Making healthy Lifestyle Choices and Citizen EducationPlan of Work

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Fayette County CES

Title:
Making healthy Lifestyle Choices and Citizen Education
MAP:
Making Healthy Lifestyle Choices and Citizen Education
Agents Involved:
Neal, Dockery, Brooks, McMahan, Clark, Powell
MAJOR PROGRAM 1:
Faithful Families
MAJOR PROGRAM 2:
Local Food Systems
MAJOR PROGRAM 3:
Business Retention and Expansion
MAJOR PROGRAM 4:
Active Living and Health Promotions General
Situation:

The obesity epidemic threatens the quality of life years of life of Kentuckians. Obese individuals are at increased risk for many chronic health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and some types of cancers. The obesity rate in Kentucky increased 90% over the last 15 years. Thirty-percent of individuals in the Commonwealth report no leisure-time physical activity. Increased consumption of unhealthy foods, stress, and built environments that promote physical inactivity are largely responsible for the obesity epidemic.

Nutrition education programs, local / home garden, and farmer's markets help families gain access to food and stretch food dollars; communities to decrease hunger; and local food assistance programs to educate recipients on healthy safe food preparation methods, importance of sustainable practices, and improvement of individual/local gardening practices. Citizens receive education on senior issues, parenting and low vision resources. Agents, paraprofessionals, and volunteers are pivotal in training consumers and producers to maximize local access to food products from farm to table.

There are over 9950 children in out of home care, of which 1444 reside in the Southern Bluegrass Region. Substance abuse contributed to 50% of all child abuse and neglect cases. These numbers contribute to the instability of families, communities, social services and economic stability and growth. 

Parenting education programs reduce risk factors that are known to contribute to abuse and neglect. Teaching skills like communicating with respect, nurturing parenting, alternatives to spanking, understanding feelings, conflict resolution, ages and stages of development, praising children and their behavior and other parenting skills aid in prevention and reduction of child and neglect.


Long-Term Outcomes:

Increase in the practice and promotion of physical activity and healthy eating.

Improve access and availability of local foods to the community. Provide education and resource availability regarding senior social issues, low visibility and parenting.

Reduce the number of children placed in out of home care. 

Reduce the numbers of cases for abuse and neglect

Reduce the recidivism rate of cases of abuse and neglect.

Improve nurturing parenting skills.

Intermediate Outcomes:

Practice of physical activity and healthy food choices in families and communities through decreased time of sedentary behaviors, maintaining appropriate calorie intake, and practicing healthy lifestyle decision-making that strengthen individual’s ability to cope with normal life stressors.

Residents will increase practices related to Community and Economic Development by increased participation in job preparedness programs, involvement in local community events, developing new jobs and entrepreneurship opportunities, and adopting fiscally responsible behaviors

Participants will practice nurturing parenting skills with their children.

Participants will have children returned to home. 

Initial Outcomes:

Change in awareness, knowledge, opinions, skills, and attitudes towards parenting, discipline, home management and conflict resolution skills.

The practice and promotion of healthy food and nutrition, financial and mental well-being.

Evaluation:

Outcome:  Long-term Families will be reunited

Indicator:  Participants will use alternative to spanking, which reduces the risk of physical abuse. No new cases of abuse or neglect.

Method:  Self-reported

Timeline:  ongoing


Outcome:  Intermediate: No new cases/allegations of abuse or     

neglect.

Indicator:  Participants will practice using alternatives to spanking, effective communication, conflict resolution and will have appropriate expectations for children. 

Method:  Self-report 

Timeline: ongoing 

Outcome:  Initial: Change in awareness, knowledge, opinions, skills, and attitudes towards parenting, discipline, home management and conflict resolution skills.

Indicator:  Participants will learn to adopt nurturing parenting skills that increase the child’s self-esteem, set age appropriate boundaries and expectations, establish effective communication habits and apply increased knowledge and awareness that was learned.

