Category: Cooperative Extension
Erik Ervin named interim associate dean and interim director of University of Delaware Cooperative Extension
August 20, 2024 Written by Dante LaPenta, Photo Credit by Monica Moriak
The University of Delaware College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR) has selected faculty member Erik Ervin to lead UD Cooperative Extension, which brings University knowledge, research and resources to the people of Delaware. Ervin will serve as interim associate dean and interim director for a one-year term.
Since 2018, Ervin served as chair of the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences. He arrived at UD with a long history at land-grant universities and Cooperative Extension programs.
“We have an outstanding Cooperative Extension team working across Delaware,” said Brian Farkas, Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources. “Dr. Ervin’s experience as a leader, as a turfgrass and horticulture scientist, and in Extension will allow him to get up to speed quickly and continue the positive impact Extension has had across our state and region.”
Ervin is enthused at the new opportunity.
“I am excited to lead our outstanding faculty and staff in serving our Delaware constituents in bigger and better ways,” said Ervin. “My primary goal is to supervise, mentor and hire great people and work with them to set our strategic direction for the next five years.”
The college recently launched a new strategic planning process under the leadership of Dean Farkas, who joined UD earlier this year. Ervin’s objective is to fit Extension’s plan with the college’s, but also maintain a unique focus on the team’s strengths and priorities.
“Our new strategic plan will then allow for a focus on achieving additional funding to support further excellence in Cooperative Extension’s priority areas of agricultural systems, 4-H, and health and well-being,” added Ervin.
Cooperative Extension professionals are a special breed. Almost anywhere you go in the U.S., extension faculty and staff are known for their hard work and commitment to their communities.
“Extension professionals feel that call to serve—just like our teachers, first responders, community service providers, and law enforcement officers,” emphasized Ervin. “They strive for that daily satisfaction of making a difference for people and their communities.”
Extension has experts in an array of disciplines—from nutrition classes and Master Naturalist courses to 4-H youth clubs and programs that support local agriculture.
For more than a century, Extension professionals have conducted applied research, developed educational programs (many at no cost), and extended their knowledge to citizens and businesses.
“We provide farmers, agricultural businesses, urban and rural youth, and the average Delawarean with access to UD faculty members and subject matter experts,” highlighted Ervin.
Land-grant and Cooperative Extension experience
In his most recent role, Ervin led the esteemed UD Department of Plant and Soil Sciences. PLSC’s 32 faculty attract $6 million annually in innovative research grants and teach the next generation of plant and soil environmental scientists and landscape architects. As a researcher, Ervin collaborated with plant biologist Harsh Bais and doctoral student Charanpreet Kaur on UD-developed beneficial bacteria UD1022 and its promise for disarming fungal pathogens that affect turfgrass. He also worked with Delaware golf courses on choosing beneficial native plants for out of play areas.
Immediately before arriving in Newark, Ervin was a faculty member at Virginia Tech. He served as academic advisor for the Virginia Turfgrass Council; he hosted more than a dozen winter conferences, summer field days, and turfgrass certified professional short courses. An expert in turfgrass and horticultural systems, Ervin authored much of “Best Management Practices to Protect Environmental Quality on Virginia Golf Courses”. This manual was only the second of its kind in the United States; he has since updated the Delaware-specific edition when he arrived in the First State in 2018.
Previously, Ervin served as assistant professor at the University of Missouri and held an appointment as a state turfgrass extension specialist. He developed train-the-trainer program materials on lawn care for Cooperative Extension agents. Ervin proudly reduced fungicide inputs on St. Louis area golf courses by 50 percent over three years with a professional “greenkeeper” educational program.
He received both his M.S. and Ph.D. from Colorado State University studying under turfgrass extension specialist Tony Koski. Along with his Cooperative Extension colleagues, Ervin attended, presented at, and organized many summer field days, winter conferences, and Master Gardener training programs.