Nutrition Education Program (NEP) Assistants fulfill a critical need in their communities by providing educational services to underserved, limited resource individuals to improve their overall health and nutritional status. NEP Assistants roles have evolved in the past program year to include both SNAP-Ed and EFNEP responsibilities, which expands their reach to effectively serve all limited resource audiences in their counties.

A conference for all NEP Assistants working across the state was held in the spring of 2024 to provide opportunities for professional development and the sharing of best practices related to community nutrition education programming. Sessions included a presentation from a University of Tennessee Extension colleague on weight stigma in nutrition education, networking sessions with NEP State staff to discuss county needs related to programming, and peer networking sessions to share best practices in the field. Additionally, breakout sessions focused on youth programming, youth curriculum and food preparation were provided.

The evaluation results of the conference from participants demonstrated very positive feedback.

1. 99% strongly agreed or agreed that the program updates from NEP State Staff provided useful and relevant information.
2. 95% strongly agreed or agreed that the networking session with NEP State Staff was beneficial for sharing information and feedback.
3. 92% strongly agreed or agreed that the peer networking session was useful for providing ideas related to programming in their county.

One NEP Assistant shared, “This was the best state meeting in 17 years. I was already looking forward to it, but it surpassed my expectations.”