Method:  Weekly Evaluation/Survey, AAPI 1 and AAPI2

Timeline:  Ongoing


Learning Opportunities:

Audience: Youth

Project or Activity: LEAP

Content or Curriculum: LEAP curriculum

Inputs: Kentucky Cooperative Extension Agents, NEP Program assistants, CES Publications

Date: Ongoing


Audience: Adults

Project or Activity: Physical Activity Programs

Content or Curriculum: Matter of Balance Curriculum, Get Moving Kentucky

Input: KY Cooperative Extension Agents, CES publications, Extension Specialist

Dates: Ongoing


Audience: Adults

Project or Activity: Get Fit Fayette County

Content or Curriculum: Various Curriculums

Input, KY Cooperative Extension Agents, public and private health agencies, non-profit organizations

Dates: Ongoing


Audience: Adults

Project or Activity: Kentucky Plate it Up/ Farmer's Market

Content or Curriculum: Plate it Up Curriculum

Input: KY Cooperative Extension Agents, CES publications, KDA, NEP assistants

Dates: Summer, Fall and Spring


Audience:

Project or Activity: Better Bites

Content or Curriculum: Better Bites Curriculum; Social Marketing and Policy Exploratory Pilot Study

Inputs: Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service Agents, Specialists, Volunteers, CES publications; local, state, and federal agencies.

Date: ongoing


Audience: Adults, Teens & Youth

Project or Activity: Phone calls, e-mails, and office visit customer service opportunities

Content or Curriculum: Available resources through CES publications, specialists, and listed curricula

Inputs: Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service Agents, Program Assistants, Specialists, Volunteers, CES publications; local, state, and federal agencies.

Date: On-Going


Audience: Youth

Project or Activity: Lexington Drug Free Projects

Content or Curriculum: Health Rocks, Drug prevention

Inputs 4-H Agents, 4-H Assistants, FCS Agents, LFUCG, Police Department

Dates: ongoing


Audience: Teens & Youth

Project or Activity: Cooking/Food & Nutrition

Content or curriculum: 4-H curriculum; FCS curriculum; Plate It Up recipes

Inputs: 4-H Agents,4-H assistants, volunteers

Date: day camps, after-school programs


Audience: Teens & Youth

Project or Activity: 4-H Cooking Club(s)

Content or curriculum: 4-H foods curriculum; FCS curriculum; Plate It Up recipes

Inputs: 4-H Agent, volunteers

Date: monthly club meetings and as requested


Audience: Adult and Youth

Project or Activity: SNAP-Ed/ Double dollars

Content or Curriculum: NEP curriculum, CES Publications

Inputs: EFNEP and SNAP Ed assistants, County Extension Agents

Date: On-Going


Audience: Community residents

Project or Activity: Growing Community program

Content or Curriculum: ID-128

Inputs: Volunteers, collaborating agencies, LFUCG, County agents

Date: Annually in May



Audience: Fayette county School Students

Project or Activity: Agriculture Education for Fayette County School Students.

Content or Curriculum: Teach Students about Agriculture and show where food comes from.

Inputs: Leaders, Agents, Fayette County Schools, Locust Trace School.

Date: Spring and Fall.


Audience: Community Residents & Businesses

Project: Local Foods Committee & Coordinator

Content & Curriculum: Collaborating Agencies, LFUCG, Agents, Specialist

Date: All Year


Audience: Fayette County Schools Administration and Board

Project: School Health and Wellness Policy

Content & curriculum: Collaborating Agencies, Specialist and CES curriculum

Date: Ongoing

Audience: Senior Adults

Projects: Challenges of Aging, Grandparents Raising Relatives, Next Best Years

Content and Curriculum: Collaborating Agencies, Specialists, and CES curriculum

Date: ongoing

Audience: Adults

Projects: Food and Nutrition

Content: Food for Thought, Food Preservation, Adult Cooking, Champion Food Volunteers

Date: Ongoing

Audience: Community residents

Project or Activity: Master gardener projects related to food production

Content or Curriculum: Publications

Inputs: volunteers, specialists, county agents

Date: Ongoing


Audience: Community residents

Project or Activity: Growing Community program

Content or Curriculum: ID-128

Inputs: Volunteers, collaborating agencies, LFUCG, County agents

Date: Annually in May


Audience: Adults

Project or Activity: Farmer's Market/Plate it Up

Content or Curriculum: Plate it Up, KY Department of Ag

Inputs: Cooperative Extension Agent, specialists, KDA, Lexington Farmer's Market

Date: On-going


Audience: Adults, Teens & Youth

Project or Activity: Phone calls, e-mails, and office visit customer service opportunities

Content or Curriculum: Available resources through CES publications, specialists, and listed curricula

Inputs: Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service Agents, Program Assistants, Specialists, Volunteers, Kentucky CES publications; local, state, and federal agencies.

