National Association of State Conservation Agencies Forum - Recent Posts

Mike Brown is asking for important input

Dakota Ewert — Fri, 24 Jul 2026 15:08:18 +0000

I hope all of my friends at NASCA are doing great! A few friends and I are seeking a
good place to hunt Merriam’s turkeys nest spring. I would appreciate any leads you
folks could provide. I can be reached at wirehairmail@gmail.com or at 302-270-8624.
Thanks very much, and I miss all of you!
Mike Brown
Former NASCA Executive Director

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Will Myers — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:07:00 +0000

In Iowa, we also primarily use Microsoft tools like several other respondents noted. We also share many of the federal system compatibility issues as our staff (District and State) located in USDA Service Center offices are all on federal computers and infrastructure which has many use limitations. One thing that we have utilized with some success for communications and document sharing is though a third party website (Squarespace) which was originally created for sharing our state sponsored water quality initiative efforts with the general public. However, this product it also has many additional features which allow us to easily create password protected and web based sites to share and achieve documents and resources targeted towards a number of different groups. It is also user friendly and does not require internal IT support as it's managed via subscription through Squarespace. Happy to share more details on how this works if you are interested.

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Clancy Green — Tue, 07 Jul 2026 11:56:27 +0000

In Oklahoma, we mostly use Microsoft tools - Teams, Access, and Forms with some dabbling in SharePoint. As others have said, MS is finicky and our IT locks it down so some of the capabilities are limited. But all of our districts have licenses provided through the state (attached to their emails) so we know it is a system that is the same for everyone and that everyone can access. It is all web-based, though districts do have the option to install the apps on their desktops.

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Jake Wilson — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 17:22:54 +0000

In MO we have used (and continue to use to some extent) physical servers on a shared internal network, a web based "intranet" page, and most recently sharepoint. Each comes with its own set of pros and cons. M365 (sharepoint, forms, teams, etc.) has the most potential, but our state IT agency department does not allow us to fully take advantage of the capabilities.

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Marsha Setzkorn-Meyer — Thu, 02 Jul 2026 14:47:35 +0000

We use a program called Central Point. We use it to store and organize documents, but also to create forms. Prior to this we used Google Forms. An account was created for each district manager. We moved our supervisors modules to the platform, and included self tests. Once that was set up we added access for any supervisor interested (less than 20%) but with different privileges. We are still learning everything that is possible with the program. Contact me if you want more information.

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Clare Ireland — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 09:52:24 +0000

Also, to add to what I posted above, we initially went with Google products because they are cheap, easy, intuitive, and readily accessible. One problem we did run into is that it isn't very compatible with NRCS systems. Districts have reported various issues with using Google products from NRCS computers or using NRCS emails. We've actually been considering switching to SharePoint and Microsoft 365 for better compatibility with state and federal systems, but we're hesitant since those systems don't seem as intuitive for people in our limited experience. So I'm interested in what others' experiences have been!

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Clare Ireland — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 09:47:29 +0000

In Vermont, we've used mostly Google products (Google Drive, Google Forms, Google Docs, Google Sheets). We sometimes use other products like Survey Monkey and Monday.com for surveys and registrations. We have a shared Google Drive that all districts can access that has guidance documents and sample documents that districts share with one another. However, the Google Drive approach is really messy: No one ever knows where to find things, and we have to stay on top of sharing permissions. I think we're probably going to move to a system where all our "static" guidance documents and trainings live in a portal we set up through our website, and the Google Drive can be for all the messier "living" documents and peer-to-peer sharing.

RE: What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Allie Dinwiddie — Tue, 30 Jun 2026 20:21:49 +0000

Hi Breegan,

North Carolina uses a combination of resources. I've listed a handful below that come to mind, but this is not an exhaustive list. Hope what I have shared here is helpful though!

Formsite - This online form builder allows us to create customized forms for our state programs. We frequently use the "Save and Return" feature available through this tool, which allows users to start a submission and come back to it later. Formsite also offers some useful integrations.
MS Forms - This is a newer resource we've started using more frequently in the last five years or so. We generally use it for quicker capture items. E.g. feedback on events, requests for trainings, etc. It is a useful tool especially for integration with SharePoint/Microsoft files, but has less form customization capabilities.
Survey123 - Great for capturing spatial data through simple forms. The web-based designer has many useful templates that can be easily configured to your organization's spatial capture needs.
Survey123 Connect - This is a desktop application used to design, publish and manage highly customized surveys using Microsoft Excel and XLSForm standard. It's useful for advanced users and for creating Survey123 forms that require more complex form logic, spatial data calculations and dynamic content.
SharePoint - We've been using SharePoint to collect files (election reports, minutes, signed agreements, etc.) from Districts for over a decade. However, the State of NC's Department of IT sets strict controls limiting file sharing with users outside of our organizational tenant, which can result in access/permission issues. We've gotten into a pretty good groove not, but SharePoint can still be a bit buggy from a permissions/access perspective. I cannot speak to the Google Workspace/Google Drive environment and how that compares.
Citrix Sharefile - This file sharing software creates a password protected option for sharing files/folders with users outside of the State of North Carolina's tenant. We especially like this option because of the ShareFile for Windows app that allows users to access files directly through Windows File Explorer. It mounts cloud files as a mapped network drive in Windows File Explorer, which allows you to drag and drop files, open them, and automatically push changes you save on your machine back to the cloud.

What technology do other states use to store and share resources for Conservation Districts?

Breegan Andersen — Thu, 04 Jun 2026 20:27:01 +0000

Hello!

I’m looking to learn what systems other states use to organize, store, and share resources with their conservation districts. I’d love to hear:

What technology or software platforms you’re using (e.g., SharePoint, custom portals, databases, learning management systems, etc.)
What software or program do you use to collect information or uploads from districts (e.g., MS Forms, Survey123, Qualtrics, Google Forms, etc.)
How districts access these resources (public website, login-based portal, internal network, etc.)
Any features or approaches that have worked particularly well—or not so well
Whether your system was built in-house or purchased

Our technology limitations are being highlighted of late, and we've been having more conversations if whether we need to migrate from SharePoint and Microsoft 365 to something else. Thanks in advance!

RE: District Manager Performance Reviews

Marsha Setzkorn-Meyer — Mon, 01 Jun 2026 15:12:59 +0000

Hi Clare. Our conservation district handbook has a chapter on position descriptions and performance appraisals. It needs updated, but I would be happy to send the chapter for a starting point in your process.