Note: This site is for reviewing legacy plan of work data from 2007-2011. If you are looking for the current plan of work interface, visit pow.nmsu.edu.

Civil Rights (Taos County)

Plan Goal

Increase participation of minority, low income and non-traditional audiences in Cooperative Extension programs in Taos County. Participation of such audience will help to improve their economic and social wellbeing.

Situation Statement

Although Taos County's Hispanic and Native American population remain the majority ethnic populations, the influx of Anglo and Mexican immigants have changed the face of audiences with which Extension Agents work in Taos County. The Taos County Extension Service recognizes the importance of diversity and inclusion in the development of Extension programs. New Mexico State University's Cooperative Extension Service has the responsibility to provide educational programming to all residents of New Mexico and not exclude any one regardless of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in order to comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. These Extension programs must be handled in a manner that treats every customer and employee with fairness, equality, and respect. This applies to all aspects of Extension programs including identifying needs, setting priorities, allocating resources, selecting and assigning staff, conducting programs, and receiving feedback.

Target Audience and Actions

All Taos County residents are the target audience. Civil rights compliance work is ongoing. Compliance includes appropiate plans of work and the collection of program participation data that continues throughout the year to insure nondiscrimination in program delivery. County Extension Agents and staff will use county demographic data, follow proper public notification steps of programs, and data collected of who attends the programming, to determine gaps in outreach efforts and potential needs of underserved audiences.

Short-Term Objectives

County Extension Agent will be able to explain to another person the importance of Extension Service civil rights compliance and will be able to place compliance records in appropriate files.

County Extension Agent will participate in at least one staff meeting annually where discussions regarding civil rights compliance and civil rights planning take place and are documented.

All reasonable efforts will be carried out on a regular basis to ensure equal access and to reach underserved audiences.

Medium-Term Objectives

1.Advisory boards and committees will be diverse with respect to gender, ethnicity, and community representation and will be representative of the population in the geographic areas being served.
2. Plans to solicit diverse nominations for committees and advisory boards will be established and practiced.
3. Agents and staff will know where to locate procedures for handling program and employment complaints from clientele and office personnel.
4. Published program and employment complaint procedures will be available to all employees, volunteers, and to the public.
5. Agents and staff will understand the complaint process and those issues of compliance and noncompliance.
6. Agents, staff and volunteers will understand the basis on which program discrimination is prohibited in Extension programs.
7. The USDA "And Justice for All" poster showing the nondiscrimination policy statement and how to file a civil rights complaint will be prominently displayed in office areas visited by the public.
8. Office entrances, routing of clients will be such that discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability does not occur.
9. Secretarial help and other support resources will be available on a nondiscriminatory basis.
10. All reasonable efforts will be carried out to ensure equal access and integration of clubs.
Where program delivery methods are by club:
a. In cooperation with Extension staff members, clubs are responsible for their own public notification efforts, (i.e., existence of the club, dates, time, and location of organizational meetings.)
b. In cooperation with Extension staff members, clubs are responsible for inviting all potential members without regard to race, ethnicity, or gender.
c. Extension staff members have communication with club members, officers, leaders, and volunteers regarding the value of diversity and the expectations for equal opportunity requirements.
d. Equal opportunity requirements will apply to any setting where clubs meet collectively within a county, region, state, or nationally.
e. The membership of all clubs operating in interracial and non-interracial communities are open to all individuals regardless of race and gender.
f. Geographic boundaries established for program planning and implementation are done in a nondiscriminatory manner.
g. Membership in all clubs is open to both males and females.
h. 4-H recruitment committees are diverse by race and gender.
11. Work facilities and programs are accessible to employees, volunteers, customers, clients, and visitors with disabilities.
12. A system for collecting and reporting data on potential and actual clientele participation in Extension programs will be established and maintained.
13. A public notification policy will be in use informing the public, particularly underrepresented/underserved audiences of all Extension program benefits and of the protection against discrimination.
14. A nondiscrimination statement will be used on Extension printed publications, including bulletins, leaflets, circulars, fact sheets, program announcements, and miscellaneous publications.
17. A public notification policy informing the public of the availability of reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities will be established.
18. Established written instructions to guide staff members on the maintenance, protection and use of clientele mailing lists will be established and maintained.
19. Extension programs, methods, content, and places of services are implemented in a manner that ensures nondiscrimination on the basis of sex for all participants in compliance with Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972.

Long-Term Objectives

1. A county civil rights plan will identify the frequency of conducting internal civil rights reviews with all program units, including plans for taking appropriate corrective measures, and Extension's recognition of staff members' successes for addressing equal opportunity issues.
2. Where and when appropriate, educational materials will be published in a language other than English.
3. Established procedures will be in place to guide staff in ensuring that education assistance is not provided to any organization or group that excludes individuals because of their race, ethnicity or gender.
4. There will be equality, fairness, and respect in the use of Extension work facilities, including support for educators, paraprofessionals, secretarial and support staff.
5. Office quarters and related facilities, supplies, educational materials, electronic technology (computers, telephone, etc.) will be assigned and available to all staff on a nondiscriminatory basis.
6. Procedures will be in place to mainstream participants into other Extension programs to ensure total inclusion.
7. Internal civil rights review plans will be in place for assuring program compliance by Extension staff members, on an equal opportunity basis.
8. All CES employees will understand the NMSU CES file guide system.

Evaluation Plan

Every five years the Taos County Extension Office is subject to a civil rights review. Civil rights program efforts will be reviewed by a team of trained reviewers representing different program areas and areas of expertise. The evaluation will consist of an examination of the completeness of office civil rights compliance files, discussions on successes and problems in carrying out civil rights compliance and reviewing the importance of the task.