Date: On-Going

Audience: Adults

Project or Activity: SKY Families Program 

Content or Curriculum: Nurturing Parenting Curriculum

Inputs: Carla Jordan

 Date: 6-week sessions.  Class meets twice per week for 1 hour                 and a half.


Audience: Adults

Project or Activity:  Plate It Up

Content or Curriculum: Plate it Up

 Inputs: EFNEP Assistant

 Date: 5 classes per session




Success Stories

Health Rocks in Fayette County

Author: Amanda Clark

Major Program: Health

Health Rocks was implemented in Beaumont Middle School FCS class during the month of September. Middle Schoolers went through 8 hours of lessons about the dangers of smoking, drinking, and drug use. Stress and stress relief ideas were also implemented into the lessons. The students were given an evaluation at the beginning and end of the class. There were 50 students involved in the program from the evaluation- 48 students said they thought differently about drug, alcohol and tobaccos use, 50 st

Full Story

Water Quality Woes

Author: Jamie Dockery

Major Program: Water and Soil Quality and Conservation

Recent weather events and climate change have made most Americans increasingly aware of water quality issues. In Lexington MS4 regulations have emphasized these concerns. One of the major pollutants of stormwater is excess nutrients from homeowner fertilizer applications. The Fayette County horticulture program offers classes related to low input lawn care approaches that can serve to dramatically lessen fertilizer applications. Research has shown that turf grasses perform better with  limi

Full Story

All About Veggies cooking program

Author: Caroline McMahan

Major Program: Nutrition and Food Systems General

The CDC reported in 2019 that only 10% of Americans consume the recommended quantity of vegetables daily. Fayette County FCS talked with several community members about this concern and found that many people simply did not know how to cook vegetables in a way that they and their family would like. Thus, we determined that learning to cook vegetables in a healthy and tasty manner was an important educational component that the community was missing. The program "All About Veggies"

Full Story

Fall Back into Fitness

Author: Caroline McMahan

Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General

Low levels of physical activity, unhealthy nutrition, and poor mental health are all determinants of several chronic diseases. These behaviors are now considered major public health concerns and require effective behavior change interventions. The Fall Back into Fitness program was developed with these issues in mind. The series took place throughout the fall of 2022 at the Fayette County Extension Office. The classes occurred in the early evening for 45 minutes each. There were 8 sessions in to

Full Story

Knowledge Eases Transition

Author: Jamie Dockery

Major Program: Horticulture, Consumer and Home

Fayette County is one of Kentucky's most populus cities. The demand for accurate, reliable gardening information is great. The Fayette County Extension horticulture program is well known, and we strive to provide relevant information in a variety of ways. One of our most popular offerings is a series of informal gardening classes called Gardener's Toolbox. We discovered that teaching classes helped circumvent countless phone discussions. Horticlture staff often source new or improved var

Full Story

Passport Kitchen

Author: Amanda Clark

Major Program: Family and Consumer Science

Passport Kitchen

Kentucky 4-H Passport Kitchen Program.  The Kentucky 4-H Passport Kitchen program provided 426 young people from Kentucky the opportunity to experience the food cultures of different countries in a self-paced experience. As part of the 4-H Passport Kitchen program, young people received six country kits in the mail during a six-week window. These kits provided all the needed instructions to complete a recipe, a video explaining the recipe, one ingredient for the recipe, information abo

Full Story

Savor the Flavor: Seasoning with Spices

Author: Caroline McMahan

Major Program: Food Preparation and Preservation

Research shows that people who prepare and cook meals at home are more likely to eat the recommended fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and whole grains needed in a balanced diet. Building skills and cooking knowledge increases the likelihood that people choose to prepare home-cooked meals. Evidence also suggests that those who prepare home-cooked meals have improved health outcomes and reduced chronic disease risk.  To encourage more home-prepared meals, the Fayette County Extension Offi

