MSU Extension Ogemaw County

Leadership and Community Engagement

Through its public policy education and community leadership workshops, MSU Extension informs residents about public policy issues and processes, offers leadership skill development classes and strengthens community capacity to solve complex problems.

Civic Engagement

Engaged citizens do more than vote, they act within and outside political systems to improve communities.

Through its Public Policy and Civic Engagement trainings, MSU Extension informs residents about public policy issues and processes as well as advancing citizen engagement to strengthen community capacity to solve complex problems. Examples of workshops and programs that have been available to Ogemaw County residents include:

• Citizen Planner
• Real Colors and Meyers Briggs Personality Assessments
• Leadership through Effective Meeting
• Parliamentary Procedures
• Facilitated Strategic Planning

For more information: http://msue.anr.msu.edu/topic/info/civic engagement.

Facilitation

A facilitator is someone who helps a group of people understand their common objectives and assists the group in planning and achieving their objectives without taking a particular position in the discussion.

MSU Extension offers two highly acclaimed facilitation workshops that are designed to train leaders from communities and organizations and are available to Ogemaw County citizens:

• Facilitative Leadership
• Advanced Facilitative Leadership.
• MSU Extension also offers facilitation and strategic planning.

Conflict Resolution and Leadership Development

To engage productively in community and economic development opportunities it is essential to openly address and resolve disagreement in a constructive manner. MSU Extension offers experiential and research-based educational opportunities that help people build the skills they need to manage a range of conflict situations—from one-on-one interactions to large public meetings.

• In 2015, two (2) three-hour Communicating through Conflict workshops were piloted for Ogemaw County employees. Since that time over 400 people across the state have experienced this workshop. Evaluations have been exemplary! A medium term evaluation is planned.
• With a concentration on local programming, experienced MSU Extension staff and local citizens have been exploring the creation of a community leadership program from Ogemaw County. In June of 2017 surveys were disseminated and a focus group conducted to ascertain a need and/or desire to launch a leadership program in Ogemaw County.

Tourism

MSU Extension helps communities grow and prosper by providing educational programs aimed at expanding awareness and identifying appropriate tourism niches and development recommendations.

Understanding Tourism in Michigan Communities (UTMC)

• This 3 hour workshop is directed at communities and individuals seeking to better understand tourism opportunities and how niche markets can help transform, grow and sustain assets in their communities.
• Attendees explore their own assets and identify possibilities to leverage tourism opportunities.
• Through a partnership with the Michigan Tourism Strategic Plan Fund, ten Understanding Tourism in Michigan Communities workshops will be presented across the state in 2017 & 2018.
• Ogemaw held this program in 2015.

First Impressions

• The purpose of the First Impressions Program is to help a destination learn about their existing strengths and weaknesses as seen through the eyes of the first time visitor.
• Participating communities receive a written summery, public presentation and tourism –related recommendations.
• The MSUE Tourism Team is currently accepting applications for 2018 at http://msue.anr.msu.edu/program/info/tourism_first_impressions.
• Articles and information about a variety of tourism- related subjects can be found on the Michigan State University Extension Tourism website at: http://msue.anr.msu.edu/topic/programs/tourism.