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Contact Information

Craig Wood, Ph.D
Acting Associate Dean & Director
UK Cooperative Extension Service

S-107 Ag. Science Center North Lexington, KY 40546-0091

+1 (859) 257-4302

craig.wood@uky.edu

Impacts

Contact Information

Craig Wood, Ph.D
Acting Associate Dean & Director
UK Cooperative Extension Service

S-107 Ag. Science Center North Lexington, KY 40546-0091

+1 (859) 257-4302

craig.wood@uky.edu




Fiscal Year:
Jul 1, 2024 - Jun 30, 2025


Success Stories By MajorProgram FY2025Jul 1, 2024 - Jun 30, 2025





High School Student Crop Scouting Training

Author: Clinton Hardy

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Grain production is the primary agricultural enterprise in Daviess County encompassing more than 200,000 acres annually; nearly two thirds of the land surface of the county.   An important task assigned to farmers, production salespeople, extension agents, and agronomists each growing season is the evaluation of growing crops for pest control issues related to nutrient, insect, disease, and weed problems. Crop evaluation of these occurrences requires time, training, and knowledge.  Mos

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Expungement-101 Starting A New Chapter

Author: Irma Johnson

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Describe the Issue or Situation.Expungement-101: Starting a New Chapter was a program developed by the Community Resource and Development Office at Kentucky State University to support individuals with non-violent criminal records.  It provided education on expungement, legal and financial assistance for related fees, and workshops to promote stable employment and entrepreneurial opportunities.Describe the Outreach or Educational Program Response (and Partners, if applicable).The program fe

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Chainsaw Safety is Essential to a Forested State

Author: Shad Baker

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

According to the CDC, 36,000 people are treated in hospital emergency rooms annually for chainsaw injuries. OSHA reports that more than 250 people per yer die from chainsaw accidents. The financial cost of chainsaw injuries is over $350 million per year. Kentucky is a heavily forested state and Letcher County is in the most forested portion of the state, so our clientele have a higher likelihood of chainsaw risks.To address the topic, the Letcher County Extension Ag and Natural Resources Program

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Better Process Control School Certification for Kentucky’s Value-Added Processors and Senior Food Science Students: Preparing the Value-Added Food Processing Workforce

Author: Paul Vijayakumar

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

In compliance with mandatory USDA and FDA regulations designed to prevent health hazards from low-acid and acidified canned foods, Dr. Paul Priyesh and his colleagues at the Food Systems Innovation Center (FSIC) offer the Better Process Control School (BPCS). This program provides essential certification for supervisors in thermal processing systems, acidification, and container closure evaluation.The UK-FSIC, in partnership with the FDA and the Kentucky Department for Public Health (DPH), condu

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Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training and Workforce Development for Kentucky Growers to Meet FSMA Produce Safety Rule Requirements

Author: Paul Vijayakumar

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) is a federal law transforming the nation’s food safety system. As part of this law, the Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption commonly known as the Produce Safety Rule (PSR) establish science-based minimum standards for safely growing, harvesting, packing, and holding fruits and vegetables intended for human consumption. The final rule took effect on January 26, 2016, and is a key eleme

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Manners for Success!

Author: Ruth Chowning

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Many young people today have limited opportunities to learn formal social skills such as proper table manners, respectful conversation, and dining etiquette. This gap can lead to challenges in social settings, especially in professional or formal environments in life. The need to build confidence and etiquette in youth became a priority identified through conversations with one local organization. In response to this need, the Bullitt County FCS Agent partnered with the local Rainbow Girls

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Crop Scout Competion Provides hands on job Training

Author: Adam Thomas

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Describe the Issue or Situation.LaRue County is home to several large acreage row crop operations most of which are multigenerational with future generations coming back to the operations after high school or college graduation.  The ANR agent in cooperation with the high school agricultural instructors selected and trained a team of students to compete at the UK Crop Scout Competition.  This opportunity gave these students a hands on opportunity to explore protentional careers within

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University Meat Cutting School, 2025

Author: Gregg Rentfrow

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Describe the Issue or Situation.The University of Kentucky Meat Cutting School provides hands-on training in beef and pork processing.  The clients that sign up for the workshops are do-it-yourselfers, off-the-grid/homesteaders, or those that want to learn more about the meats industry.  These clients want to learn how to humanely harvest livestock and how to safely process the meat for their families.  Describe the Outreach or Educational Program Response (and Partners, if a

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Gate to Plate

Author: Gregg Rentfrow

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Describe the Issue or Situation.The Gate to Plate is a collaborative program between Animal and Food Science (Meat Science), Ag Education, and the Kentucky Cattlemen's Association.  Agriculture teachers must continue further education to better educate their students with up-to-date curriculum.  Describe the Outreach or Educational Program Response (and Partners, if applicable).Gate to Plate is a three day program; the first day the Ag Teachers tour local beef farms, Eden Shel

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University of Maine Meat Cutting School, 2025

Author: Gregg Rentfrow

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

Describe the Issue or Situation.The University of Maine does not have a meats lab or a meat science program.  I continue to with with Dr. Colt Knight to provide meat science extension programing as well as extension education.  The UMaine Meat Cutting School is the main collaborative extension program we offer in Orno.  Furthermore, while I'm there I meet with meat processors upon request.    Describe the Outreach or Educational Program Response (and Partners, i

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Bourbon Professionals' Training Workshop

Author: Kevin Baldridge

Major Program: Workforce Preparation - ANR

A distillery that was building the operations team for their new bourbon production facility requested assistance from the James B. Beam Institute to help educate their team in the science and engineering foundations of bourbon manufacturing. The team consisted of experienced distillery operators from other distilleries and operators from other manufacturing industries, so the business was seeking to bring the whole team to the same level of science-based understanding of bourbon production to i

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