This will enhance the Dining with Diabetes program throughout the state. Sponsored by the Joslin Diabetes Center-Harvard University and Cooperative …
Fast Facts
Program Center for 4-H and Youth, Family, and Adult Development
West Virginia children need safe and nurturing environments to become
contributing citizens later in life National studies show that over two-
thirds of all child care programs are poor to mediocre WVU Extension
programs reach children, parents, and child care providers with research-
based training and practical behavior-focused information They engage
communities and build on the communities strengths
Energy Express contact: Ruthellen Phillips
The six-week summer program promotes school success and reading skills of
children living in rural and low income communities across West Virginia
The 2002 program was in 90 communities, served two nutritious family-style
meals each day to over 4,300 youth, and engaged 515 college students in
community service Instead of the normal summertime decline in skills,
Energy Express children gain skills in word identification, comprehension,
and broad reading scores and are better prepared to start the next school
year
Family Storyteller contacts: Ruthellen Phillips and Susan Gamble
This family literacy program involves parents and children in literacy
and
language activities to help parents become their childrens best teachers
and make literacy fun With funding from the Benedum Foundation and
Verizon, approximately ten counties will pilot Family Storyteller Program
in 2003
Family Times Newsletter contact: Carol Winland
The newsletter series provides over 3,500 parents of kindergarteners with
valuable parenting information each year Parents report that the
newsletter is an effective tool for learning parenting behaviors
CYFAR Children, Youth and Families at Risk contact: Rich Fleisher
CYFAR is a USDA-funded program to develop and document, assess, and sustain
a successful approach to empowering limited-resource citizens and
communities in every county of West Virginia Extension faculty,
volunteers, and partners are increasing their capacity to better serve
families in poverty, and strengthen local collaborations
Child Care Training programs contact: Elaine Bowen
Community programs increase the quality, affordability, accessibility, and
availability of child care services for pre-school and after school child
care Annually, approximately 150 training programs reach over 1000
providers who care for over 8000 children To
enhance this effort, a Child
Care Apprenticeship Instructors Academy in June and August 2003 will train
seven extension faculty to be part of the state network of undergraduate
instructors A series of four classes will assist students in acquiring an
Associates degree in Child Care
Family Resource Management contact: Linda Waybright
In partnership with the West Virginia State Treasurers Office and the
State Department of Education, extensions High School Financial Planning
Program reached approximately 1120 teens in eight counties Participants
gained information and skills in financial management that are critical to
their financial futures
4-H Youth Development programs integrate research-based strategies into
ongoing activities to help youth gain essential life skills Through
hands-on educational experiences, 4-H and other youth programs prepare
youth to be capable community leaders, future employees, and family
members
4-H Program contact: Debbie McDonald
58,468 youth ages 9-21 participated in 4-H programming throughout West
Virginia in 2002 Educational opportunities in 4-H include community
clubs, overnight camping, Energy Express, participation in state and
national
events, and projects from aerospace to veterinary science
4-H Community Clubs contact: Debbie McDonald
18,842 youth participated in West Virginia 4-H community clubs in 2002 4-
H Clubs are organized groups of youth, with elected officers and a planned
program that is carried on throughout the year Members complete projects,
exhibit at fairs, plan community service and fundraising activities and are
supported by adult volunteer leaders
Collegiate 4-H Clubs contact: Patty Mulkeen
Collegiate 4-H Clubs provide service and support to their local and state 4-
H programs by serving as judges and conducting training workshops They are
also a service and social group for campus students, regardless of prior 4-
H membership In West Virginia, Collegiate 4-H is active at West Virginia
University, Concord College, Shepherd College, and West Virginia Wesleyan
College
4-H Camping contact: Patty Mulkeen
Since 1915, the West Virginia 4-H Camping program gives youth opportunities
for acquiring knowledge, life skills and forming values through cooperative
group living in a natural environment In 2002, 11,089 youth participated
in overnight 4-H camps at the state and county levels An
eight-county
study showed that younger campers perceived a gain in ability to respect
others and make friends with people who are different from themselves
Older campers perceived gains in taking responsibility for their actions
and accepting differences
4-H Volunteer Camping Assistants VCA contact: Patty Mulkeen
The 4-H Volunteer Camping Assistant program enhances the leadership and
educational program delivery skills of the young people who serve as VCAs
and provides well-trained assistance to county 4-H camps In summer 2002,
47 young adults served as VCAs in 77 week-long county camping sessions
4-H Charting Program contact: Patty Mulkeen
Through the 4-H Charting program, adolescents build skills in self-
understanding, critical thinking, decision making, communication,
leadership and future planning Members complete exercises in which they
explore values and personal traits, make decisions, and plan future goals
Discussion sessions and group exercises are led by trained instructors
Character Counts contacts: Zona Hutson and Pat Gruber
Character education programs are designed to promote the development of
