Success Showcase

How Google Forms Helped Improve

Extension Programming in 2014

Sonja Fuchs, Web Technology Specialist

What is a Google Form?

Perks of Google Forms

• No paper and no stamps =

efficient, cheaper and easier to

organize and share

• Can have several

collaborators

• Easily track responses

• Free and easy to use

Uses

- Registration - Collect email signatures

for newsletters

- Evaluations - Community Garden Sign ups

Tom Kalb – Ext. Horticulturist in

Western ND

Self-proclaimed “technology dinosaur”

Photo "CabazonDinosaurs-BuildingShapedLikeDinosaur" by Binksternet - Own work. Licensed

under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons -

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CabazonDinosaurs-

BuildingShapedLikeDinosaur.jpg#mediaviewer/File:CabazonDinosaurs-

BuildingShapedLikeDinosaur.jpg

Jr. Master Gardner

Goal is to get ND kids gardening so they can

improve their health

Youth groups have an adult apply for the

grant money and supervise the project

Took JMG apps online in 2014

Tom said:

• Electronic submission made it

easy for projects to apply.

• It also provided an image of

professionalism for our

organization.

• All funds were distributed in a

matter of a few weeks; in the

past we needed to send out

repeated calls for applications

and took several months.Photo by Gabriel Kamener, Sown Together on Flickr

Potato Pirates

The Potato Pirates Project is patterned after the ND Home Garden Variety Trials

program. We work with more than 200 families every year, evaluating promising varieties

of vegetables, herbs and flowers in backyard gardens

Evaluations of the project show that our youth gardeners develop skills in science, enjoy

improved diets, and show increased levels of physical activity.

Image from Pixaby

Tom’s Comments

• In this youth project, we received over 300 requests for potato research kits in three

weeks. We could have distributed thousands if we had such funds available.

• We allowed mail-in registrations, but only received four. The public is comfortable with

electronic submission.

• By demonstrating this demand, we can justify our funding from the state legislature.

Perhaps we can get some more in the future....

Image from Pixaby

Spring Gardening Fever!

Tom’s Take on SGF:

• We gained over 400 registrants from all 53 counties in the state

• County agents used Google Drive to accept Spring Fever Garden Forum registrations

for training at their local county offices. This online registration freed agents and their

staff from mailing out brochures, taking registrations over the phone, etc. It also gave

agents a good idea on how many handouts to prepare for each session. These e-mail

lists are now available to agents for use in the promotion of future programs.

• We are using this list to distribute the NDSU Yard & Garden Report and promote

other programs in the future.

Photo by Leo Reynolds on Flickr

How Do I Get Started with

Google Forms? If you’ve never logged on to Google Drive,

start at the ITS page

If you’ve used your NDSU Google Drive

account, you can start with Google help

Video how to

Questions? Need Help?

Web Technology Specialists

Sonja Fuchs (701) 231-6403

Bob Bertsch (701) 231-7381