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Official Optimistic About Extension Changes
An official with the Knox County office of the University of Illinois Extension says he feels the changes coming to Extension statewide will end up being for the best, even though they might seem pretty bad now.

Extension educator Kyle Cecil says months and months of meetings with constituents culminated in the new extension map that came out this week, which will have the Knox County Extension office combining with offices in Warren, Henderson, and McDonough Counties.

Cecil tells WGIL he remains positive about the changes ahead, despite there still being a lot of I's that need to be dotted.

"There's a lot of questions yet to be answered and they're being worked through," Cecil said. "There has not been any decisions yet as to staffing patterns...where people will be located...where main hub offices will be, things like that, because we're still working through a lot of the details."

Cecil says in the end, he doesn't believe major services or the programs Extension has come to provide will be impacted -- and he says some, may end up being better.

The consolidations are coming as the result of a $7 million cut to its budget thanks to the state budget crisis. State Extension officials say so far this fiscal year, no state funds have been received.


(Graphic courtesy University of Illinois Extension)
05 21 10 by Newsroom
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