The Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service (OCES) delivered two sessions covering the material mandated by Section 10-9.5-F of the Oklahoma Registered poultry Feeding Operations Act. In all, twenty-two, three hour meetings were held in eight locations across the state during 1998. An electronic database was developed to keep track of operator's progress towards completing the initial training. This database was constructed using temporary records of attendance and meeting sign-up sheets.

Table 1 reports the total number of people attending training meetings. The total attendance is subdivided by operation location as identified by meeting participants. The majority of Arkansas and Missouri attendees are poultry company personnel, but we have experienced a number of Arkansas growers attending meetings in Delaware and Adair Counties.

A team consisting of State and county level staff began developing course curriculum in January 1998. The team broke training curriculum into four subject matter areas: regulations, environmental background, nutrient management, and systems management. Each of these subject matter areas were further subdivided into nine, one hour training modules. The nine modules were grouped into three, three hour training sessions. I order to complete the initial training before July 1, 1999, reference materials, handouts, lecture notes, and presentation visuals were prepared separately for each session. Groupings of modules into training sessions and session delivery dates are given in Table 2.

As you can see from the delivery dates, no one has completed all nine hours of initial training. Operator progress towards completion is shown on a county by county basis in Table 3. Numbers in Table 3 do not completely correspond to the attendance figures of Table 1. The attendance database keeps track of individual operator's training records. Each operator is tracked using a serial number which is cross checked against name, address, zip code, and county of operation. Some operators have only attended session 1; others have only attended session2; the majority of operators have attended both training sessions.

The apparent decline in training completed between sessions 1 and 2 (RM1 versus EBM1) may not reflect a true decline in attendance. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture (DA) has ruled that every registered operator must attend all nine hours of training. Some two-spouse operations have elected to identify only one operator for the farm. Under this scenario, two people signed the attendance list during session 1, but only one signed after session 2. OCES has encouraged all people attending the training sessions to receive credit for the training -- regardless of operator status.

Educational objectives were identified with each training module. Success at achieving these objectives is evaluated by testing the audience before and after each training session. Results of the pre and post testing is entered into an evaluation database. Results of testing ar identified by training location and date. They are not identifiable to individual students. Sample tests for sessions 1 and 2 are attached. Statewide results of the session 2 evaluation are also attached. Session 1 evaluation is not completed. (OCES developed the databases for session 2 first. This was to help us prepare for session 3 which is a continuation of material covered in session 2. The session 1 tests will be evaluated by mid February 1999 in order to prepare to redeliver session 1 materials in March and April)

Some extremely positive results were seen in operators' comprehension of environmental background (Questions 1, 7d, and 7f). A greater understanding of the long term consequences of soil phosphorus enrichment has also become apparent (Question 5). OCES delivered material on feed and litter amendments to reduce phosphorus impact. This material is becoming important in light of the new EPA AFO strategy which calls for comprehensive nutrient management plans addressing phosphorus reduction for feed to field. Knowledge of comprehensive nutrient management concepts also increased (Question 6).

Less impact was seen on some of the nutrient management concepts (Questions 7e, 7g, and 7h). these results may reflect the relatively high knowledge base of nutrient management prior to the training (75% or better correct responses to these questions on the pretest). Some poor results may be due to poorly worded questions (4, 7b).

The number of incorrect answers to Question 8 (which asked participants to calculate a nitrogen and phosphorus application rate) may reflect the audience's level of math anxiety. The general increase towards higher application rates is a interesting result. This may reflect an increased understanding that all the nutrients in litter do not become available for crop production during the first yea after application. However, the correct answers were round numbers (5 tons/acre, 1 ton/acre) when the time release concept was applied correctly. These results will be used to review these concepts and simplify delivery.

The final three hour session to complete the initial training will be given in February and March 1999. A record of attendance for the initial training will be delivered to all participants who have attended nine hours. OCES will use the attendance database and producer input to determine number and location of make up sessions. The goal is to allow all elgible participants the opportunity to complete training before July 1, 1999.

After session 3 is completed, OCES will reevaluate the effectiveness of the entire program and repackage the curriculum for delivery to new producers in the coming years. A procedure for evaluating diverse programs for annual update training will be developed by OCES and ODA.

Table 1. Attendance at 1998 Training Sessions

 Table 2. Breakdown of Subject Matter into Training Modules.

Table 3. Completion of Initial Training by Training Module and County