The age demographic in Allen County is a 60% 18-65 year-olds, with a growing population of older adults (age 65+) between 2018 and 2021 (16.1% and 18.1%, respectively according to US Census Data). Additionally, according to the 2019 American Community Survey 2019, the average commute time for Allen County residents is 23.7 minutes, and 77.7% of workers drove alone to work. Traditional work schedules and commute times may prevent individual from participating in Extension programs, however the need to share educational information remains. In order to make Extension educational programming more accessible and convenient, the Allen County Family Consumer Sciences Agent Agriculture and Natural Resources Agent partnered to create a podcast and radio show called, “Growing Farms and Families with Adam and Kelly.” The radio show is a five-minute segment that airs weekly at 7:35 a.m. on the local radio station, 99.3 WVLE. The corresponding podcast released episodes monthly beginning in July 2021, and will be released twice per month beginning in January 2022. The podcast and radio show cover topics such as local foods, fall gardening, agritourism, hunting and preparing wild turkey, and setting SMART goals for financial and physical health. Most topics have an agriculture or natural resources component as well as a family and consumer sciences component. The podcast is available on seven podcast platforms, such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify. The radio show and podcast are cross-promoted to encourage increased listenership and also promoted in Extension newsletters, social media, and The Citizen Times local newspaper. The target audience for the podcast is working age residents age 18 and up, while the radio show targets older adults. Over the past 6 months, there have been 118 podcast listens, with each episode averaging 19 listens. Podcast listeners reside mostly in Kentucky (68%), but also in Ohio, Georgia, New York, and Tennessee. The majority of listeners (68%) are 23-34 years of age, and 66% female. Local partners include radio personality, Chris Nelson, with 99.3 WVLE Scottsville. As a result of this program, traditional extension audiences are receiving education outside the program area with which they traditionally engage, inspiring diversified learning and new knowledge acquisition. In addition, Growing Farms and Families with Adam and Kelly podcast and radio show have received praise from community members who report looking forward to listening to the show each week. As Growing Farms and Families with Adam and Kelly podcast and radio shows continue, we expect to reach new audience who have not previously engaged with Extension or whom logistics prevent from engaging with traditional Extension programs.

Sources:

BRIGHT Coalition. (2018). Community Health Assessment 2016-2018. BRIGHT Coalition. http://www.brightcoalition.org/bright-reports.html

DataUSA. (2019). Allen County, KY. (2019). [Data set]. United States Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year Estimate. https://datausa.io/profile/geo/allen-county-ky

United States Census Bureau. (2021). QuickFacts Allen County, Kentucky. (V2021). [Data set]. United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/allencountykentucky#