OSU Extension Fayette County works closely with our County Commissioners and we thank them for their support. We are the world's largest nonformal educational system. Our practical educational programs combine the needs of local citizens and communities, with new research and technical information. 

Are programs areas: Agriculture and Natural Resources, 4-H Youth Development, Family and Consumer Sciences, Horticulture and Master Gardeners , we are here to meet the changing needs and issues facing our community. 

Overall, Extension's mission is to help improve and strengthen the lives of Ohioans and we want to start right here in Fayette County. We have answers for communities and individuals.  Our clients are YOU. Please let us know if we can help.

Pat Brinkman

John Yost

Nadine Fogt

Kim Stover

Kim Hoppes

Here are our Ohio State University Extension Fayette County 2009 Yearly Highlights

Strengthening Families and Communities

The Family Nutrition Program (FNP)—The Fayette County FNP program had almost 900 direct contacts, with 120 programs being taught in the areas of Nutrition, Food Safety, and Thrifty Food Shopping.  The programs worked with welfare and welfare-eligible adults in the county.  Over 2700 were reached through the program, with 43% on the food stamp program.

• Different participants have shared how the classes have helped them.    One woman said she now looks at grocery ads, plans meals, makes a list, and uses unit pricing when shopping for food which she attributes to the class sessions.   Another participant shared that she practiced what she had learned including buying no pop, examining labels, and avoiding sugars.

• In one class the group has decided to share and compile written recipes for low-cost, easy meals.  They have shared different ways to modify recipes, and creative ways to use leftovers. They have really worked to help each other.

The Fayette County Horticulture Program is flourishing.  Master Gardener Volunteers are important social capitol, a necessary and vital part of strong communities. There are 25 active Master Gardener volunteering over 1050 hours of community service.  Using an economic value of $20.25 per hour of volunteer work, Fayette County Master Gardeners contributed $21,262 to Fayette County this year. If five people are assisted for every one hour of volunteer time, then 5,250 people were assisted by Fayette County Master Gardener Volunteers this year. 

            The horticulture program is growing due to a brand new class that started in January and ran until March.  14 participants in the class received 50 hours of training in 14 sessions on a wide variety of gardening topics including plant science, soil science, pests, pesticide use and safety, plant problem diagnosis, landscape design, landscape plant selection and maintenance, vegetables, fruits, lawns and indoor plants. A tour of local greenhouses provided participants with additional hands-on learning. Participants were required to pass a final comprehensive exam as the first step in Master Gardener certification. This allows them to become Master Gardener "interns" who are then required to give 50 hours of volunteer service to help educate others in gardening or to help beautify the community. Master Gardener certification occurs when the 50 volunteer hours are completed.  Three interns have been certified so far out of this class.

            The Master Gardeners love beautifying our community. This increases community pride and property values.  Projects such as planting and maintaining the Washington Courthouse flowers, and Fayette County Museum flowers let us add splendor.  Sponsor a Flower Pot was a huge success for us this year.  The theme was Disabled American Veterans.  Every pot available was sponsored to beautify our downtown and American flags were included to raise awareness.  In addition over $300 was donated to the DAV local chapter to help veterans and their families.  The Master Gardeners stepped up to create beauty and awareness as our generous community recognized current service people and veterans with pride.  Our group works also with Habitat for Humanity to design landscape for new houses and actually plant what is budgeted to increase the pride for new home owners.

            The Farmer’s Market continued in downtown Washington Courthouse with its best year yet. Over 35 vendors offered the residents of Fayette County locally grown, fresh, and great tasting produce on Saturdays through the summer. The horticulture program assistant conducted meetings to teach producers marketing and better yield practices with over 27 attending.  Then the Master Gardeners worked with her to manage the market.  This project helps community members eat healthier with more fruits and vegetables as well as support their local farmers.  Eating and buying locally uses less of our valuable resources in shipping and also enhances the local economy.  This past year a Farmers Market Management Network was created to help with marketing and food safety issues.  Fayette County Farmers Market is a part of this group and will report next year about the changes.  In 2010 the Extension Office will assume a more educational role as the Alliance for Prosperous Downtown will manage.

Influencing over 300 adults, children and youth through classes to eat healthier resulted in:

• Post-class evaluation forms from Dining With Diabetes participants showed that 100% of the  participates reported making some changes since attending class, 100% said they experienced positive results after attending the classes, 93% said they were more aware of food safety practices, and 85% reported they had lost some weight.   Dining With Diabetes is a series of three two-hour classes. 

• 91% of the 76 participants completing surveys after attending “Using Your Food Instincts” sessions planned to make some or many changes and 95% reported that they learned something new.  This program was prepared for participants in the Health Department’s summer Health Walkers program.  Over 75% of the participants wrote down a change they plan to make, just as  these examples: discipline myself, confront my cravings, or be more aware of triggers to eat.   

