Oklahoma

The Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension Service in the Northwest District is under new leadership.

Dee Cooper recently was named Northwest District Director and he began his new duties on Nov. 1. The Northwest District office is located in Enid. He most recently was serving as the agriculture/4-H Youth Development Extension educator and county Extension director in Osage County. He also has served in Wagoner, Pawnee, Choctaw and Pushmataha counties.

Early in his Extension career, Cooper said he realized that the district directors all played a vital role in not only the day-to-day operations of Extension, but in determining how effective Extension would be in the future. This realization was one of the reasons he wanted to pursue the director position.

"This role, and the challenges that it demands, has always appealed to me," Cooper said, who brings more than 15 years worth of experience to his new job. "I enjoy challenging myself to accomplish new goals and I will use this opportunity to assist the Extension educators in the Northwest District to reach out and touch the lives of the citizens they serve."

One of his first objectives is to make Extension more visible to the public by developing an aggressive marketing plan. He said today's world is fast-changing and Extension must market itself in order to stay viable.

"We have a great product to market. It is unbiased research-based information that is beneficial to all citizens of Oklahoma," he said. "Too many people assume that all we do is related to production agriculture, livestock shows and cooking. We do these things, but our scope is so much greater. We impact Oklahomans in ways that improves the quality of their lives. Unfortunately, many citizens do not realize the information they receive is coming from Cooperative Extension."

Cooper noted that Extension has done tremendous work in areas such as rural development, horticulture, promoting healthy lifestyles, the 4-H Youth Development program and so many more areas.

"My goal is to make the Extension educators in the Northwest District the most respected and sought after information source in their counties. Once we accomplish this, our future will be secure for generations to come," he said.

Cooper earned his bachelor's degree in animal science in 1984 and his master's degree in agricultural education in 1987, both from Oklahoma State University.