Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development

 

 

Tag: Extension

Measuring Northeast Extension Community Development Capacity

October 27, 2025

In the winter of 2024-2025, NERCRD Associate Director Stephen Alessi conducted an inventory of the capacity for research and Extension programming in the Northeast U.S. region that corresponds with the priority areas of the NERCRD, which include:

  • Food Systems, Nutrition Security, and Agriculture
  • Economic Development, Resilience, and Innovation
  • Tourism and Outdoor Recreation

He presented his findings in a poster at the 2025 meeting of the National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals, available here.

He also compiled his findings in the following report, Land Grant Community and Economic Development Capacity in the Northeast.

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Publications

Land Grant Community and Economic Development Capacity in the Northeast

October 27, 2025

This report summarizes the findings of an inventory conducted in 2024-2025 aimed at understanding the capacity of the Land Grant Institutions in the Northeast U.S. to conduct research and Extension programming that corresponds with the priority areas of the NERCRD, which at the time of this study included:

  • Food Systems, Nutrition Security, and Agriculture
  • Economic Development, Resilience, and Innovation
  • Tourism and Outdoor Recreation

A companion poster, which was presented at the 2025 National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals (NACDEP) conference in Charleston, WV, is available here.

Alessi.CED-capacity-in-Northeast.March2025Download

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Older adult helping child on laptop computer

Webinar Recording: Healthy Grandfamilies and Kinship Care

October 23, 2025

November 18th at 2:00 p.m. ET — Join us to hear how the WVSU Healthy Grandfamilies program educates, supports, and empowers grandparents raising their grandchildren, particularly in rural West Virginia communities. This one-hour webinar will highlight the Healthy Grandfamilies program, the Caring for Our Kin curriculum designed by Penn State and WVU Extension, and real-world insights from a county coordinator who is making a lasting impact on families.

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NDEET Strategic Planning Update: National Leaders Convene to Shape the Future of Digital Extension Efforts

August 21, 2025

In the final week of July, 27 participants from 17 states of the National Digital Extension Education Team (NDEET) gathered in Denver, Colorado, for an energizing and forward-focused convening to identify the emerging digital and broadband needs shaping the future of Cooperative Extension. Hosted by the Extension Foundation, the event served as a catalyst for strategic planning and collaboration across key issue areas. NERCRD Associate Director Stephen Alessi attended the event and is excited about the opportunities to collaborate on the program priority areas that emerged from the meeting.

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Publications

State-Level Cooperative Extension Spending and Farmer Exits

April 19, 2016

Abstract: Numerous studies have evaluated the impact of Extension on farm productivity and related outcomes. Here we use annual data from 1983 to 2010 covering the 50 U.S. states to examine the impact of Extension on net changes in the number of farmers. The historical transition of farmers out of U.S. agriculture raises the question of whether Cooperative Extension and underlying Hatch-funded research spending keeps farmers in agriculture or accelerates their exit. On balance, nearly 500,000 more farmers left than entered agriculture over the period studied. We estimate that without Extension, as many as 137,700 (or 28%) additional farmers would have disappeared on net. Overall, Extension programs are a remarkably cost effective way of keeping farmers in agriculture. Alternatively, shifting just 1.5% of federal farm program payments to Extension would have reduced net exits over this period by an estimated 11%, or 55,000 farmers.

A related infographic (below) was developed to help share the findings of this research.

land-grant-programs-helped-keep-farmers-on-the-farm-2-pageDownload

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