extension
Narrative Profile
Narrative Profile
‘As a state institution of higher learning, Caraga State University (CSU) is mandated to support the socio-economic development goals of the country through its four-fold functions- instruction, research, extension, and production. To attain this goal, a sound Extension and Community Outreach Program should be formulated and implemented to answer the technological and information needs of its service area’..
- University President, 2017
Committed to its mission, CSU wades through challenges to help address the pressing concerns in Caraga region and even beyond its borders through the implementation of different Extension Programs which are anchored on the economic development platform of the region, aligned to the 10-point development agenda of the national government, and supportive to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To clearly set its strategic directions in addressing the prevailing needs of its target clientele, the University has periodically revised and updated its Research and Extension Manual which defines its goals and objectives.
University Extension Goals
Poverty Alleviation, Sustainable Economic Self-sufficiency, and Moral Recovery
OBJECTIVES
CSU Extension and Community Outreach Service endeavors to:
1. Reduce poverty and generate employment through the efforts in packaging, disseminating, and utilizing technologies for rural development;
2. Serve individuals and communities through extension service programs in Sustainable Upland/Lowland Resource Development, Responsible Mining, Human Capital Building by way of improving functional literacy through technical-vocational courses, engineering, education, and other fields for practical applications; and
3. Attain excellence in community service by:
Improving indigenous and rural technology;
Supporting provincial and regional development directions through linkages with NGO's LGUs and other sectors;
Cultivating values and culture toward attaining improved quality of life;
Playing a major role in the making of important and relevant policies;
Training the lower-and-middle level manpower in agriculture; wood- and mineral-based industries and other related endeavors;
Conducting outreach programs on literacy and occupational skills for various sectors in the service area.
Adequate Extension Programs
Bachelor of Technical Vocational Teacher Education (BTVTED) Curricular Complementation to the Project/Activities
All Colleges were involved in the program collaborated with the faculty-researchers from the: College of Engineering and Information Technology (CEIT), College of Industrial Technology and Teacher Education (CITTE), and College Tourism and Hospitality Management (CTHM). The Bachelor of Technical Vocational Teacher Education (BTVTEd) Program contributed in achieving the goal of ‘BuKal sa Calibunan’- Adopt-a- Barangay extension program by submitting and implementing the project, Light Vehicle Driving and Dressmaking.
The identification of the project by the College of Industrial Technology and Teacher Education (CITTE) was based on the result of the Needs Assessment Survey. Primary objective of the project was to provide skills training to the Out-of-School Youth (OSY) in the adopted barangay and heads of families who were unemployed or those still awaiting for job opportunities. The extension project was also opened to those belonging to low income families who expressed desire to enhance their know-how on the basics of driving and sewing in the hope of using the skill as means to raise funds that may augment the family’s meager income. Below is the Curricular Complementation of the Extension projects/activities and the summary of the projects under the program highlighting the project implemented by BTVTED faculty and students.
Dressmaking/Tailoring
Extension Project
Attendance
(Dressmaking Activity)
Light Vehicle Driving
Attendance (Driving Activity)
CaMELEAD Program
MOA Signing Activity between CSUCC and its Partner Agencies
Bulig para sa Kalambuan’ or ‘BuKal’ sa Calibunan Extension Program (2016-2020)
‘BuKal sa Calibunan’ is the second ‘Adopt-a-Barangay’ Extension Program of CSU Cabadbaran City Campus (CSUCC). This is an institutional extension program that is primarily designed of providing technical know-how and means of livelihood through skills trainings for the residents of recipient depressed coastal barangay. The trainings enhance capacity of some people in coastal communities to earn additional means that may augment family’s income. Primary goal of ‘BuKal sa Calibunan’ extension program is to replicate the livelihood and skills-trainings which CSUCC has previously provided in the adjacent adopted coastal barangay under the program, ‘Balikatan para sa La Union’.
System and Procedure of Extension Program Implementation
The Adopt-a-Barangay Extension program of the Campus follows a cyclic process of planning, implementation and evaluation. Monitoring is iterative in every phase of the process to ensure smooth transfer of information or technology to the target clientele.
Planning phase involves series of extensive and deliberate discussions and consultations by the CSUCC’s representatives with the City Planning Office, and the City Local Government Unit (LGU). The consultative meetings center on the determination of appropriate barangay to be adopted by CSUCC. Planning phase includes also the design, preparation, critiquing, submission, careful evaluation and approval of project proposals which are aligned to the identified needs of prospective clients. Action plan is made as to how the technologies will be packaged to draw the interest of target recipients in the adopted barangays, as well as, the interest of possible partner agencies. Stakeholders’ forum is conducted to forge possible partnership with other agencies in the implementation of the extension project. Included in the planning phase is the preparation and signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between CSUCC, the LGU of the adopted barangay and the City of Cabadbaran.
Implementation phase commences once the MOA and project proposals are approved. Extension projects identified by each college are implemented with the shared efforts and involvement of partner agencies. For smooth implementation of projects, good rapport between extensionists and clients, and, between CSUCC representatives and LGU of the adopted barangay, are endeavored to establish and strengthen. Accomplishments, constraints and problems are being monitored periodically thru submission of Progress reports, Terminal reports and yearly assessment facilitated by the Research Development and Extension unit of CSUCC.
