Jerry Marks, an MSU Extension agent serving Missoula County since 1969, is celebrating a 50-year career of innovation to address local needs and empower people to make changes they envision for the community. One of his final projects serving the people of Montana is the creation of a new facility for MSU Extension, the Weed District, Conservation District and the Missoula Insectarium and Butterfly House, planned for construction in 2020.
Six days after Jerry Marks walked into the Montana State University (MSU) Extension office in Missoula County, Neil Armstrong was walking on the moon. At that time, interest in science and the desire to explore new worlds was high. The excitement was something Marks sought throughout his innovative career with MSU Extension in Missoula.
Marks grew up on a farm near Townsend, MT. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture Production, Agriculture Science from MSU. He studied Public Administration at University of Montana (UM). His career as the agriculture Extension agent serving Missoula County began in 1969 and he still has a few programs he’d like to complete before he retires from MSU Extension.
Building programs with people is a very important role for Extension agents to use in the communities they serve. Marks is known for his ‘building programs with people’ style, often working through complex issues. He is credited for creating numerous jobs vital to agriculture, horticulture and community development due to his belief in the power of individuals and organizations working together to create change. He calls this the “co-learning model,” he believes when people are actively involved in the process to develop and market a program, the synergy created makes impactful change.
Making change happen
The people of Missoula County were as interested as Marks in turning ideas into action and making change happen. In the first five years of his career, Marks assisted in building capacity of programs to reach more individuals and broaden the impacts of 4-H, forestry and horticulture.
In those short five years, he adjusted the structure of the 4-H Council by increasing the number of committees and marketing the 4-H program, which increased youth enrollment by 30 percent.
Marks played a role with forestry industry leaders in establishing the Extension Service Forestry program, which began in 1983. This was accomplished by successfully competing for Federal Renewable Resource funding to establish an MSU presence on the UM Awareness of the Forest Stewardship Program resulted in the Missoula City Council creating an Urban Forestry Program.
Horticulture was another area of change in his early years. By the end of the 1960s, markets for locally-grown foods had declined and many truck gardeners, raising for local markets, went out of business. A new generation of growers began trying U-Pick and roadside stands. The interest in locally-grown foods led Marks to organize the first Montana Master Gardener Program in 1974. Over the next 40 years, he worked with the Missoula Community to establish community gardens, school gardens and helped growers market their produce.
In 1985, the Missoula County Commissioners asked Marks to develop a county weed control program to combat widespread noxious weed infestations. He divided the county into 17 watershed areas and organized landowner groups and watershed groups where possible. Marks is known for his leadership in improving the science-based techniques of noxious weed management. As a result of his work, Montana land managers have a biological weed control program, and increased their knowledge of grazing systems and re-vegetation methods. Other milestones of his leadership include combining Extension and the Weed District to establish a cohesive education model of weed management and agricultural practices, and establishing a plant clinic to identify pest problems and implement sustainable methods of pest management.
A new educational center
One of his final Extension projects is the development of an educational center, which started after he attended an Extension conference in Casper, WY, in the 1990s. The Extension office in Casper had classrooms, learning laboratories, a teaching kitchen and auditorium. Marks wanted a similar learning environment for Missoula and the surrounding area.
Now, 25 years later, construction of the Missoula County educational center will start in 2020. It will include 2.5 acres of education gardens, a master gardener lab, outdoor classroom, demonstration kitchen, conference rooms, an insectarium and butterfly house, as well as staff offices for Extension, the Weed District and the Missoula Conservation District.
Colleagues have recognized Marks with several distinguished achievement awards during his career, including the National Association of County Agricultural Agents “Hall of Fame” for “his leadership and commitment to excellence in serving as an Extension educator during a distinguished career and for outstanding humanitarian efforts beyond the normal call of duty.”
Marks and his wife, Sharon, have two children and three grandchildren. Their household is one of sewing arts, growing plants, creative cooking and supporting Missoula’s musical arts community. They have expanded their world view with their travels, learning about other cultures.
The landscape of Montana has literally changed over the last 50 years due to the work and innovation of Jerry Marks. There are many stories of struggle and success that he could share with those willing to listen. One might learn of his project to spray “Go Cats” across Mount Sentinel in Missoula, home to the “M” Trail. Or of the time he helped landowners rally to develop Harper’s Bridge on the west side of Missoula. It is a guarantee, though, that his story will include his “Marks-isms” and a theme of empowering people to make life-long change.