Abstract

Demonstration of a high level of professional competence is the primary public justification for the Cooperative Extension Service in the United States. Therefore, a highly competent and well-trained staff is an important resource for ensuring Extension’s organizational success. A regional study was conducted with 441 Extension educators who participated in an online survey. The purpose was to determine the relative importance of 11 professional competencies related to learning systems and identify the best time to learn each of these competencies. Participants perceived a majority of the competencies as highly important for their professional development. High percentages of the respondents preferred to learn a majority of the competencies through a graduate program and in-service programs. These findings imply a need to design flexible staff development programs for Extension educators that include graduate education, in-service trainings, and on-the-job experience. Findings also suggest a need for new policies regarding employee selection, training, professional development, and performance appraisal. Findings have implications to design professional trainings on learning systems in a variety of national and international extension settings.