trustworthiness, responsibility, respect, fairness, caring and
citizenship,
the same values promoted by the 4-H program for over 75 years Trained
Extension faculty work with local school systems and community
organizations to incorporate character development in ongoing activities
Community Educational Outreach Service Clubs and 4-H are key players in
this initiative
Entrepreneurship Education contact: Doug Hovatter
Small business, not large corporations, will increasingly serve as West
Virginias dominant engine for the creation of jobs and innovative products
and services WVU Extension Service partners with the Kauffman Foundation
and trains teachers in entrepreneurship education curricula
Volunteer Development contact: Pat Nestor
Volunteer leaders are the critical delivery link between extension
educational programs and recipients Volunteer leaders are accepting more
responsibility for planning and delivering extension programs on the local,
state and regional level
Healthy lifestyles are essential in preventing chronic diseases such as
diabetes, heart disease, and cancer WVU Extension programs focus on
promoting behaviors that will make a difference and improve the health and
well-being of families and individuals
WV Family
Nutrition Program contact: Jeff Olson
Nearly 2,000 limited-resource families and 5,200 youth enroll in the FNP
each year Among the positive behavior changes reported by over 90 of
program families were increasing daily fiber and protein The
comprehensive program reaches those who do not readily access health
services because they are at high risk for lifelong health problems
CARDIAC Initiative contacts: Renee Davis and Lisa Westfall
CARDIAC Coronary Artery Risk Detection In Appalachian Communities
identifies children at risk of heart disease later in life, and engages
them in educational activities to reduce unhealthy behaviors and increase
healthy behaviors In partnership with Dr Neal and local Rural Health
Education Partnerships, extensions CARDIAC Initiative has two components:
CARDIAC Fun and 4-H CARDIAC Now being piloted in 26 counties, children
and their parents will learn about good nutrition, prepare and eat healthy
meals, and exercise together in participatory, informal settings such as
weekend family camps, 4-H residential camps, community classes, and 4-H
club meetings The CARDIAC Initiative will be the first family-based
chronic disease prevention program in West
Virginia
Dining with Diabetes contact: Guen Brown and Karen Newton
Dining with Diabetes is a statewide diabetes nutrition education program
developed by the West Virginia University Extension Service with CDC grant
funding through the West Virginia Diabetes Control and Prevention Program
Approximately 1,200 diabetics and their caregivers participate and increase
their knowledge about this disease, improve abilities to select and prepare
foods, and manage the disease
National Eye Institute Grant contact: Karen Newton
A 10,000 grant from the National Eye Institute will develop and test a
curriculum to include lecture notes, handouts, overheads, and a power point
presentation on diabetic eye disease, glaucoma and cataracts This will
enhance the Dining with Diabetes program throughout the state
On the Road to Living Well with Diabetes contact: Guen Brown
Sponsored by the Joslin Diabetes Center-Harvard University and Cooperative
Extension System-USDA, this partnership enables extension to collect
clinical data from Dining with Diabetes participants The data will show
the extent to which the program may impact health outcomes
Diabetes Symposium Workshop contact: Guen Brown
An
annual Bridging the Gap with Education - Diabetes Symposium and Workshop
brings nationally recognized speakers to West Virginia to present cutting-
edge diabetes research and program information to health professionals from
all over the country The 2003 symposium is in Charleston, WV October 9 -
10, 2003 Conference speakers are from well-known institutions such as
Mayo Medical School, Joslin Clinic in Boston, and the University of
California at San Diego
Active for Life contact: Guen Brown
Active for Life is a community based, volunteer led exercise program for
older adults currently being conducted in 20 counties Extension
professionals train community volunteers in how to lead groups in
activities that increase flexibility and mobility The ultimate goal is to
improve participants ability to sustain independent living
Food safety is a major public health issue The Centers for Disease
Control estimates that up to 76 million cases of food borne illness occur
annually The associated costs of such illnesses in terms of medical and
lost productivity amount to 94 billion Food safety education is a
priority program
Germ City contact: Sally Summers
Germ City is an
interactive hand-washing demonstration, exhibit, and
education program Hand washing is an often-overlooked behavior that is
important for food safety, disease prevention, and personal health Over
1500 WV State Fair-goers participated in Germ City and learned the
importance and techniques of hand washing It is funded by a USDA grant
involving five states
Teaming Up for Safe Food contact: Sally Summers
Over four million pounds of food and other products are distributed
annually by the Mountaineer Food Bank To improve the safe handling of
this food, extension professionals trained 194 volunteers The project
results were showcased at two national conferences It was funded by the
Benedum Foundation
ServSafe contact: Sally Summers
This is a food safety certification course by the National Restaurant
Association Educational Foundation Extension professionals trained and
certified 103 food service managers and workers to prevent food borne
illness
Consumer Food Safety Education contact: Sally Summers
Consumers and food vendors need food safety education WVU extension
educators and Greenbrier County health department professionals reached 88
food vendors at the 2002 WV State Fair
and the 214,949 consumers who
visited the Fair
