First Impressions program is spreading through the Northeast and beyond

November 6, 2017

In 2015, the Northeast Center provided funding to West Virginia University (WVU) Extension and partner institutions to expand WVU’s First Impressions (FI) program into other states. We’ve launched a new web clearinghouse for FI training resources and reports from our partners who have implemented FI in their states.

Exploring the intersection of Extension, the farming community, and health insurance

October 23, 2017

A paper published recently in the Journal of Extension explores Extension’s role at the intersection of agriculture and health insurance, focusing on current efforts, needs, and opportunities.

NIFA Listens campaign still accepting public comment

October 17, 2017

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) held several listening sessions this fall, and continues to solicit public input on the emerging needs and opportunities in food and agricultural research, education, and extension through the initiative, “NIFA Listens: Investing in Science to Transform Lives.” To share your input, follow the linked headline to complete a survey, or submit written comments via NIFAlistens@nifa.usda.gov.

“Field Guide to Ripple Effects Mapping” released

October 16, 2017

A new publication on ripple effects mapping— a “participatory data collection method designed to capture the impact of complex programs and collaborative processes”—was recently released by the University of Minnesota. Edited by Scott Chazdon, Mary Emery, Debra Hansen, Lorie Higgins, and Rebecca Sero, the 16MB PDF is available for download from the Minnesota Evaluation Studies Institute Program Evaluation Series.

released by University of Minnesota Extension

New USDA reports explore rural innovation and manufacturing

October 16, 2017

The USDA Economic Research Service recently released two reports that explore rural innovation and rural manufacturing, respectively. The authors found that innovation is widespread in rural areas, especially in the manufacturing sector, and that manufacturing is very important to the rural economy, providing more jobs and higher earnings than other sectors like farming and mining.

“The Economic Status of Rural America in the Trump Era” featured in Daily Yonder

July 7, 2017

The Daily Yonder is featuring a piece that offers suggestions for improving federal rural development policy without “breaking the bank.” It is an excerpt of a longer paper co-authored by Center Director Stephan Goetz; West Virginia University’s Heather Stephens (who also serves on our Technical Advisory Committee); and Ohio State University’s Mark Partidge.

Curriculum available for communities facing emerging behavioral health issues

July 6, 2017

One in five Americans experience behavioral health issues in any given year, and yet the signs and symptoms of behavioral health challenges are not always clear. Recently, Community Assessment and Education to Promote Behavioral Health Planning and Evaluation (CAPE) developed and administered a series of trainings designed to help communities address emerging behavioral health problems. The curriculum, which is available upon request, provides a valuable framework for community development and other extension professionals who want to play a leading role in helping communities address a broad range of behavioral health challenges.

A community of practice for data analysis

July 6, 2017

Do you assist communities in using socio-economic data for decision making? Are you looking for better ways of delivering data to community leaders? Are you willing to share your best practices and resources with others, potentially influencing programming in other states? As access to data is becoming ubiquitous for communities, the role of many Extension and Community Development (CD) professionals has shifted towards helping communities interpret data for use in decision-making. A group of such individuals has formed, and they invite you to join their informal listserv.

Congratulations to our Northeast colleagues honored by NACDEP and CDS!

July 6, 2017

Several community development Extension professionals from the Northeast were honored by National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) and/or the Community Development Society (CDS) at their joint 2017 conference held last month in Big Sky, MT, and we’d like to congratulate them on the well-deserved recognition!

Congratulations to Dr. Minghao Li!

July 6, 2017

Congratulations to Minghao Li, a Northeast Center research assistant and Penn State doctoral candidate who successfully defended his dissertation in Agricultural, Environmental and Regional Economics on June 1, 2017. Li’s dissertation research focused on intergenerational mobility and resulted in three essays.