Upon completion of any extension project, monitoring and evaluation is facilitated to generate feedback from the beneficiaries and verify how the trainings provided by CSUCC positively affect, if any, their socio-economic well-being. Data gathered from evaluation and monitoring are used in revisiting the project and in re-planning phase for possible enhancement of training modules and services rendered to the target clientele. All documentary evidence relative to the implementation of an extension project is then compiled and bound for future reference and review. Below are images of the compiled documents relative to specific extension projects implemented by the College of Industrial technology and Teacher Education.
Reasonable Budget
Budget Allocation for Extension
External Funds that Support Extension
Programs in the last Five Years
Significant factor in a successful implementation of any extension program, projects and activities is the availability of adequate funds to finance the materials needed in each extension project, transportation expense, meal allowance and other miscellaneous expenses for faculty-implementers, student facilitators and sometimes, even for target beneficiaries. Though specific budget is allocated annually by the University in the performance of its extension mandate, clearly, they are not enough to ensure the timely, efficient and complete implementation of scheduled extension programs, projects and activities. Hence, external funding factors in the successful extension programs implementation.
Reasonable Provision of Materials and Other Resources
Among other things being considered by some stakeholders and some funding agencies before granting any assistance for any program or project, are the resources provided by the concerned university. For some years, Caraga State University Cabadbaran Campus (CSUCC) has been providing resources both materials and human resources to ensure successful carrying out of the University’s mandate in terms of extension and community involvement.
A. Materials, Facilities and Infrastructures are provided for Electrical Engineering Extension Projects. In support to the University’s goal of creating Laboratory Enabled Human Capital in the region and to help ensure successful implementation of identified extension projects of the BSEE program, materials, facilities and infrastructures are being provided by the Campus.
Technovation Complex Building and its Equipment and Facilities. They are open for extension activities such as meetings, trainings, and seminars for target beneficiaries.
2. Campus Gym and its Facilities. They have been utilized for large gathering such as orientation of different prospective beneficiaries from the adopted barangay on the different extension projects provided by CSUCC personnel. The orientation includes information of the nature of each project, the qualification/ requirements, and the expected learning outputs and outcome. It also provides avenue to hear the community feedback of possible problems that may hinder them from completing the trainings.
3. Administration Conference Room and its Facilities. They are being opened for stakeholders’ conferences/meetings, partners’ fora and seminars for small number of participants.
4. Classrooms and Audio-Visual Room are also made available for lectures, briefing, culmination, and other extension activities.
5. Library facilities and Vehicles. Library meeting rooms are made available as makeshift whenever necessary for extension related activities. School vehicles, in some cases, are made available when needed to transport the beneficiaries from training venue to the barangay aside from those used for driving extension project.
6. Other Facilities and Equipment Used.
Participation Of Faculty/ Staff/ Students/ Communities In Major Projects and Other Extension Activities
A. Faculty and Students’ Participation. There is a 100% participation of core faculty members of Bachelor of Technical-Vocational Teacher Education (BTVTED) Program in implementation of extension projects/programs. Select BTVTED students who are involved in extension projects played also crucial role in the implementation. They provided assistance by helping in the preparation of the venue and training materials, in the documentation, encoding, and preparation of reports. But above all, the primary purpose of students’ involvement in the college extension and community engagements is the internalization of the core value, ‘SERVICE’ to the community. The University pushes to imbibe among its faculty and students the Core Values, C-ompetence, S-ervice, and U-prightness (CSU). These are exemplified in the performance of extension and community engagements. Below is the summary of the extension projects and activities implemented by BTVTED Faculty and students.
B. Community and Local Government Units’ (LGU). Participation of the community and the Local Government Units (LGUs), as well as, the People’s Organizations in the implementation of extension programs, is evident through the presence and active involvement of their representatives in consultative meetings and conferences, stakeholders’ forum, partners’ forum, and attendance in culmination programs in some trainings and seminars. The provision of venues during meetings held in the barangay is another indicator of the active involvement of the LGUs in extension projects. Communities’ participation is evident on their willingness in providing required information during surveys on the demographic profile and monitoring.
Awards of Distinctions and Achievement
To show appreciation of all the efforts and assistance provided by the University in improving the quality of life of the people in its adopted communities, through the implementation of institutional extension programs which include the extension projects implemented by BTVTED Faculty and Students, the Local Government Units (LGUs) of concerned barangays and a partner agency, accorded CSU Cadbadbaran City Campus the certificates and plaque of Recognition. These gestures hopes to help uplift the spirit of extension project/program implementers and drive them to further enhance the services they offer to the community.