Full Story

Transferring Cherished Possessions Leader Lesson

Author: Maranda Brooks

Major Program: Financial Education - General

Transferring Cherished Possessions Leader Lesson

FCS agent presented Transferring Cherished Posessions Leader Lesson on February 28th, 2023. Estate planning can be a complicated process, especially when considering how to transfer personal property to peole who will want and care for it after ones death. FCS agent goal for this program were to have attendees understand what is in your estate, discuss estate planning considerations, and document ones wishes for their estate. Program resulted in an attendance of 13. 25% of those attending from t

Full Story

How to Get Out of a Mealtime Rut

Author: Caroline McMahan

Major Program: Food Preparation and Preservation

Research shows that people who prepare and cook meals at home are more likely to eat the recommended fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and whole grains needed in a balanced diet. Often, cooks find themselves in a mealtime rut and feel overwhelmed with making decisions around meals and snacks for themselves and their family. Building skills and cooking knowledge as well as adding variety and creativity into meal preparation increases the likelihood that people choose to prepare home cooked meals.To

Full Story

Fayette County 4-H Capitol Experience 2023

Author: Genaea Sarantakos

Major Program: Civic Engagement

In a 2016 survey by the Annenberg Public Policy Center, one in four youth were unable to name the three branches of government. In addition, in July 2018 the Kentucky Revised Statute (KRS) 158.141 stated a student must pass a civics test at a rate of 60% or higher, composed of 100 questions to graduate from a public high school with a regular diploma. To address this need, Kentucky 4-H Capitol Experience was established with the objectives of: Developing a positive relationship between

Full Story

Diabetes Expo

Author: Maranda Brooks

Major Program: Policy, Systems, and Environmental Changes

FCS joined forces as a part of the Diabetes Coalition team to plan develop and initiate and implement Diabetes Expo, held at the extension office. With the local hospital Saint Joseph not bringing back the annual diabetes expo, Nancy Hiner co-chair of Diabetes Coalition and community partner from the Lexington Health Department reached out to FCS to see about hosting at the extension office. Planning meeting where held throughout the year up til April and logistics were ironed out with maximizin

Full Story

Hunger in Kentucky

Author: Maranda Brooks

Major Program: Policy, Systems, and Environmental Changes

Food insecurity is the consistent lack of enough food for everyone in a household to live an active, healthy life. According to 2018 data from the Feeding America website (https://www.feedingamerica.org), the percentage of food insecurity in Kentucky is 14.8%. Moreover, the food insecurity rate is 12.8% in Fayette County (www.feedingamerica.org). In order to address this problem, the Fayette County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences shared Hunger in Kentucky lessons with

Full Story

Sensational Salads

Author: Caroline McMahan

Major Program: Plate It Up! Kentucky Proud

Consuming the recommended amount of vegetables each day is linked to a reduced risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, some cancers, and obesity. This equals 2 to 3 cups of vegetables a day, depending on age and gender. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, only 6.3 percent of adults in Kentucky meet the daily vegetable intake recommendations. In order to increase vegetable consumption in Kentucky adults, the Fayette County Extension office hosted the workshop Sensati

Full Story

Senior Chef

Author: Amanda Clark

Major Program: Family and Consumer Science

The problemAccording to the American Heart Association, teaching youth how to prepare their own food will give them a skill they can use for a lifetime, they will be more likely to eat healthier as adults, and build self- confidence.The educational program responseSenior Chef was a year long program in Fayette County. The group met once a month for 2 hours each time. They learned how to prepare healthy main course meals and a dessert. Many of the teens had never participated in a cooking club be

Full Story

Feeding a Need

Author: Jamie Dockery

Major Program: Horticulture, Consumer and Home

Rising food prices and broader inflation have taken a toll on family budgets. The residents of Fayette County have expressed lots of interest in vegetable gardening as a means to supplement meals and stretch food budgets. Fayette County extension, along with Master Gardener volunteers, LFUCG parks and recreation, Fayette County Public Schools, and NEP staff hosted an event to train inexperienced gardeners to grow vegetables. We titled the event 'Growing Community' and offered it at a Wil

Full Story
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