LIMA — Rhodes State College will be closed Tuesday through Jan. 1 for the holidays.

ADA - The Community Economic Development Center at Ohio Northern University will hold six noncredit certification classes beginning in January. Classes are free and open to the public, and all begin at 6:30 p.m.

Allen County 3900 Campus Drive, Suite B, Lima 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays 419-222-9946. Fax: 419-228-3601. Web: http://allen.osu.edu Nancy Recker, county director and family and consumer sciences educator; Curtis Young, agriculture and natural resources and community development educator; Mark Light, 4-H youth development educator Auglaize County 208 S. Blackhoof St., Wapakoneta 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays 419-738-2219 or 419-738-9003 Fax: 419-738-8262 Web: http://auglaize.osu.edu/ E-mail: augl@cfaes.osu.edu Lois Clark, county director and family and consumer sciences educator; Elizabeth Miller, 4-H youth development educator; John Smith, agriculture and natural resources and community development educator Hardin County 1 Court House Square, Suite 40, Kenton 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays 419-674-2297. Fax: 419-674-2268. Web: http://hardin.osu.edu/ E-mail: hard@osu.edu Kenneth Lafontaine, county director and 4-H youth development and community development educator; Gene McCluer, agriculture and natural resources educator; Kathy Oliver, family and consumer sciences and community development educator and county director; Vicki Phillips, family nutrition program assistant Putnam County 124 Putnam Parkway, Ottawa 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays 419-523-6294. Fax: 419-523-3192. Web: http://putnam.osu.edu/ Glen Arnold, county director and agriculture/natural resources; Lisa Hoffman, family nutrition program assistant; Jason Hedrick, 4-H youth development educator Van Wert County 1055 S. Washington St., Van Wert 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays 419-238-1214. Fax: 419-238-3276. Web: http://vanwert.osu.edu Carol Trice, family and consumer sciences educato; Andy Kleinschmidt, agriculture and natural resources; Nancy Bowen, economic development educator; Gary Prill, Farm Focus/research coordinator, program manager

Four Purdue University agricultural centers will host field days for producers and others to visit the facilities and learn from campus-based staff.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Those interested in learning more about how sustainable agriculture in Ohio works will have several opportunities as Ohio State University's Sustainable Agriculture Team hosts seven tours this summer.

ADA — The Community Economic Development Center at Ohio Northern University will continue its entrepreneurship workshop series Tuesday in the Dicke Forum.

Ohio Farm to School is offering a free webinar on March 1 to teach produce growers more about selling their products to local school systems.

People who have purchased or inherited a small farm but don’t know how to work the land will learn the basics of agriculture during a 15-week educational program sponsored by the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service.

People who have purchased or inherited a small farm but don’t know how to work the land will learn the basics of agriculture during a 15-week educational program sponsored by the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service.

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Experts from the Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences are available to speak about the first discovery in Ohio of the walnut twig beetle. The insect is known to carry the fungus that causes deadly Thousand Cankers Disease (TCD) in walnut trees.

A workshop to be presented at five sites around the state for producersand food entrepreneurs will focus on marketing strategies and a new toolthat can help in the process.Marketing 101: Using Indiana MarketMaker to Find Food Markets isdesigned for everyone from buyers looking for specific product from farmersto on-farm retailers and from restaurant chefs looking for product tocommunity supported agriculture.The workshops, sponsored by Purdue University Cooperative ExtensionService, will introduce producers and businesses to MarketMaker, illustratethe tools and resources it provides and demonstrate how producers andbusinesses can register.The workshop dates and information follows:* March 6 from 6-8 p.m. at the Pinney Purdue Agricultural Center inWanatah, Ind. For more information and to register, call the PurdueExtension office in Porter County at (219) 465-3555 or emailparkerkj@purdue.edu . Registration costs $10 is payable at the door.* March 12 beginning at 6 pm. at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds inMadison, Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 10, but is not required.For more information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office inDearborn County at (812) 926-1189 or email nheld@purdue.edu . Registrationcosts $10 is payable at the door.* March 17 at the Dubois County Area Development Corporation in Jasper,Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 15, but is not required. Formore information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office in PerryCounty at (812) 547-7084 or email mzoglman@purdue.edu. Registration costs$10 is payable at the door.* March 24 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds inCrawfordsville, Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 22, but is notrequired. For more information and to register, call the Purdue Extensionoffice in Montgomery County at (765) 364-6363 or email luzar@purdue.edu.Registration costs $10 is payable at the door.* April 19 at 1:30 p.m. (following the Bloomington Community Farmers¹Market meeting) at Showers Plaza in the Council Chambers in Bloomington,Ind. The program is free, but registration is requested by March 17. Formore information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office in MonroeCounty at (812) 349-2575 or email afthompson@purdue.edu.For more information about the workshops and to download a brochure,visit the Purdue New Ventures Team Web site athttp://www.agecon.purdue.edu/newventures/ and click ³Program Calendar.²  

