May 2022 program update

ISU Extension and Outreach has recently partnered with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Dairy Extension and Alltech to develop a free, online dairy training program that is available in both English and Spanish. “The Bilingual Training and Education Program to Improve Practices That Affect Milk Quality” has been designed to help dairy farm employees better understand the how’s and why’s of handling and milking cows.
Farm operators need to drive defensively and remain alert every second they are on the road. Steven Freeman, professor in agricultural systems and bioengineering, offers important safety information for moving farm equipment on public roads. Additional information is available in the ISU Extension and Outreach publication “Safely Sharing the Road with Farm Vehicles.”
The Conservation Learning Group recently published “What to Expect: Establishing Prairie Vegetation on Your Farm,” an infographic for farmers and landowners about the process and benefits of creating perennial vegetation areas that aid in soil health and water quality improvement and offer habitat for a diversity of wildlife. A key message of this infographic is to encourage consultation with one of the many experts in Iowa who understand the process and timeline for prairie establishment.

To better support diversity, equity, and inclusion needs from clients, CED has expanded its menu of options to include programs that will provide cultural competency education and coaching. For this effort CED has chosen the Intercultural Development Inventory, the world’s premier cross-cultural assessment program. The objectives of IDI are to help participants and organizations understand the importance of cultural competency; to assess participants’ levels of cultural competency and help them learn the skills needed to be able to be part of their own organization’s DEI goals in a confidential way; and assess the organization’s levels of cultural competency and determine how to set measurable goals for growth that will translate in higher efficiency and better communication. CED will facilitate an IDI group session for the Ottumwa Regional Legacy Foundation on May 19.
The 2022 Community Visioning Program completed community assessment work in April and local steering committees are reviewing the assessment data provided by the ISU research team. In May, assessment reviews were conducted in Dunlap and Logan.

During federal FY 2021, the Spend Smart. Eat Smart. mobile app had 2,510 active users and the website had 116,560 total users; 64% of website users are age 18-44 and 66% of website users identify as female. Most users access the website in English. However, 1,260 used the live translation feature, with most translations to Chinese and Spanish. Forty-two percent of users access the website via a mobile device.
Dr. Catheryn Hockaday led a four-day Strengthening Families Program: For Parents and Youth 10-14 facilitator training with South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence board members and staff. Drs. Hockaday and Doug Coatsworth also presented to the South African Community Epidemiology Network on Drug Use about universal prevention programs that work with SFP 10-14 in South Africa.
The Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal selected Dr. Suzanne Bartholomae as the 2021 recipient of the Best Paper in Personal Finance and Consumer Economics for her article, “Rural healthcare providers’ perceptions of patient financial well-being and integrating financial capability services.” She will be honored at the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Annual Conference June 25-27 in Orlando, Florida.

For the past five years, people across Iowa have been collecting the tabs off their pop cans to raise funds for Ronald McDonald House and honor former 4-H member Jacy McAlexander, who passed away after a courageous battle with cancer in 2018. The 2021-22 State 4-H Council is continuing this statewide service effort, called Pop Tabs for Jacy. The goal is to collect 1,000 pounds of pop tabs or 10 pounds from each Iowa county extension district by the 2022 Iowa 4-H Youth Conference, June 28-30. Anyone wishing to donate pop tabs on Jacy’s behalf can drop them off at their ISU Extension and Outreach county office or deliver them to any of the three Ronald McDonald House locations in Iowa.
4-H state STEM specialist Sara Nelson is serving as interim director of the NASA Iowa Space Grant Consortium, part of NASA’s National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. The consortium supports aerospace research, education, and outreach activities for all Iowans with NASA internships, fellowships, and scholarships, competitions for grants within higher education members, as well as informal education grants with outreach affiliates.