University of Illinois Extension has been embedded in local communities for over 100 years, translating research into impactful educational programs and services.
We focus on eight strategic priorities, including Community, Economy, Environment, Food and Agriculture, Health,...
Our Strategic Priorities
Goals and Objectives
Illinois Extension will begin this strategic planning cycle with goals and objectives that reflect the intentions of each strategic initiative. To remain nimble and adaptable in an ever-changing world, to translate and transfer evidence-based knowledge that quickly emerges, and to be responsive to evolving stakeholder needs, Illinois Extension will operate with a model of self-governance that allows for continuous assessment, evaluation, and benchmarking and rapid modification of specific actions. Moreover, we will align Illinois Extension’s intentions with that of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign’s strategy to:
- Collaborate to solve problems.
- Foster authentic inclusion.
- Empower individuals to be their best.
Further, we will contribute to the College of ACES’ mission, primarily through making a significant and visible societal impact.
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Who We Are
We believe in you.
We believe in Illinois: Its people, its diverse neighborhoods and communities, and our shared future. We believe that health and wellness are the foundation for individuals, families, and communities to reach their full potential. We believe in and promote a culture of service as fundamental to strong and healthy families, neighborhoods, and state. We believe that the long-term sustainability of the environment and agricultural productivity requires stewardship and care. We believe in and respect youth’s potential to change the world and work to support nurturing communities and opportunities to learn and grow.
We believe in the state of Illinois, and we are committed to our mission linking local communities to University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, to develop programs, tools, and knowledge that will support needed change. Our mission is to develop educational programs, extend knowledge, and build partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state’s land-grant institution.
The Extension Worker's Creed
"I believe in the people and their hopes, their aspirations and their faith, and their right to make their own plans and arrive at their own decisions and their ability and power to enlarge their lives and plan for the happiness of those they love.
I believe the education, of which Extension is an essential part, is basic in stimulating individual initiative self-determination and leadership that these are the keys to democracy and that people, when given facts they understand, will act not only in their self-interest but also in the interest of society.
I believe that education is a lifelong process and the greatest university is the home that my success as a teacher is proportional to those qualities of mind and spirit that give me welcome entrance into the homes of the families that I serve.
I believe in intellectual freedom to search for and present the truth without bias and with courteous tolerance to the views of others. I believe that Extension is a link between the people and the ever-changing discoveries in the laboratories.
I believe in the public institutions, of which I am part of. I believe in my own work and in the opportunity I have to make my life useful to humanity.
Because I believe these things, I am an extension professional."
The creed was written by W.A. Lloyd, founder of Epsilon Sigma Phi, an honorary Extension professional association, as a New year's greeting to county ag agents in 1922. North Carolina State University