• Fifteen 4-H youth have helped Head Start students learn more about healthy eating and being physically active by an Adena grant “Get a Head Start in Nutrition.”  In the monthly program during the school year Head Start students have been willing to try different fruits and vegetables or whole grain foods the 4-Hers have helped them make for snacks.  Parents attending Head Start meetings have received nutritional instruction in improving their child’s eating and physical activity.  Results from pre and post surveys of children and their Head Start parents school year showed a 42% increase in consumption of fruits, 29% increase in consumption of vegetables, 29% increase in breakfast eating and 29% increase in physical activity.  

Fitness and Nutrition Society has distributed over 2500 nutrition newsletters through the schools and community.  Comments received have included that the articles were interesting, informative and helpful.   

Budgeting sessions with 31 individuals referred through a Community Action grant have resulted in helping people improve their financial situation.  Grant administrators have commented that people are using the tools and appreciate the knowledge they have gained.  Many were amazed at how much money they could have in a year if they did not buy cigarettes. 

Preparing Youth for Success

In March and October our Real Money, Real World program continued to be an eye opener for middle school students. 145 eighth graders from a local school learned about personal finance through this OSU Extension signature program. The participants were assigned occupations and receive a monthly “salary” for that occupation. In lesson 5 of the curriculum, the students proceeded through a simulation in which the 4-H program assistant brought in community volunteers to staff booths representing real-life businesses. In this simulation, the students spend their “salaries” on items found in a typical monthly budget. They do this by visiting the appropriate booths such as communications, housing, insurance, groceries, utilities, etc. Throughout the activity, students keep track of their finances by recording them in their checkbook. Whether they have adequate funds or run out of money determines how successful they are at managing their money.  Comments at the booths included, “I would buy less expensive stuff,” “I learned that I need a better job,” “Life is a whole lot harder than I thought,” and “How do Mom and Dad do it?”  The other major school district agreed to participate every semester in the future also with their eighth grade. 

Another way to reach students with Extension’s 4-H program is school enrichment.  3 kits were created through a 4-H foundation grant awarded to the 4-H program assistant.  The idea is to help teachers with Science, Engineering and Technology with ready to use curriculum and materials while exposing more students to what 4-H has to offer.  These kits were created to assist teachers with ready to use materials and equipment.  “Go Plants” has a grow light set with seeds for example.

In Fayette County, 1357 youth (age 5-19) participated in 4-H club project work and/or school 4-H programs. Coordinating 4-H community club work and activities for youth were 164 4-H adult volunteers.  Youth volunteers (15 to18 years-old) included thirty-four teens who served on the Junior Fair Board, who were responsible for planning the Junior Fair activities for over 1300 Fayette County Junior fair members. 99% of Junior Fair Board members attended a weekend retreat at the State Park to learn and practice life skills such as leadership skills, team building, program planning, decision making, conflict management, junior fair policies, money management, ethics, and communication skills. All these skills are used by teens when they plan a major event like the county fair. Older teens shared their experience as a Junior Fair Board member helped them when seeking employment or in their academic pursuits.  

A fun and educational outdoor living experience was conducted for 139 Fayette County campers through a four-day overnight 4-H camps and a day Cloverbud Camp held at Camp Clifton.  Over a five-month period, 38 teens (15-19 yrs. old) were responsible for planning and coordinating the camp and assisting with a two-day Cloverbud Camp.  First aid, conflict management, decision making, communication skills, leadership skills, and team building were taught to camp counselors through an on-site camp counselor overnight training and monthly meetings. Following camp, counselors evaluated themselves and their peer’s skills and job performance using a counselor evaluation form.  Later, counselors met to reflect on the overall camps to discuss how they could improve camp and what skills they needed to improve to be a better counselor.  Throughout their training and the reflection, counselors were taught what skills they could use in future employment, college, and what types of summer jobs they could apply for in the future due to their counselor experiences.

A 50% increase in the number of teens involved in the Fayette County Junior Leaders occurred in 2008 – 09 when the club started meeting twice month.  Sixty-one teens, age 12 and up, were involved in the 4-H Junior Leadership Club. Teens conducted on-going community service projects, including a donating canned food at each meeting for the county food pantry, making blankets for Linus, and other service projects.  The teens took leadership of promoting 4-H at the January “The Amazing 4-H Race.”  Team building experiences and independent living skills were learned on an overnight snow ski trip in Pennsylvania.

Several teens were actively involved in leadership and educational activities by being co-presenters with the 4-H educator at various county, state and regional conferences.  Teens learned organizational skills and improved their public speaking skills when they helped with five sessions of the Ohio Teen Conferences and two sessions at the Ohio Volunteer Conference.  Three teens served as a camp counselor at the Ohio Military Camp at Kelly’s Island. Selected in a competitive national search process, one teen served as a collegiate 4-H facilitator for the 2009 National 4-H Conference held in Chevy Chase, MD. By being involved in a teaching role, teens developed work force prep skills.  Six teens were recognized at the state level, when three won State 4-H Achievement Awards, three won state 4-H scholarships, and one was selected as a delegate to the Dairy Goat Conference.