A workshop to be presented at five sites around the state for producersand food entrepreneurs will focus on marketing strategies and a new toolthat can help in the process.Marketing 101: Using Indiana MarketMaker to Find Food Markets isdesigned for everyone from buyers looking for specific product from farmersto on-farm retailers and from restaurant chefs looking for product tocommunity supported agriculture.The workshops, sponsored by Purdue University Cooperative ExtensionService, will introduce producers and businesses to MarketMaker, illustratethe tools and resources it provides and demonstrate how producers andbusinesses can register.The workshop dates and information follows:* March 6 from 6-8 p.m. at the Pinney Purdue Agricultural Center inWanatah, Ind. For more information and to register, call the PurdueExtension office in Porter County at (219) 465-3555 or emailparkerkj@purdue.edu . Registration costs $10 is payable at the door.* March 12 beginning at 6 pm. at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds inMadison, Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 10, but is not required.For more information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office inDearborn County at (812) 926-1189 or email nheld@purdue.edu . Registrationcosts $10 is payable at the door.* March 17 at the Dubois County Area Development Corporation in Jasper,Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 15, but is not required. Formore information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office in PerryCounty at (812) 547-7084 or email mzoglman@purdue.edu. Registration costs$10 is payable at the door.* March 24 beginning at 6 p.m. at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds inCrawfordsville, Ind. Preregistration is requested by March 22, but is notrequired. For more information and to register, call the Purdue Extensionoffice in Montgomery County at (765) 364-6363 or email luzar@purdue.edu.Registration costs $10 is payable at the door.* April 19 at 1:30 p.m. (following the Bloomington Community Farmers¹Market meeting) at Showers Plaza in the Council Chambers in Bloomington,Ind. The program is free, but registration is requested by March 17. Formore information and to register, call the Purdue Extension office in MonroeCounty at (812) 349-2575 or email afthompson@purdue.edu.For more information about the workshops and to download a brochure,visit the Purdue New Ventures Team Web site athttp://www.agecon.purdue.edu/newventures/ and click ³Program Calendar.²  

JACKSON, Ohio - Livestock and forages will be the focus of Ohio State University’s Beef and Forage Field Night Aug. 23 at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center’s Jackson Agricultural Research Station.

Organic soybeans will be the featured topic on Aug. 17 as the 2011 Ohio Sustainable Farm Tour and Workshop Series continues in Bowling Green.

LIMAThe Ohio State University at Lima is seeking nominations for inductions into its Hall of Fame. The award recognizes OSU-Lima alumni who have excelled in leadership and community service.Candidates must have successfully completed one academic quarter of full-time study at OSU-Lima and graduated from OSU at least 20 years before the nomination. They must also demonstrate leadership in their communities as well as their professions.Nomination deadline is Feb. 25, and must include a letter of nomination and a résumé. The nominations may be sent to Janet Anderson at anderson.1782@osu.edu or Amanda Miller at miller.1491@osu.edu. For information, call 419-995-8623 or 419-995-8260.

Women in agriculture who are interested in taking a more active role in farm operations may sign up for Annie’s Project, a multi-part risk-management course offered by Ohio State University Extension.

MANSFIELD, Ohio - The Ohio Woodland Stewards Program is holding a four-part seminar series for growers, gardeners, landscapers, homeowners and others on invasive species, the problems they cause and how to deal with them.

LIMA — Rhodes State College Workforce, Economic Development and Continuing Education Division will hold a free information forum from 5 to 6 p.m. Monday in Reed Hall Cafeteria, on the Rhodes State campus.

LimaRhodes State College will host an Explore Rhodes Admissions and Financial Aid Event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday. Prospective students can learn about the academic programs at Rhodes, as well as the admissions and financial aid processes. For those students interested in allied health or nursing, a session for health care qualification will begin at 1 p.m.Pre-register at www.RhodesState.edu or call 419-995-8320.

OTTAWA - Representatives from Rhodes State College will be at the Putnam County Educational Service Center from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. March 24.  It's an opportunity for residents to learn more about Rhodes' programs, admissions processes, financial aid and scholarship opportunities and transferability of degrees.  Those interested in attending should contact Chad Teman at 419-995-8010 or teman.c@rhodesstate.edu. 

Hoosiers with property and crop damage from this week’s severe weather can find recovery information online through the Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service.