Ron Meyer Recognized by Colorado State University Cooperative Extension

Ron Meyer, Colorado State University Cooperative Extension agronomist in Yuma, Kit Carson, Washington and Philips counties, has been recognized with the Alton Scofield Award. The award honors off-campus employees of Colorado State Cooperative Extension for dedication and contributions to their field of expertise and to the community in which they work. Meyers received the award at a ceremony on Thursday, Sept. 22.

Meyer has been agent for the last 16 years, and currently serves as the Kit Carson County office coordinator within the Golden Plains area, which is comprised of Yuma, Kit Carson, Washington and Philips counties. Meyer is involved with Colorado State University research and Cooperative Extension activities that range from screening sunflower hybrids to corn variety testing.

Meyer has been involved with educational efforts around the state and many other universities such as Kansas State University, Texas A&M, University of Wyoming and University of Nebraska. As a university liaison, Meyer has managed and dispersed about $200,000 in sunflower research grants to high plains university research and Cooperative Extension programs.

In 2002, Meyer was part of a team of Colorado State Cooperative Extension agricultural experts who organized a dry land sunflower school, where attendees learned new technologies that provided them with savings of $9 an acre. As a result, the total gross impact of this program was $636,570. The impact of such educational programs has helped sunflower production in Colorado to expand rapidly. In 1991, there were about 63,000 acres of sunflowers grown in Eastern Colorado; by 2001, the acreage had risen to 195,000 acres. The total value of sunflower production in Colorado now exceeds $30 million.

Meyer previously has been recognized by Colorado State Cooperative Extension with the Achievement Award in 1993, the Sustained Superior Performance Award in 1994 and the Team Award in 2003 for his role in the Cooperative Extension Positive Focus Team.

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