A L A B A M A C O O P E R A T I V E E X T E N S I O N S Y S T E M

Alabama Extension knows how to make a difference in people’s lives. Our programs help individuals, families, and communities make decisions that improve quality of life and economic well-being. We

listen, we partner, we respond, and we educate to effect positive change where people live and work.

SAFE AND SECURE FOOD SUPPLYOpportunity Provide food safety training to food service workers in schools, day care centers, churches, soup kitchens, restaurants, and hospitals.

Outcome More than seventy-five food handlers participated in ServSafe Food Safety Certification, a mandatory program for all food service workers in Alabama. Youth were also trained in the importance of food safety.

Opportunity Help families eat safe, healthy foods by offering training in food preservation.

Outcome Basic food preservation programs were offered to more than 100 youth and eighty families. Through training in canning, freezing, or drying fruits, vegetables, and meats, these programs helped people save money and eat more fresh fruits and vegetables.

Opportunity Respond to consumer concerns over the sources of food—and the safety and security of those sources.

Outcome In conjunction with specialists at Auburn University, Extension offered Sustainable Backyard—A Home Grown Series to forty-five participants. Results were overwhelmingly positive, supporting the increasing interest in sustainable gardening.

FINANCIAL LITERACYOpportunity Promote a better life for youth by teaching them how personal behavior and decisions affect their finances and quality of life.

Outcome More than 1,000 youth participated in the Reality Check program offered by the Jefferson County Extension office. Reality Check is a financial simulation program with participants assuming the role of 23-year-olds. They are assigned a family scenario and a career with a monthly salary. After deducting taxes, they visit storefronts to spend their monthly salaries and prioritize needs versus wants.

Opportunity Provide training in the use of coupons to save on food expenses through a program titled Spending More Wisely Using Coupons.

Outcome More than forty families were taught how to save from 25 to 30 percent of their food budgets with wiser use of coupons. The training helped participants learn where to find coupons, how to organize them, and how to use them effectively.

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Making a Difference in Jefferson County

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DISASTER RESPONSEOpportunity Help survivors in storm-ravaged areas recover from the loss and damage caused by tornadoes.

Outcome In partnership with the Alabama Area on Aging and the Jefferson County Office of Senior Services, the Extension office helped disaster relief centers serving 167 senior citizens and distributed clothing, food, and household supplies to more than 300 survivors of the April 2011 tornadoes.

Opportunity Help neighborhoods assess how to replace the many mature shade trees lost in the storms.

Outcome More than 180,000 copies of Extension publication ANR-1405, “Tree Selection, Planting, and Care,” were distributed to residents to help them plant good-quality trees.

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY SYSTEMSOpportunity Advance the technical knowledge and marketing skills of area commercial growers and home gardeners.

Outcome

• ACES presented a Drip Irrigation for Vegetable Gardens workshop for commercial fruit and vegetable growers in the county.

• Farmers were offered new marketing opportunities through the Alabama MarketMaker Internet food marketing database, a free service to producers and consumers of Alabama food products. The database is online at http://al.marketmaker.uiuc.edu.

• Extension personnel taught a class on recommended fruit and vegetable production at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENTOpportunity Provide updates on Alabama’s immigration laws—especially hiring require-ments including E-Verify, Form I-9, and the H-2A temporary agricultural worker program—for the landscape industry, which depends on migrant workers for labor.

Outcome Alabama Extension, the Alabama Nursery and Landscape Association, and the Greater Birmingham Association of Landscape Professionals cooperated in presenting a seminar for forty industry members.

Opportunity Help disadvantaged youth emerging from foster care achieve self-sufficiency after they leave the system.

Outcome

• In partnership with the Children’s Aid Society and the Alabama Department of Human Resources, Extension offered Welcome to the Real World: Career Exploration and Budgeting workshops during Independent Living Conferences. Four hundred teens learned through hands-on experiences in exploring careers and making daily lifestyle and budget choices.

• More than 100 foster care caseworkers were trained to determine strategies to more effectively assist their young clients.

GARDENING AND HOME GROUNDSOpportunity Improve quality of life by answering questions related to home grounds, gardens, and home pest questions.

Outcome

• Extension trained thirty new Jefferson County Master Gardeners; 126 Master Gardener volunteers logged 16,710 hours of service valued at $301,615. Volunteers staff the helpline at the Gary Gerlach Plant Information Center at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens.

• Volunteers participate in community projects such as growing food for animals at the Birmingham Zoo and planting a garden at the Glenwood Autism and Behavioral Health Center.

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ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIPOpportunity Educate residents about diseases and invasive plants that can damage home landscapes and rob producers of agricultural and forestry income.

Outcome

• The C. Beaty Hanna Horticulture and Environmental Center and Plant Diagnostic Laboratory provides plant and disease identification to homeowners, commercial representatives, and Extension agents. The diagnostic lab tested 1,000 samples from county residents.

• Several presentations on topics related to identification and control of plant diseases and insect pests reached an audience of 550 homeowners and commercial representatives.

