of an individual or team within a single or multistate/territory setting. If warranted, at least one of the three awards will be given to a multistate/territory program. An Honorable Mention award(s) may be granted, if deemed warranted by the review committee.

What is a program?

For the purposes of the WEDA Awards of Excellence, the following definition will be used: An Extension program is a group or series of presentations, workshops, functions, demonstrations or other events and activities that form a comprehensive outreach education curriculum, methodology or process that facilitates learning in volunteer audiences over time through the adoption and application of new knowledge and skills. For example, a conference developed and offered to address nutrition needs for teens would be an event rather than a program. The conference, however, may be one of many components that make up an Extension Teen Nutrition Program.

Applications: 

WEDA Awards of Excellence applications should be submitted only for programs as defined above. Applications may be submitted only by Extension Directors from states/territories that are members in good standing of the Western Extension Directors Association. Previous WEDA Award of Excellence winning programs cannot be resubmitted. Programs nominated for WEDA Awards of Excellence, but not selected, can be resubmitted for future consideration, including those recognized as Honorable Mention.  Applications must address Criteria 1-7 in three pages or less in length using font size 11 or larger in a Word document. A fourth page may be used as a brief bibliography to cite the key references used in developing and enhancing the program (see criteria #3). Applications should be written so that a reader totally unfamiliar with the program will have a reasonably good understanding of the program and its impacts. Anyone may recommend potential awardees by completing and submitting an application package to their Extension Director. Self-nominations are appropriate. All applications must be submitted by the nominee’s Extension Director to be accepted for consideration. Directors may submit up to three program submissions per state/territory per year. Applications will be managed, reviewed, rated and recommended for the WEDA Award of Excellence by the Western Extension Program Leadership Committee. See Application Format below.

About Team Applications:

Programs designed and delivered to address issues in multiple states/territories/LGUs are strongly encouraged. A team must be formed by two or more Land-grant Universities and consist of 3 or more people, composed of at least 1 state, county, or regional Extension professional. The team works to advance Extension’s research, technical assistance, and outreach education mission and demonstrate accomplishments and evidence of impact within the last 3 years. Applications for team awards are required to describe the characteristics of the partnership by including the following: 1) identify collaborating faculty/staff from participating institutions, 2) describe the role of each participant in the collaboration, and 3) characterize the relative contribution of each participant as a percentage of the entire effort (so that the sum of all contributions is 100%). Team applications may attach one additional page to describe the characteristics of the partnership. One team award may be submitted by each Director in addition to their two state/territory programs, however, an institution may be included in an additional team application that is submitted by a Director from a partnering institution/LGU. The Director submitting a team application is encouraged to inform the other institutions that are partnering on the program.

Cover page: 

Please include the name of the program; the institution submitting the application (lead institution if team award); the name, title, address, phone, fax and email of the contact person for the program; a brief abstract (no more than 150 words) of the program; and if it is a team (multistate/territory) application, list those collaborating on the cover page, and the names, titles and institutions of the team members as part of the characteristics of the partnership.

See Cover Page format at the end of this site.

Evaluation Criteria and Format for Use in Developing and Rating Applications: 

Please use this application format to address the categories presented below. Applications should address as many of the seven criteria as apply to the program but should not address non-relevant criteria. Please note that all criteria are not equally weighted.

Demonstrated High Impact of programs, described by the following (total 500 words or less) (total 100 points):

1. Extension Issue, Situation, & Focus: Outline the needs or situation the program addressed, including why the issue is important and what conditions existed prior to implementation. Describe the Extension educational focus of the program, identifying key research and evidence upon which the program was built. (500 words or less) A brief bibliography of key references used in developing the program may be included on page 4, if needed.
2. Stakeholders & Input: Identifies audiences/customers/stakeholders, and clearly describes the process(es) used to obtain their input into program development and implementation. Who does the program target, and how was their input obtained (5 points).
3. Impact Assessment: Identifies the evaluation methods used and clearly presents the significant impacts, outcomes, and results achieved by the program in addressing the issue (15 points).
4. Innovative Approaches: Describes innovative approach(es) used to effectively address the issue. Clearly explains why the approach, method, program, etc., is viewed as innovative. Note: While innovation is strongly encouraged, and will be considered in the ratings, all program proposals submitted that show significant impacts/outcomes/results will be considered for an award (25 points).
5. Recognized Excellence: Recognized excellence in one’s field of expertise as demonstrated by sustained funding and creative partnerships; professional recognition, request for speaking engagements beyond one’s geographic assignment; and development of educational resources, outputs and assessments (500 words or less). (10 points)
6. Demonstrated Scholarly Impact: Presents the scholarly products developed for use by Extension clientele and peers in support of the program. Scholarly products developed may include, but are not limited to journal articles, magazine articles, education manuals, fact sheets, new curricula, new web sites, video and other digital technology, news articles, or other methods of dissemination.  (500 words or less)  (20 points).
7. Multidisciplinary & Collaborative Focus: Presents the key multidisciplinary components and collaborations/partnerships needed for success of the program. Explains the role of each to the program. Do not just list disciplines, collaborators and partnerships without a statement of why/how they were important to the program (500 words or less) (10 points).
8. Reach: How is this programming a new model for Extension in reaching new audiences? The response should describe how it is innovative in its application, methods, and approaches; and how it can be used by other educators to reach audiences not previously reached. (500 words or less) (10 points)

Award Presentation: 

The WEDA Awards of Excellence will be presented to the recipient(s) at the Western Joint Summer Meeting in June 2026, which includes the Western Extension Directors, Experiment Station Directors, Agriculture Deans, Academic Program Leaders, and Council on Agriculture Research, Extension and Teaching. The award recipients(s) will have an opportunity to give a brief seminar during the award presentation. Winners will be asked to provide a photo and abstract of their presentation for inclusion in the Awards brochure.

Submission Information and Due Date: 

Each application must include, as presented above: cover page, information addressing the criteria, references used, and must be submitted by the state/territory Extension Director. Only electronic submissions of the application will be accepted. The due date for all submissions is 11:59 pm on January 31 of each year. Send the electronic application to Dr. Ed Martin’s assistant Kelly Montez at kellymontez@arizona.edu with WEDA Award Application in the subject line. Phone: 520-621-7145

A confirmed received reply from Kelly will be sent back to you within 48 hours of receipt.

Application Format:

2026 Western Extension Directors Association Awards of Excellence 

Please use the following format in preparing your application:

• Cover Page
• Criteria (no more than 3 pages)
  • Extension Issue, Situation, & Focus
  • Stakeholders & Input
  • Impact Assessment
  • Innovative Approaches
  • Recognized Excellence
  • Demonstrated Scholarly Impact
  • Multidisciplinary & Collaborative Components
  • Reach
• Brief Bibliography of References Used
• For Team Awards Only: Characteristics of Multistate Partnership (1 additional page allowed)

Cover Page Format:

Name of Program

Name of Institution Submitting the Application (indicate if program is Team/Multistate)

Name of Contact Person for Program Being Submitted
Title of the Contact Person
Complete Mailing Address
Telephone Number
E-mail address

Abstract (no more than 150 words):

Name of Team Members, Titles and Institutions