The three Montana State University extension agents assigned to Jefferson County are at the heart of what happens here. They appear at city council and county commission meetings, community fairs and public hearings — seemingly wherever and whenever decisions are informed or made, and often with a seat at the table.
The idea of university extension agents is not new. They’ve been operating across rural areas in the United States for two centuries, and in Montana since 1914. Today, 94 MSU extension agents are assigned statewide. The title sums up the role: each one functions as an extension of MSU, providing research-based education and information that’s tailored to communities’ needs.
But Jefferson County’s relationship with its extension agents is distinctive. Tom Harrington and Alison Richardson are two of only three in the state assigned to work solely on community and economic development, and the only two to be so deeply involved in a county’s economic planning, according to Richardson.
