Author: Deborah Shepherd
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
With more time at home during the Covid-19 pandemic, people were looking for new and more effective ways to do things. Many “Green Cleaning” products can be made using ingredients that many people have in their homes. Green cleaning uses products with ingredients that are better for both people and the environment. During the COVID-19 pandemic cleaning has become even more important but cleaning products have become more difficult to find in the local stores. The Cumberland and
Author: Shonda Johnston
During COVID-19 pandemic, a county-wide community task force was developed by a local organization. Stakeholders from various community partners convened weekly to discuss local concerns that had developed as a result of the pandemic. During some of these meetings, concerns were raised that the COVID restrictions were adversely affecting individuals and families, both physically and mentally. In in effort to address these concerns, the Clark County FCS agent partnered with the Clark County Publi
Author: Jayoung Koo
The Healthy Eating and Active Living to Reduce Rural Obesity Through Extension project funded by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) is led by Jennifer Hunter (Extension Professor and Assistant Director of Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS)) and Alison Gustafson (Associate Professor, Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition). As part of the 5-year project Jayoung Koo (Associate Extension Professor) and Natalie Jones (FCS Extension Specialist), along with Alison Gustafson and members of the M
Author: Jane Proctor
Annually, Family and Consumer Sciences Agents and staff see an increased interest from clients in health-behavior?choices around the new year.??This year,?to?reach both current and new clientele with?timely?and?research-based?information, FCS Extension rolled out a new program just in time for January 2021- Big Blue Goals.??The program was designed to allow for participation through either?an online platform?(Goalify app)?that could be?operated?on?a smartphone, computer, or tablet,?or through?a?
Author: Kendyl Redding
Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, public schools have transitioned to online learning, offices and businesses have closed their doors to the public, and parents began working from home. Many families are spending more time together at home than ever before. Therefore, the Powell County Extension Office used this opportunity to provide take home programming that is centered around family time. This unique type of programming was a joint effort between all program areas in the office. Each Extens
Author: Melinda McCulley
Annually, Family and Consumer Sciences Agents and staff see an increased interest from clients in health-behavior choices around the new year. This year, to reach both current and new clientele with timely and research-based information, FCS Extension rolled out a new program just in time for January 2021- Big Blue Goals. The program was designed to allow for participation through either an online platform (Goalify app) that could be operated on a smartphone, computer, or tablet, or
Author: Tamera Magee
Americans are inundated with food choices. We can choose to eat or drink based on availability, nutritional value, cost, taste, cultural traditions, etc. We can choose to eat at home or dine out at restaurants. We can purchase pre-packed meals or enroll in a meal-kit delivery system. With all of these opportunities, we need to know to "master" our food choices. Unfortunately, some of our choices have contributed to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. The Franklin C
Author: Alethea Price
During the pandemic an opportunity to participate in a suicide prevention train the trainer training. I learned about this opportunity from one of our CEC members who has participated in this training before. Suicide rates have increased dramatically in recent years. Since I don't work with farm families much in FCS, this seemed like a good way to serve a new audience. I partnered with the Agriculture Agent to identify groups who may be interested in attending the training. One of those
Author: Cecelia Hostilo
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. Fit Blue is a community-based campaign to increase physical activity and health awareness in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Building physical activity into the day does not require special equipment or a certain location. As participants take part in Fit Bl
Author: Ruth Chowning
The Bullitt County Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agent collaborated with Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association (KEHA) leaders to teach the Health Bladder Habits lesson to participants from Bullitt, Henry and Shelby County. Research suggests that 50% of women will experience urinary incontinence (UI) at some point in their lifetime and half of women experiencing UI do not discuss it condition with their physician. This lesson aimed to teach healthy bladder habits and exercises to hel
Author: Courtney Luecking
According to the 2020 America’s Health Rankings, Kentucky ranks 44 for overall health and 49 for nutrition and physical activity behaviors. Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) agents have long worked to fill gaps in health promotion and disease prevention programs in rural communities by delivering evidence-based health education. Yet, several barriers limit who or how many people can access programs. To further increase community access to health promotion programs and expand the reach of
The Bullitt County Cooperative Extension Service built a coalition of multiple community agencies to participate in the Bullitt County Story Path committee. The goal for the committee was to partner together to provide opportunities for families to spend valuable time together, through an educational, healthy experience. With a total of eight different agencies, including city and county government participating as part of the committee, the first Story Path was offered in downtown Mt. Washingto
Author: Amy Kostelic
SUCCESS STORY Heather Norman-Burgdolf, Amy Kostelic, Kerri Ashurst, Natalie Jones According to the American Cancer Society (2021), one in three people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. In 2021, the American Cancer Society predicts an estimated 1,898,160 new cancer cases and 608,570 cancer deaths. This equates to 5,200 news cases and 1,670 deaths daily. The CDC (2021) reports that cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States (2021).
Author: M. Elizabeth Coots
Annually, Family and Consumer Sciences Agents and staff see an increased interest from clients in health-behavior?choices around the new year.??This year,?to?reach both current and new clientele with?timely?and?research-based?information, FCS Extension rolled out a new program just in time for January 2021- Big Blue Goals.??The program was designed to allow for participation through either?an online platform?(Goalify app)?that could be?operated?on?a smartphone, computer, or tablet,?or throu
Author: Janey Cline
Low levels of physical activity, unhealthy nutrition, and poor mental health are all determinants of several chronic diseases. During the COVID 19 pandemic research indicated that the determinants were at an all-time high and considered major public health concerns that required effective behavior change interventions. With this in mind the Hart County Family and Consumer Sciences and Hart County 4-H agents looked at ways to increase the amount of health education and exercise citizens of Hart C
Author: Denise Wooley
Author: Lorilee Kunze
In 2020 Covid19 changed family traditions, social customs and holiday schedules. After months of social distancing, families were looking for a way to safely spend some time out of the house. Our Story Path project was the perfect solution. The Bullitt County Extension and its many program areas formed a council, collaborating with Mt. Washington city government, the Bullitt County public library, the Bullitt County health department and others the first Story Path was created
Author: Nola Janeen Tramble
In the United States, cancer is the second leading cause of death each year. Kentucky faces the highest cancer occurrences and death rates in the United States. Fortunately, through prevention and treatments, we can reduce those numbers.In order to equip people living in Kentucky to better understand and manage cancer, the Crittenden County Extension office hosted the Kick Kentucky Cancer Program, led by the Crittenden County FCS agent. This program offered a series of 5 lesson on topic of