Twelve 4-H FCS Board members have gained leadership skills through explaining what 4-H Family and Consumer Sciences projects were and what is needed to complete them at the Spring Conference and Pre-Judging clinic.    They also helped teach skills needed to complete 4-H projects through activities such as “Sewing Fun Night” and the Pre-Judging Clinic.  Board members assisted with judging days, planned and put up the stage decorations, and helped with fair activities including nutrition activities for Cloverbuds. 

Enhancing Agriculture and the Environment

All businesses have two things in common.  They all produce a product or service and in turn market that product or service to their customer base.  Agriculture is a $1.8 billion business for Ohio and accounts for over $54 million in income for Fayette County Agribusinesses.  Agriculture has the unique position of being told what price they will receive for their product.  In order to maximize the profit potential of their business, producers must work to improve the efficiency of their farming operation and utilize all the marketing tools available to ensure top dollar for their commodity.  Therefore, the Agriculture and Natural Resources program in Fayette County has targeted research to maximize production of cash crops and established marketing and farm business programs to assist producers in understanding the marketing tools at their disposal.

Through cooperation of Ohio State University Extension and the Fayette County Commissioners, the Fayette County Demonstration Farm has continued to provide a valuable resource to producers in Ohio and the surrounding states.  Eight Applied Research Projects were conducted at the Fayette County Demonstration Farm, and at the OARDC branch at South Charleston, in 2009.  The projects focused on liquid fertilizer alternatives for corn and soybeans, an evaluation of two levels of phosphorus and potassium fertilization in corn and soybeans under different tillage and crop rotation management, yield benefits of planting multiple corn hybrids with differing maturity ratings, the benefits of anti-oxidants applied as seed treatment/foliar sprays/in-furrow for plant stress management, nitrogen applications for double crop soybeans, and use of soybeans as a cover crop prior to corn.

Two approaches were used to assist producers in understanding grain marketing tools.  Classroom instruction was provided during our winter program series.  Meetings are held each Tuesday, and topics are alternated between production and marketing topics.  Introduction of the ACRE program in the new farm bill was the hot topic for 2009.  Two meeting were conducted to educate producers on their options.  The first was conducted for 110 participants with Dr. Art Barnaby from Kansas St. University, and the second was for 50 participants with Dr. Carl Zulauf from OSU.  Hands-on marketing experience has been gained by participation in the Fayette County Marketing Club.  Club participants pool moneys to practice trading commodities on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Master Gardener Volunteers empower people with knowledge for improved quality of life.  Education and research are important to our horticulture program.  The Phenology garden located at the Washington Cemetery is a great learning environment and interested people are donating more plants.  Each year this committee sends collected data into the state for a huge research project being conducted.  Phenology is the study of recurring biological phenomena and their relationship to weather.  Bird migration, hunting and gathering seasons, blooming of wildflowers and trees, and the seasonal appearance of insects are examples of phonological events this committee observes.  The goal of this study is reduced use of chemicals in our environment.

            The Spring Fling, an educational horticulture program was conducted in April with over 75 people in attendance.  The guest speaker was Ron Wilson and Rita Heikenfeld from Natorps teaching about “From the Garden to the Kitchen”.  Miami Trace Elementary School’s Agriculture Day will have sessions taught by Master Gardeners to over 655 students.  This year over 600 horticulture questions from the community were answered through the “horticulture hotline” calls and Extension Office visits. This includes pest and plant diagnosis and management.  Then appropriate information and fact sheets are distributed.

            Master Gardeners and the horticulture program assistant educate homeowners in sustainable yard care practices thus reducing yard waste in landfills.  We also increase green space that reduces runoff into storm sewers, thus protecting environmental resources.  A rain barrel program was held to teach the community how to conserve water. Teaching the public to plant the right plant in the right place helps with sustainable landscapes and highlights the advantages of using native species.

            33 members of the Master Gardeners and our community ventured on a tour bus to see horticulture around the state in June.  This bus tour traveled to Columbus Ohio to learn about the Whetstone Park of Roses and Inniswood Metro Gardens.  We continued our adventure at Franklin Park Conservatory and Ohio Governor’s Heritage Gardens. These agriculture sites exposed our community with more native plant knowledge and conservation ideas.  Many guests on an evaluation stated that they would revisit these sites.  Some said it was the best tour yet.

Advancing Employment and Income Opportunities

Our horticulture programs teach homeowners and industry professionals to irrigate wisely, save water and adopt environmentally friendly landscape techniques. We help homeowners save water, time and money!

Working with Extension personnel in Clinton, Highland, Greene, and Montgomery Counties, a web site providing resources for those losing employment or facing difficult financial issues has been established.  This web site provides information and materials to help families facing these issues.  A series of newspaper articles has also been written and published in local papers by Educators in these counties to provide needed information. 

The eight members of the 2009 Leadership Fayette Program completed a community project using the leadership skills they learned in the sessions.  They held a contest and picked a winner for the Bicentennial logo for Fayette County’s 2010 Bicentennial celebration. Members also completed a community service project. 

Six food service workers completed a16-hour training in ServSafe (Food Safety program) and seven passed a certification test with an average score of 90% improving opportunities for advancement in food service employment.