• In a cooperative effort with Mississippi State University, Alabama Extension offered a workshop, Plant Atlas of the South, for thirty-six people. The workshop trained volunteers to identify invasive plant species, use an online database to enter their location, and provide information on managing these species.

Opportunity Promote water conservation, recycling, and the use of irrigation alternatives and other practices to increase environmental sustainability. According to the U.S. Environmental Protec-tion Agency, a rain barrel can potentially save most homeowners about 1,300 gallons of water during peak summer months.

Outcome Eighty-five participants attended the Rain Barrel workshop. They assembled rain bar-rels to take home for landscape use and learned the value of collecting and storing rainwater from a roof—water that would otherwise be lost to runoff and diverted to storm drains and streams.

HEALTH AND WELLNESSOpportunity Equip caregivers with valuable information on the complex issues they face.

Outcome The Caregivers U program offered in partnership with the Jefferson County Retired Seniors Volunteer Program attracted more than 100 participants. The interactive conference provided information on topics key to people’s roles as caregivers. The program also focused on education offered through Alabama A&M University and Auburn University on aging, child care, and prostate cancer.

Opportunity Help protect citizens from high levels of radon, an invisible, odorless, and tasteless radioactive gas and the second leading cause of lung cancer.

Outcome

• Nearly 600 radon information bags were distributed to youth participating in a summer reading program. The bags included literature on how to test homes for radon and a citizen’s guide explaining radon risks.

• Extension presented the Alabama Radon Education Program at Trinity Medical Cancer Center to medical staff and oncology and radiation nurses. A radon display was placed in the hospital lobby to educate patients and the public.

Opportunity Assist youth in learning more about nutrition and the role it plays in being successful in school and life.

Outcome

• Under the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP), 120 middle school children learned the basics of cooking as well as how to make good choices about healthy eating, food safety, spending and budgeting, and exercise.

• EFNEP conducted summer youth programs that included interactive lessons about USDA MyPlate, body image, portion control, and wise food choices at school and home. Youth also learned table manners and their role in eating healthy and showing respect to others.

• Seventy-five young mothers learned how to have a healthy baby. Families with young children learned how to cook healthy meals.

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Opportunity Promote the overall health of children, teens, adults, and senior citizens by encouraging lifestyle changes such as adopting safe eating practices, daily physical activity, and behavioral habits to aid in the prevention, intervention, and maintenance of chronic diseases.

Outcome A total of 604 students in three local schools successfully completed CHAMPION, the Community Health Aerobic Motivational Program Initiating Optimal Nutrition. Students developed an increased understanding of the food groups, portion sizes, and best food choices by using the MyPlate concept. They also learned that they need to exercise 60 minutes every day.

Opportunity Encourage Alabama families to strengthen their relationships, reduce youth behavior problems, and enhance parenting.

Outcome Sixty-two families (142 individuals) attended Family Night activities in observance of Family Day created by the National Center of Addiction and Substance Abuse. Major partners included the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity Head Start program, Birmingham City Fire and Rescue, Olive Garden, Jefferson County Commissioners, and the City of Birmingham. Participants learned the importance of family time and participated in a health fair and fire safety training.

Opportunity Teach Alabamians how to access high-quality health information that is timely, accurate, unbiased, and relevant.

Outcome In partnership with the University of Alabama-Birmingham, Extension offered training in how to access health and wellness information online.

Opportunity Create awareness about environmental health issues in the community.

Outcome More than 200 residents visited a model healthy home. Information about mold, moisture, lead, and other contaminants in the home was also provided at fairs, meetings, and clinics.

Opportunity Improve health behaviors and empower limited-resource families to make wise food choices.

Outcome

• The Urban Nutrition Education Program helped 216 youth in local afterschool programs and community centers successfully complete the Power of Choice program.

• More than 300 adults and seniors successfully participated in the Wise Eating Approaches for a Lifetime of Health initiative. They learned to select and prepare safe, healthy foods for a nutrient-dense diet.

4-H AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENTOpportunity Educate youth on current and significant issues through a variety of programming that includes science, technology, engineering, math, health and wellness, workforce development, environmental stewardship, leadership and character education, self-esteem, achievement, healthy relationships, and financial literacy.

Outcome 4-H enriches the lives of more than 5,612 urban and rural youth in Jefferson County every year through traditional 4-H clubs, community clubs, special interest clubs, enrichment pro-grams, faith-based organizations, summer day camps, afterschool programs, and partnerships with a variety of youth organizations. Seventy-four Extension 4-H volunteers logged 1,041 hours of service valued at $22,661.60.

Published by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M University and Auburn University), an equal opportunity educator and employer.

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© 2013 by the Alabama Cooperative Extension System. All rights reserved. www.aces.edu

Joann S. Wissinger County Extension Coordinator2121 Building, Suite 17002121 Rev. Abraham Woods, Jr., Blvd.Birmingham, AL 35203-2387Phone: (205) 325-5342Fax: (205) 325-5690

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