The "School Pantry: Mystery Food Box Cook-Off " is a program designed to increase awareness of food insecurity among youth and teach strategies to prepare healthy foods on a budget. A pre-and-post survey showed a statistically significant difference in participants' overall knowledge, skills, and confidence level after the program…

As the use of social media has expanded in society, its use has also become more prevalent in the Cooperative Extension Service. This mixed-methods study was developed to determine current social media usage for professional purposes among 4-H Extension Agents in Kentucky, as well as identify barriers to social media use for educational purposes.…

Nationally, the 4-H Youth Development Program utilizes more than 350,000 adult volunteers annually, and 25% of the nation's K-12 students identify as Hispanic or Latino; however, there is a dearth of published literature on Latino volunteerism in the 4-H Youth Development Program. Developmental relationships, a critical component of realizing…

Purpose: Integrated crop-livestock systems (ICLS) can foster agroecological transitions. However, knowledge on how extension services influence such systems is still lacking. The manuscript analyzes ICLS advisors' perceptions of the conditions toward recoupling crops and livestock at the farm level. Methodology/Approach: We conducted and analyzed…

Young people need digital competency and confidence to effectively harness computing power to solve problems and design solutions; a core component is improving young people's computational thinking. Unfortunately, access to computer science education is lacking for all youth, and in particular for youth who live in lower-income households, who…

The goal of equitable access to education was at the forefront of the Morrill Acts' mission from the beginning, yet Extension programs in Indigenous communities are underfunded and unable to provide equitable support. Educators from 1862 Land Grant Institutions can collaborate with educators from 1994 Tribal Colleges and Universities to better…

Purpose: We defined a methodological framework to monitor and evaluate farmer's knowledge exchange and learning processes. Our proposed methodology can help farm advisors during the set-up, facilitation and evaluation of interactive activities with farmers, enabling the learning environment for adopting agroecological measures. Approach: We used a…

During the worldwide pandemic, youth were isolated from each other. In response, New Jersey 4-H, a part of Rutgers Cooperative Extension, created the Junior Explorers, a virtual exchange program bringing together 4-H members with youth from other countries. This program provides youth ages 10-13 with access to international exchange opportunities…

The purpose of this quantitative study was to assess the relationship between volunteer leadership competencies and stewardship action-taking experiences among Master Gardener (MG) and Master Watershed (MW) volunteers during the COVID-19 pandemic. We collected data from 1196 Penn State Extension MG and MW respondents. The mean summative score for…

Institutions of higher learning are offering an increasing number of compressed in-person classes with the goal of providing to their diverse student populations flexibility of instruction delivery. SIU and many other colleges are offering an increasing number of classes with compressed schedules to increase student enrollment (Krug, et al.,…

This evaluation research addressed the gap in the stress management education literature related to short-term mindfulness programs for youth in non-formal educational settings. The Mindfulness Moments: Today and 4-Life program was adapted from existing curricula and delivered in Ohio and Pennsylvania during summer 2019. The purpose of the program…

Developing creative, impactful methods for delivering research-based Extension educational material is often challenging. However, options have increased as technological advancement has made online learning accessible to stakeholders, producers/farmers, and the general public alike. An interactive timely topics web tool (TTW) can enhance…

Extension professionals at all levels can use popular social media platforms to increase awareness of Extension. This article explores how our team of Extension professionals has used a blog in combination with Facebook on a weekly basis to better market Extension and our work. Every Extension professional can easily become part of a deliberate…

Crowdfunding is a resource that allows individuals or groups to raise funds while simultaneously engaging relevant communities and, thus, is an important tool for Extension specialists. We provide recommended steps for successful crowdfunding, including tips for identifying a website, developing or refining a proposal, and crafting a marketing and…

A 6-hr train-the-trainer workshop focused on introducing the concept that insects may play a significant role in food security as the world population is projected to exceed 9 billion people by the mid 21st century. Workshop topics including cultural, nutritional, culinary, and commercial aspects surrounding edible insects were presented and…