eXtension Widget News Release

Here's a news release you can use to publicize the Ask an Expert widget. Just fill in the blanks with the proper date and your local information, and remove the name of your county from the list in the second-last paragraph.


April ___, 2009

Have Questions? Extension Web Site Offers Answers
Source: ______ ________
[phone]
[email]

___________, Ohio -- ________ County residents have questions. And the ________ County office of Ohio State University Extension can provide the answers in a new online tool on its Web site, http:// ___________.osu.edu.

The _________ County Extension office is one of nine Ohio counties piloting the new feature, called "Ask an Expert."

The feature consists of a small box that allows people to enter their question and email address. They then submit the question directly from the Web site. The feature is located on the _______ County site at http://_______.osu.edu/ on the lower left hand side of the page.

Questions submitted to Ask an Expert are automatically routed to Extension educators serving ______ County. If the question isn't something they can answer, it is forwarded it to a state Extension specialist or to eXtension, a national network of Extension professionals, to respond.

The goal is to provide an easy way for people to get unbiased, research-based responses to questions they might have on just about any topic, said ______ ________, _______ County director of OSU Extension. The questions answered will become part eXtension's frequently asked questions, available on its national Web site, http://www.extension.org .

The other counties participating in the pilot project are: [NOTE:
REMOVE YOUR COUNTY NAME]: Ashtabula, Belmont, Clinton, Defiance, Logan, Lorain, Pickaway, Vinton and Wayne. Ohio is one of five states participating in a national eXtension pilot program. ______ County was chosen to participate in the Ohio pilot because of its past efforts in using technology.

The Ask an Expert feature is one of the newest ways consumers can benefit from the expertise offered by a network of federal, state and local Extension professionals. ______ County's and Ohio's participation in Ask an Expert offers local residents the chance to benefit from Extension expertise both locally and nationwide.

-30-