Money for College

 

The NC Community College System just established the NC Longleaf Commitment Grant.  This grant will allow 2020 and 2021 high school graduates to attend one of the state’s community colleges.  Eligible students are guaranteed to receive $700 to $2,800 per year for tuition and fees for a total of two years.  Attached are three posters that may be shared with your 4-H youth, posted in Extension Offices, or shared with public school teachers for posting.  This program is set to conclude the spring semester of 2023.  More information about the grant can be found here.

Livestock Update

Check out the latest news from the world of Livestock by clicking on this link.  This will take you to the NC State Fair News letter.

Only Our Logo is Changing

Below is an article written by Christy Strickland for the Robesonian, Robeson Journal, and other publications that serve Robeson County.  This article can also be found on the North Carolina Cooperative Extension, Robeson County Center web site.

You may have noticed we have a new look. NC State Extension and the Cooperative Extension Program at N.C. A&T State University have launched a rebranding effort across the state for N.C. Cooperative Extension. The new logo is being rolled out in all 101 local Extension centers across the state. Essentially, we are adopting a new marketing strategy to grow awareness and engagement for N.C. Cooperative Extension.

You may be asking yourself, what does that mean? Don’t worry, we will continue to work together to provide research-based information and technology in everyday applications, providing educational programs specializing in agriculture, food and nutrition, and 4-H youth development.  That means local agents, program assistants, and staff are providing meaningful programming in a variety of areas.

In the program area of agriculture, Master Gardeners are meeting and volunteering throughout the county using their knowledge to assist residents and enhance many Extension programs. The Robeson County Beekeepers Association members are dedicated to the cultivation, proliferation, and survival of the honeybee and work to educate others on the importance of bees.  The Robeson County Farmers Market Association works to provide fresh produce to patrons at the market on the corner of 8th and Elm Streets, as well as those participating in the local Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program throughout the summer. Extension agents coordinate and participate in local research with university specialists and local farmers to ensure the best research-based information is available to make farming decisions.

In the program area of foods and nutrition, programs that emphasize healthy eating and physical activity include Eating Smart and Moving More as well as our Faithful Families Program, which is based in churches. You might come by our office for some classes on food preservation, or canning as Grandma referred to it, or maybe a bread-making class. We also work closely with restaurants to ensure managers get certified in ServSafe, which is a food safety certification we offer in both English and Spanish. We would be remiss to leave out our Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP). Our program assistants are well known in the schools and communities working with low-income audiences to help them eat healthy on a budget.

In the program area of 4-H youth development, our building will be bursting at the seams with young people participating in a variety of activities throughout the summer. Learning everything from how to cook safely and eating healthy to proper behavior in a formal dining situation. Junior Master Gardeners are learning the how-tos of gardening in the raised beds just outside my office. It also means I can sit in my office at this moment and hear the baby  chicks that have hatched in our incubators  as an example of the  4-H Embryology Program taking place across the county in a variety of second and third grade classrooms.

And I haven’t even mentioned the many opportunities to experience Extension at the Robeson Regional Agricultural Fair, on farm tours, as part of community or specialty 4-H clubs, at goat shows and field days, etc. So as you can see, it’s just our look that’s changing – not the many hands-on opportunities available or the research-based information we can tap into on a daily basis.

For more information on any of the areas mentioned or others, please contact Christy Strickland, County  Extension Director  with  North Carolina  Cooperative Extension, Robeson  County Center,  at 671-3276, by E-mail at Christy_Strickland@ncsu.edu, or visit our website at http://robeson.ces.ncsu.edu/.

North Carolina State University and North Carolina A&T State University commit themselves to positive action to secure equal opportunity regardless of race, color, creed, national origin, religion, sex, age, veteran status, or disability. In addition, the two Universities welcome all persons without regard to sexual orientation.

Equine Update

For all our 4-H members interested in the latest in the world of horses, please find the latest link the the state 4-H Horse Newsletter.  Also a quick reminder about deadlines.

There are two deadlines that are upon us:

1. Artistic Expression online registration must be completed by May 1.

2. Creative Writing entry forms and writing submissions must be postmarked by May 2. 

Details about both of those deadline are in the newsletter.

Bringing Agriculture to Youth

  We often joke that Cooperative Extension is one of the best kept secrets.  No matter what we do to promote and market this educational organization it can be difficult because folks don't really know what we do.  Unfortunately for youth the entire topic of Agriculture appears to be a well kept secret too.  When asked where their food comes from 83% of youth think it comes from the grocery store.  Educating youth on the importance and business of Agriculture is of growing importance, especially as we see predicted food shortfalls in the future for this country.
  We are very pleased to say Robeson County 4-H and Cooperative Extension staff were asked to help with an Ag Day at St. Paul's High School.  The FFA members and ag students (58 in all) did everything from lead students in groups to lead workshops on topics ranging from wildlife to horticulture, and even animal science.  More than 300 youth took part in the day which had sponsorship from Cape Fear Farm Credit and Smithfield's.  In the afternoon high school students had the opportunity to be taught about agriculture from their peers and learn a little something they had not heard before.  The small grains association talked with everyone about row crops, especially wheat, they got to sample smoothies from the soybean council, and the local Bee Keepers Association members even brought in bees and explained the importance of pollinators.  It was an excellent event that got youth of all ages excited and educated about various aspects of agriculture.  We would like to say Kudos to St. Paul's FFA on a job well done.  

Happy Earth Day!

Every once in awhile something wonderful comes into our office and we just need to share it with you.  This was written by Mack Johnson, Horticulture Agent with our Cooperative Extension Office.

Today we celebrate our collective home called earth.  This movement started in 1970 to call attention to environmental issues of the day. It has since become a day celebrated in many other countries, not only our own.  Please take some time today to make a cognitive decision on what each one of us can do to be better stewards of our planet. It can be as simple as using reusable shopping bags instead of the plastic ones at the grocery store, turning off the lights when you leave the room, recycle, conserve water-empty the bowl of pet water for a plant when you put fresh water in the bowl, replace incandescent bulbs with LED's or CF's, buy LOCAL FOODS so it won't have such a large carbon footprint verses being shipped across country. Just last night I was in Food Lion. I was first met in the produce section with a really nice stand of fresh strawberry's from California!?!?!?!, I kept looking and found (for the same price) in the cooler strawberrys from NC.  OF course I purchased mine from a local grower just down the road.  Happy Earth Day everyone....just saying .........on a personal note this earth is not my (final) home but I still need to help take care of it.  Sorry for the long post.

Celebrating Extension

As you may have read earlier in this blog, this year Extension is celebrating its centennial.  As part of that celebration we ae happy to share with you that a special exhibit, celebrating Extension has been set up at the Robeason county History Museum.  The exhibit is titled "100 Years of Extension:  Putting Knowledge to Work for You" If you go by to see all the great information, you may even see some familiar faces.

The museum is open 10-12 on Tusday and Thursday and from 2-4 on Sundays.