CITTE extension workers are highlighted with there work achievements in making the extension programs and projects possible. Certificates are proof that they exemplary performs all the details and work guidelines of the identified extension works to all the beneficiaries of the adapt barangays. Below are some of the awards of distinction and achievements received by the extension workers:
“Being one of the contributor for this project is a big milestone for FishCORAL and BFAR because the outcome exceeded our expectation and it is very comprehensive. With all our projects in Agusan del Norte and Surigao del Sur composed of 18 local government units, this is the first project related to Mangrove Management Plan that is Science Based, that’s why we are so proud and grateful to be one of the collaborators.”
– Mr. Rolando Leopoldo,
FishCORAL Manager
“I would like to express my gratitude in behalf of the City of Cabadbaran because I was able to come up with the Mangrove Management Plan with the help of the concerned partner agencies that really took time to formulate the Mangrove Management Plan. There will be more partners hip to be established in the future because there are still a lot of issues that need to be addressed especially in the mangrove areas of Cabadbaran City.”
--Engr. Eva M. Milan,
Senior Environment Specialist
Cabadbaran City
Best Practices
As public Higher Education Institution (HEI), Caraga State University (CSU) is mandated to engage with the community and perform extension programs that somehow can help uplift the socio-economic well-being of the people in the region and even beyond its borders. Through the years, CSU particularly Cabadbaran City Campus (CSUCC), has identified some extension practices which it considers as key factors in the successful implementation of extension programs. These practices helped in making CSUCC’s community engagements more sustainable and impactful to the target beneficiaries, hence considered as the Campus’ best practices. These same best practices are the ones adopted and supported by all Colleges and by their respective attached departments including the Department of Teacher Education. Among the identified best practices in the conduct of extension programs are as follows:
A. “One-for-All, All-for-One” Extension Programs;
B. Fostering good rapport;
C. Peer critiquing of extension and project proposals.
D. Year-end assessment of extension activities;
E. Recognizing exemplary contributions.
Each of these identified ‘best practices’ are elaborately discussed in the subsequent subsections.
A. ‘One-for-All, All-for-One’ Extension Program. To maximize its limited human, material and financial resources, CSU Cabadbaran City Campus (CSUCC), traditionally adopts one barangay at a time and design one institutional extension program for all colleges to work on. Such that, each college shall focus its resources and expertise of their faculty to attain the- all-for- one main purpose of extension program- that is to help improve the quality of life of the people in the adopted barangay.
In general, the implementation of every extension program at CSUCC is a collaborative effort of all Colleges. So that, for the Adopt-a-Barangay Extension Program, training needs of various sectors in the concerned communities are being addressed wholistically– those with very low-income, unstable or unemployed fathers, unemployed mothers, out -of-school Youth (OSY), those who are seeking for job opportunities, and those who simply intend to enhance or gain skills to enable them engage in small scale businesses. Faculty from different curricular programs under each College, including BTVTED, tried to identify specific target beneficiary, craft and implement extension project/s under the same extension program.
B. Building and fostering good rapport. Central to an effective implementation of any extension programs or projects are the following:
(a) unwavering support by the local government unit,
(b) BTVTED Narrative Profile, Extension and Community 50 persistence of the target beneficiaries to finish the whole training or extension project, and
(c) adoption of the transferred technologies by its beneficiaries.
To address these concerns, every group of faculty and students under any curricular program who are implementing an extension project/s, tried to build rapport and kept good relationship with the beneficiaries and partner agencies. Extension project implementers kept the contact numbers of their clients and made themselves available to any related issues and assistance even after the training. The concern and dedication shown by faculty and students during the implementation built camaraderie between the extensionists and beneficiaries. Such helps the latter to sustain in the training and increases the chances of technology adoption by the beneficiaries.
C. Peer critiquing and review of proposals. For some years,CSUCC through the office ofResearch and Extension Unit has adopted a peer critiquing process in the development of an extension program and projects proposals. All program/ project proposals are presented before peers and colleagues for critiquing in a venue and forum created for the purpose.The main objective is to help the proponents improve and polish their proposals before submitting for approval. Such activity promotes openness, continuously enhances the capability of extension implementers in terms of proposal preparation, and ensures that the project/s are responsive to the needs of the target.
D. Year-end assessment of research and extension activities. To monitor and evaluate if the services extended to the clientele are responsive, sustainable, and timely implemented, the Research, Development and Extension Office holds an annual yearend assessment of the current year’s research and extension undertakings. This annual activity provides the facultyextension implementers a chance to revisit their implementation plan vis-a-vis actual progress of extension activities. Extension implementers try to examine if they have conformed as to schedules and deliverables of the project, assess the problems that seem to hinder the efficient implementation, and look into possible ways how they redesign the activities to further improve its services to the target clientele.
E. Recognizing exemplary contributions. Every year, the University holds the Program on Awards and Incentives for Service Excellence (PRAISE) to recognize personnel who have displayed praiseworthy performances in various fields. Among the awardees are the faculty extension implementers who exhibited commendable performance in the implementation of their respective extension projects. They received the Special Presidential Citation Award in recognition of their contribution to the University’s effective and efficient implementation of extension programs and in carrying out its mandate. The award of recognition serves dual purpose- as the University’s way of expressing its gratefulness to the extensionists and at the same time, encouraging them to persist doing better than what they have just accomplished.