A Survey Of Certain Personnel Aspects Of The Cooperative Extension Service For Negroes In Texas

Author

Jacob Leroy Boyer, Jr., Prairie View University

Date of Award

5-1947

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Degree Discipline

Agriculture

Abstract

Extension work among Negroes in Texas is a part of the national and state Extension Service established in 1914, which developed in our country as a result of changing conditions in American agriculture and American education. Distant markets, a lack of virgin soil for farming, and the necessity of business on a credit basis caused America's rural and urban population to realize the need for more scientific knowledge and better management methods for our agricultural producers.

Constant research for knowledge related to agriculture was undoubtedly successful but this information was not available to the farming population. Surveys and studies showed that the solution to many agricultural problems were filed away within the departments of research because there was no agency established for the distribution of scientific information concerning agriculture.

The Smith-Lever Act, "to aid in diffusing among the people of the United States, useful and practical information on subjects relating to agriculture and home economics, and to encourage the application of the same",^ was passed by the Congress, May 18, 1914, authorizing Cooperative Extension Work for the states receiving benefits of the Morrill Acts.

Headquarters of Cooperative Extension Work among Negroes in Texas are located at Prairie View University, Prairie View, Texas. The Negro State Extension Staff and its agents work under the general supervision of the State Director of Extension Service, located at the Texas.

Agricultural and Mechanical College, College Station, Texas. The work is established for the benefit of rural Negro families and it is not limited to any particular problems, but lends itself to aiding in any capacity on whatever problems face Negro rural families.

The Cooperative Extension Work of the United States is non-political. It not only includes states of the United States but also Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.

The second section of the Smith-Lever Act gives a very broad definition of Cooperative Agricultural Extension Work in this statement:

Cooperative Agricultural Extension Work shall consist of the giving of instruction and practical demonstrations in agriculture and home economics to persons not attending or resident in said colleges in the several communities, and imparting to such persons information on said subjects through field demonstrations, publications, and otherwise} and this work' shall be carried on in such manner as may be mutually agreed upon by the Secretary of Agriculture and the State Agricultural College or colleges receiving the benefits of this act.

The Negro Extension program in Texas should be of great importance to all citizens of Texas. This program involves the total Negro rural population of Texas. It is the purpose of this program to diffuse among the Negroes of Texas useful and practical information on subjects relating to agriculture and home economics and to encourage the application of the same.

Committee Chair/Advisor

E. M. Norris

Committee Member

J. H. Windom

Committee Member

J. M. Drew

Committee Member

G. L. Smith

Committee Member

W. C. David

Publisher

Prairie View University

Rights

Date of Digitization

4/13/2022

Contributing Institution

John B Coleman Library

City of Publication

Prairie View

MIME Type

Application/PDF

Recommended Citation

Boyer, Jr., J. L. (1947). A Survey Of Certain Personnel Aspects Of The Cooperative Extension Service For Negroes In Texas. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.pvamu.edu/pvamu-theses/1476