Faculty Affiliate:  Community Development Graduate Group, International Agricultural Development Graduate Group, Geography Graduate Group

Teaching Topics (Extension Teaching): Needs assessment, survey development, evaluation and research methods in extension education, outcomes measurement, Focus Groups, Ripple Effects Mapping, Delphi Technique

Research Interests: Needs assessment, evaluation methods and designs, survey development, international agricultural development project evaluation.

Biography:  I conduct research to inform the evaluation practice of extension educators and professionals and other relevant stakeholders, and work with them to build their evaluation capacity. Prior to joining UC Davis, I served as an Evaluation Specialist at the Environmental Resources Center of University of Wisconsin (UW)-Madison Division of Extension, where I worked with extension educators and project partners to plan, develop and implement evaluation of agricultural, conservation and environmental programs. Before joining UW-Madison, I worked as a Postdoc at the University of Connecticut and Iowa State University, supporting the evaluation of agricultural, extension and economic development programs. I have a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University (ANGRAU) in India, and a master’s and doctoral degrees in agricultural and extension education from ANGRAU and Iowa State University, respectively.

Teaching

Extension Trainings

• Best practices for writing strong evaluation plans for grant proposals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLRprfQgM9U&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=8 
• Conducting needs assessments in extension: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2szv95B4vd0&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=1 
• Using Delphi method for needs assessments: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfjIqQ3CMcY&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=4 
• Methods for Measuring Program Outcomes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDYb96dGK4w&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=6 
• Using Ripple Effects Mapping in Program Evaluation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qctBZ1gzks0&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=20 
• Best practices for running focus groups: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsRk0z_hhTE&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=16 
• Best Practices for Developing Surveys & Basics of Sampling https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qctBZ1gzks0&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=20 
• Navigating Institutional Review Board: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aT48M6I3ge8&list=PLLjlfxpbNglagqnsQdEstr719Kkct7B_J&index=9

Classroom Teaching Topics (Guest Lectures)

• Planning and designing evaluations
• Needs assessment
• Program logic modeling
• Evaluation and research data collection methods
• Survey development
• Writing good survey questions

Research

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=V44w7n0AAAAJ&hl=en

Select Journal Publications

In Press

• What makes a strong evaluation plan in a grant proposal? Journal of Extension.
• Application of GeoAI tools for extension program development. Journal of Extension.
• Bridging linguistic divides in U.S. Cooperative Extension through voice-based AI chatbots: A field-tested framework from Indian agricultural extension. Journal of Extension.

2026

• Food safety, power, and produce gleaning in California: Insights from community food recovery networks. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems.

2025

• Climate adaptation needs of Asian farmers in the Central Coast of California. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems.
• Strategies to overcome the unique challenges faced in conducting focus groups in extension. Journal of Extension.
• From data to action: An adaptable crosstabs template for participatory survey data analysis. Journal of Extension.
• Building resilience to Public Safety Power Shutoffs through public education. Journal of Extension.
• Guaranteed Income: A policy landscape review of 105 Programs in the United States. Basic Income Studies. 

2024

• AI-Powered Fraud and the Erosion of Online Survey Integrity: An Analysis of 31 Fraud Detection Strategies. Frontiers in Research Metrics and Analytics.
• Using focus groups in Delphi method to conduct participatory research: Implications for Extension. Journal of Extension.
• Setting Research and Extension Priorities for Agronomic Crops in California. California Agriculture.
• Climate Smart Agriculture: Assessing Needs and Perceptions of California’s Farmers. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems.
• Tools for capturing outcomes in virtual educational programs. Journal of Extension.

2023

• A model for integrated approach to professional development of extension educators: Implications of adult education principles and practices. Journal of Human Sciences and Extension.
• The impact of the COVID-19 on CalFresh and Market Match spending at farmers markets. California Agriculture.
• A preliminary assessment of food policy obstacles in California’s produce recovery networks. Agriculture and Human Values.

2022

• Scaling up co-produced climate-driven decision support tools for agriculture. Nature Sustainability.

