By Mychal Wilmes
wilmes@agrinews.com
ST. PAUL -- It boils down to money and the lack of it.
The University of Minnesota took a 15 percent hit in its budget from the Legislature and difficult decisions had to be made, says Charles Casey, Extension dean and director.
"These are real dollar reductions we have to deal with,'' Casey said. "We are doing the best we can with the resources we have.''
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Casey wants lawmakers and Minnesotans to be patient and let the revamping play out.
"When this is all done we are still going to be out there and doing programming that is important for agriculture and rural communities,'' he said.
Casey denies that production agriculture is being de-emphasized by the university. He says he has traveled the state talking to county commissioners about the options they have when it comes to setting up local Extension offices. He says counties have expressed strong interest in establishing offices and working with other counties in sharing arrangements.
"See the final results before making final judgments,'' he said.
