Barbara Petty Named UI Extension Director

Barbara Petty has formally been appointed as director of University of Idaho Extension after 18 months on the job as interim director.

An 18-year member of the University of Idaho faculty, Petty began serving as interim UI Extension director in late 2014. She began her UI career as a UI Extension family and consumer sciences educator in 1998 on a part-time basis.

Serving the Public

“Barbara Petty showed that she is the right person to lead one of the University of Idaho’s most citizen-focused endeavors,” said Michael Parrella, dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. “UI Extension made significant gains during her time as interim director in large part due to her expertise and understanding of the university’s mission to help the public.”

UI Extension was established under the federal Smith-Lever Act in 1914. It established partnerships between counties, states and land-grant universities to provide the state’s people with practical, trustworthy information based on scientific research. Nearly 200 UI Extension faculty and staff now serve throughout Idaho, including in 42 county offices.

“I am honored to be selected to serve as UI Extension director,” said Petty, who will be based in Moscow and also serve as College of Agricultural and Life Sciences associate dean. “Extension is well poised to provide trustworthy, innovative education to address Idahoans’ needs so they can make informed decisions on issues they are facing. I look forward to continuing to build upon the foundation of excellence already established and will work together with new partners to expand our reach in serving the residents of Idaho and beyond.”

Petty’s time as interim director included a pioneering role for UI Extension: county offices helped advance the Enroll Idaho campaign to encourage more residents to pursue higher education.

Petty also focused on hiring talented and innovative UI Extension professionals to fill position vacancies and refocused many to address Idahoans’ current needs. She also helped lead a shift toward using technology to improve communication with residents and within Extension.

Families and Communities

A Nebraska native, she moved to Idaho Falls in 1998 when her husband, Terry, was chosen to pastor a congregation there.

After earning her bachelor’s degree in vocational home economics education in 1977, she taught home economics in Missouri before focusing on raising her children. She earned a master’s degree in human development and the family from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln in 1984 and returned to teaching there in 1995.

After beginning work in UI Extension’s Bonneville County office, Petty worked on other collaborative projects with fellow Extension family and consumer sciences faculty focused on nutrition and financial training.

As her interest in an Extension career grew, Petty sought additional education. In 2007, she earned a doctorate in education with an emphasis in adult education and organizational learning from the University of Idaho.

Petty became director of the southern Idaho Horizons Project in 2008 and guided UI Extension’s efforts to build leadership capacity in 15 communities through the program funded by the Northwest Area Foundation. In 2010, she became UI Extension’s Eastern District Director.

One of her early projects at Idaho Falls was developing the Married and Loving It! curriculum with her husband, who now works as a certified professional mediator. The program remains popular with its focus on communication as the main path to marital harmony.

Research showed the class helped couples.

“We knew two-thirds were already satisfied with their marriage and one-third would say that their level of satisfaction in their marriage was low when they attended the first class. Immediately after participating in the five-week program, their marital satisfaction level went up: 92 percent said they were satisfied,” she said.

“The interesting part for us was when we did a follow-up survey and expected the percent to go down but 93 percent of those same participants said their marital satisfaction level was higher,” she added.

The main reason, she said, was learning about themselves and learning about their spouses.

In addition to her Extension work, Petty serves as chair of the Board of Directors for Northwest University in Kirkland, Wash.