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survey are: (1) That when training and experience are taken into consideration, the agricultural and home-demonstration agents are well paid as compared with college teachers produced by the same institutions that, for the most part, produce the county agents; (2) that the college teacher has on the whole a better chance of securing a higher salary than has the county agent, if he remains in countyagent work.

Although 26 institutions state that low salaries of county agricultural agents are the cause for the rapid turnover of this group, the salary factor, in view of the figures given above, should operate no more severely in the case of county agents than in the case of college teachers in general, except as the maximum may be expected at a lower level and is reached more quickly. In those States, however, in which salaries of county workers rank well up as compared with the institution's resident instructors, the personnel enjoy the reputation of being outstanding in their field and their relationships to their institutions and to the public in general are on a higher plane than in the majority of the States where low salaries prevail. The salary limitations are so well known by many agents that side lines of commercial activities have been developed to provide supplements to their regular salaries. When such earnings are derived from investments in enterprises that compete with other local agencies or when the business is of such a nature as to entail practices contrary to sound extension teaching a very grave administrative problem is presented.

To limit the right of an employee to invest his savings in private business is not always desirable; neither is it wise to prescribe the types of commercial activities in which his investment should be barred. It is clear, however, that in the instances where the standing and the progress of the extension program is at stake there can be but one course of action. The public service, for which the agent is employed, must be protected at all costs of private interest and investment. Private investments can not be permitted to conflict with the time required for performance of extension duties or to cause prejudice and sentiment to be developed against the extension service.

While it is clear that administrators of the extension work have a responsibility and an obligation in maintaining high standards in all phases of this service, the county workers have a particularly important responsibility in so fitting themselves for their work and so conducting their part of the extension program as to merit and very properly command higher pay for more efficient services. In

far too many instances the agents themselves have either been incompetent, satisfied with mediocre salaries, or failed to keep abreast of the times by the amount of self-improvement necessary for growth

and progress.

Tenure of office.-One of the measures of the stability and permanence of a movement as young as Smith-Lever extension is not the specific figure that may be used at any given time to indicate the tenure of office of any group of workers, but rather the progress made in the gradual lengthening of the period of service of the important groups.

That progress is being made in many of the classes of extension employment is indicated by Table 16. The differences in the averages of columns 1 and 2 point to a marked lengthening of the average period of service of State leaders of home economics extension, district leaders of agriculture, men and women specialists, and county agricultural agents. This points to more stability in financing, to a better trained staff, and to improved types of local cooperating organizations.

The process of lengthening the tenure period demands the very thoughtful attention of administrators of State extension services. With continuous service in these as in other positions that are closely limited as to promotion in rank or in salary, the tendency is for workers to fall into ruts and to be content if the routine tasks necessary to hold the job are performed.

In all public and institutional service such ruts are quickly developed, and they as quickly become the traveled roads to mechanical performance of monotonous duties. This is true in extension workso true as to offer startling proof of its existence in both State and county positions. It seems almost inevitable that long tenure of service should be associated with loss of enthusiasm and initiative. This tendency can be counteracted only by measures taken to develop those human qualities and interests that broaden the intellectual horizon and by provision for advancement of economic opportunity commensurate with growth in the field of employment.

There can be no shirking from the responsibility of developing county extension work into a living, growing, permanent opportunity for initiative and personal incentive, with adequate recompense for outstanding performance and growing satisfactions for those engaged in this phase of institutional service.

TABLE 16.—Average tenure of office, length of service, and distribution of staff

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The quality of county-agent service in general is affected by the rapid turnover of agents. That the element of continuous service in the same county is an important factor in maintaining the confidence of local people and in the best development of the program of work is apparent. The existing condition in the States replying to the question as to length of service is illustrated in Table 17. TABLE 17.-Number and per cent of county extension agents who have served continuously in the same county

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This means that one-fourth of the agricultural agents and almost two-fifths of the home demonstration and club agents had been employed not more than one year in the same county when this survey was made, and that two-thirds of the agents had been in the same county not more than four years. It is true that there are

situations in counties that demand transfers of agents to other locations, and often improved service results from changes of location for agents who have possibly been "too long" in one county. These are exceptions, however, and there are many more examples of arrested development and curtailment of projects well under way by the too rapid turnover of the county agent staff.

The average percentage rate of annual turnover was reported upon for the three years 1925, 1926, and 1927 for the three main groups of workers as follows:

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Six institutions reported an average of less than 10 per cent turnover for all workers, but in certain other institutions the maximum rate for agricultural specialists ran as high as 40 per cent and the range for county agricultural extension agents from 5 to 30 per cent. The principal reasons ascribed by the directors for the relatively high rate of turnover in extension staffs is summarized in Table 18. TABLE 18.-Reasons for turnover in extension staff

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How can the period of service be increased?-Thirty-two institutions indicated a number of methods that would contribute to the lowering of the rate of staff turnover. The extent to which any of them may be put into effect depends on conditions peculiar to each institution. The principal suggestions were: Better salaries, 23 institutions; stabilized county financing, 10; all salaries from State and Federal funds, 4; more opportunities for self-improvement, 4; older home-demonstration agents (as a corrective for loss from matrimony), 3; better trained workers, 3; and more careful selection of workers, 2.

111490°-30—VOL II- -32

These suggestions are of value as indicating the attitude of mind in which administrators approach the staff problems of turnover. It was to be expected that the first remedy to be proposed would be "higher salaries" in view of the fact that large salaries add to the attractiveness of any position and aid in securing sufficient candidates to enable the administrator to select staff members carefully. But it is doubtful whether low salaries are the important fundamental cause and the remedy merely an increase in pay. Other questions may be raised concerning the underlying factors in this problem of personnel turnover. Has the Smith-Lever extension movement developed under well-planned, definitely organized methods of sound educational procedure? Has the personnel, in the main, been selected on the basis of as much training in teaching and in "leading" as in "doing"? Has "expediency " been the basis of decision of many relationship problems rather than sound, permanent principles? Have day-to-day calls for service and "emergency problems tended to displace well-planned programs with definite results that might have made tenure of office more permanent and satisfying? Perhaps all these are being constructively answered in the progress institutions are making along these lines. It is encouraging to note a lowering of the rate of turnover during the past few years. This may be accounted for by better selection of agents by administrators, a gradual increase in salaries, and improved methods of carrying on the county work. As the system of agricultural extension grows older and the staffs become better organized and more satisfying possibilities appear for those engaged in this particular phase of adult education, the tenure of position will tend to increase and the rate of turnover will be perceptibly reduced.

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Selection of the staff, distribution of duties among its members, provision for its further training both while in service and during periods of leave provided for study, the academic ranking of the staff, salary adjustment and scales, and maintenance of continuity by keeping turnover within reasonable limits are all administrative responsibilities. All of these matters are directly dependent upon institutional policies and can not be determined with reference to the Smith-Lever extension service alone. Nevertheless, the director of extension is the advisor of the institutional authorities with reference to the application and measure of the effectiveness of these policies in so far as Smith-Lever extension is concerned. He is the official spokesman for this phase of institutional activity. In order to exercise his responsibilities in the immediate administration of the personnel of the service and in order to provide information needed by institutional administrative officers, the director must be able to

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