2021

• Top management challenges and concerns for agronomic crop production in California: Identifying critical issues for extension through a needs assessment. Agronomy Journal.
• Foundational knowledge and skills in community development: A comparison of educator perspectives. Journal of Planning Education and Research.
• An exploration of community development higher education in the United States: A programmatic study. Community Development Journal.
• Explaining the use of online agricultural decision support tools with weather or climate information in the Midwestern United States. Journal of Environmental Management.

2020

• Group mapping in a 4-H camp mixed-methods evaluation. Journal of Youth Development.
• Disasters Happen: Identifying Disaster Management Needs of Cooperative Extension System Personnel. Journal of Extension.

2018

• Core competencies for successful watershed management work. Journal of Extension.

2017

• Usertesting.com: A tool for usability testing of online resources. Journal of Extension.
• Enhancing interdisciplinary climate change work through comprehensive evaluation. Climate Risk Management.

2016

• How do format and timing of follow-up surveys affect evaluation success? Journal of Extension.

Limited Distribution Publications (Peer-reviewed)

• Using focus groups in Extension evaluation. Blog written for American Evaluation Association (AEA) Extension Education Evaluation (EEE) Topical Interest Group (TIG) Week. 
• Needs assessment processes, methods and examples. Peer-reviewed annotated bibliography. University of Nevada, Reno.
• How to present individual change with Before (Pre) - and After (Post)- survey data? Quick Tips 38. Program Development and Evaluation Website, University of Wisconsin-Extension.

Outreach (Select oral presentations in the last three years)

American Evaluation Association (AEA) Conference

• Best practices for writing strong evaluation plans for grant proposals. Kansas City, MO. 2025 November.
• Empowering diverse voices: Applications of culturally responsive evaluation in various programs. Kansas City, MO. 2025 November.
• Building evaluation capacity in university extension to better serve communities. Kansas City, MO. 2025 November.
• Educational processes to build evaluation capacity in Cooperative Extension. Portland, OR. 2024 October.
• Practical strategies for overcoming challenges faced in conducting focus groups in Extension. Portland, OR. 2024 October.
• Strengthening evaluation practices using a regional evaluation capacity building model: Evaluation through the lens of the Western Regional Evaluation Network. Indianapolis, IN. 2023 October.

Association for International Agricultural and Extension Education (AIAEE) Conference

• Writing strong impact statements. San Jose, Costa Rica. 2026 April.
• “I can’t access it”: Insights for extension programming to small-scale Asian farmers in South Santa Clara Valley of California. San Jose, Costa Rica. 2026 April.
• How do we develop effective evaluation capacity building programs in Extension? Inverness, Scotland. 2025 April.
• Improving information dissemination of agricultural extension providers in supporting farmers to adopt climate smart agriculture practices: Insights from Malawi. Inverness, Scotland. 2025 April.
• Using Ripple Effects Mapping for assessing the impact of Extension programs. Orlando, FL. 2024 April.
• Participatory and culturally responsive needs assessment to identify applied research and extension priorities for agronomic crop production. Guelph, Canada. 2023 April.
• Designing food safety training programs for refugee farmers based on needs assessment data. Guelph, Canada. 2023 April.
• Strategies to face the challenges of evaluation capacity building when working with extension professionals not trained in evaluation. 2023 April.

National Association of Extension Program and Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP) Conference

• What methods should we use more of in extension program development and evaluation? Pittsburgh, PA. 2025 November.
• Building evaluation capacity of graduate students through internships. Pittsburgh, PA. 2025 November.
• Publishing journal articles. Demystifying what gets articles accepted and why they get rejected. Pittsburgh, PA. 2025 November.
• Building extension evaluation capacity through a regional evaluation network: Lessons learned. Pittsburgh, PA. 2025 November.
• How can we use Geo AI tools for conducting needs assessment? Pittsburgh, PA. 2025 November.
• Empowering extension professionals through effective needs assessments. Virtual. 2024 November.
• Best practices in culturally responsive evaluation: Recommendations for Extension. Virtual. 2024 November.
• Using formative evaluation data to realign project activities and outcomes. Salt Lake City, UT. November 2023.
• Integrating culturally responsive and racial equity approaches in evaluation: Stories and insights from extension practice in the western region. Salt Lake City, UT. November 2023.