January 2019 program update

Updates from the ISU Extension and Outreach leadership team

4-H Youth Development

• Fifty youth from 17 counties participated in Beef Blast in December: 100 percent of youth gained new knowledge in beef quality and yield grading; 78 percent gained new knowledge in beef selection and evaluation; 84 percent gained new knowledge in beef management; 66 percent gained new knowledge in advocacy; and 91 percent gained new knowledge about the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and the department of animal science.
• Iowa 4-H has received the National 4-H Council Ag Innovators State Implementation Grant. This means that Iowa will host a series of workshops across the state called “The Native Bee Challenge,” reaching at least 1,000 youth in grades 3 to 8 with curriculum facilitated by trained teen leaders.
• The State 4-H Council participated in the annual Youth-Adult Partnership Training in Ames. Council members brought a caring adult with them, someone that they have worked closely with or who has played a positive role in their 4-H career. Both the youth and adults participated in a variety of activities throughout the training. They learned about youth in governance, 4-H yoga, leadership styles, creating action plans, and understanding the value of working together in decision making opportunities within their schools, communities, 4-H and beyond.
• Iowa 4-H has received three STEM grants. Iowa 4-H was awarded $55,000 from Alliant Energy to develop and implement Invent STEM. This curriculum will focus for the first year on wind energy and the STEM behind wind turbines. Iowa 4-H also was awarded $20,000 from the Iowa Space Grant Consortium. The award is for FLEx Space: No Limits. It will focus on developing virtual reality experiences that celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo mission. In addition, Iowa 4-H was awarded $38,400 from National 4-H Council for the 4-H and Microsoft Digital Ambassadors program to fund local projects in Muscatine and Clinton counties. The Digital Ambassadors program will help close the broadband internet access gap in 80 counties across the United States. This partnership will elevate teens to be teachers by providing training and communication to help adults in their community increase their comfort level for using technology. This work will impact education, workforce development and community sustainability.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

• Iowa State University has received a grant to continue hosting the North Central Region Center for FSMA Training, Extension and Technical Assistance to help fruit and vegetable growers and processors comply with the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The nearly $800,000 grant from the USDA continues to fund ISU Extension and Outreach faculty and staff efforts to support the infrastructure of the national food safety program by communicating and coordinating information within the North Central Region related to the FSMA Produce Safety Rule and Preventive Control Rule.
• Results of the 2018 ISU Land Value Survey were released on Dec. 12 at a press conference held by Wendong Zhang, assistant professor and extension economist. The average statewide value of an acre of farmland decreased by 0.8 percent, marking a decline in farmland values for the fourth time in the last five years. An average acre of Iowa farmland is now valued at $7,264 an acre. Full results of the ISU Land Value Survey are available through the ISU Extension Store.
• The ISU Extension and Outreach Beginning Farmer Center is hosting its Returning to the Farm Seminar on Jan. 10-11 and Feb. 8-9. The event provides a place for conversations about when a farm transition from one generation to the next should be made and the direction of the farm. The four-day seminar also allows families to begin developing a succession plan. Additional program and registration information can be found through the Beginning Farmer Center website.

Community and Economic Development

• The 2019 Community Visioning Program kicked off on Nov. 16 with the Iowa’s Living Roadways Annual Celebration. In January, the following communities will be conducting their first meeting: Sumner, Coggon, Treynor and Audubon. ISU program staff conducted training on the visioning process for Trees Forever field coordinators, landscape architects and design interns on Jan. 9 in Ames.
• Iowa State University Extension and Outreach’s Community and Economic Development unit has been offering the Marketing Hometown America program that has been successfully used by Cooperative Extension programs in Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota and Minnesota to help communities home in on what people are looking for when they choose a place to live and do business. In January, CED specialist Jane Goeken will meet with MHA coordinators in O’Brien County and in Hawarden (Sioux County).
• On Jan. 2, Himar Hernández facilitated a community partners presentation to the Appanoose County Extension Council on the Leading Communities program. Brian Perry, Lisa Bates and Deb Tootle will be in Osage meeting with the Mitchell County Leading Communities planning committee on Jan. 17 to explain the program and demonstrate a module. On Jan. 22, Himar Hernández and Jon Wolseth will be facilitating the program in Mount Pleasant (Henry County). This Leading Communities program is made possible in part by a Vice President for Extension and Outreach initiative.
• The Office of State and Local Government Programs began conducting township trustee and clerk workshops in the 1970s to help trustees and clerks understand their roles and responsibilities. In January, CED specialists will be conducting Township Trustee Training in Ida Grove (Ida County), Spencer (Clay County), Montrose (Lee County) and Greenfield (Madison County).
• Susan Erickson will be in Lenox for an Iowa Retail Initiative Champions Workshop with Lisa Bates, Victor Oyervides, Steve Adams and Jon Wolseth. The team is conducting the first pilot of the workshop for multiple community leaders around the Lenox area.

Human Sciences

• In November, 14 child care providers attended an Infant Feeding 101 training at the Johnson County Extension Office. The participating child care providers were from both center and home settings. Objectives of the training included teaching the benefits of breastfeeding, appropriate bottle and formula preparation, Child and Adult Care Food Program guidelines for 0-12 months of age, and paced bottle feeding. The training was sponsored by 4Cs Community Coordinated Child Care in Iowa City, which administers the CACFP program in Johnson County. The training was co-taught by Kelsey Salow and Rachel Wall, human sciences specialists in nutrition and wellness.
• The following data represent “Buy. Eat. Live Healthy” achievements for federal FY 2018 (SNAP-Ed and EFNEP funded):
  — Staff partnered with 218 different agencies including 37 new partnerships in 2018.
  — 959 total participants, 93 percent female, 74 percent age 40 or younger.
  — 71 percent identify as White, 16 percent as Black or African American, and 27 percent identify as Hispanic or Latino.
  — 69 percent have income at or below 100 percent of the federal poverty level, and 84 percent receive public assistance.
  — 95 percent improved diet quality, 86 percent increased their physical activity, 84 percent improved food safety practices, 47 percent reported increased food security and 87 percent reported improved food resource management.
• Powerful Tools for Caregivers provides caregivers with “tools” to help them reduce stress, improve caregiving confidence, establish balance in their lives, communicate their needs, make decisions, and locate helpful resources. In fall 2018, O’Brien County hosted nine to 15 local caregivers for each week of the six-week series. Five caregivers participated in the series hosted by Dickinson County. One participant’s comments captured ideas that many had expressed: “I am taking better care of myself and I have less guilt. I feel less ‘alone’ knowing that others understand. I have better approaches.”