• Pesticide Re-certification Training:  Re-certifying pesticide applicators ranked liability issues related to urban sprawl as their number one concern for the third year in a row.  Nearly 70% of the 100 private applicators re-certified in 2001 indicated an increase in knowledge in environmental, liability, safety and pest/weed resistance as a result of the OSU Extension Pesticide Re-certification training.  80% indicated adopting the following pesticide best management practices:  reading labels more carefully, controlling drift, and keeping more detailed records.

• Pond Management Benefits:  Ponds provide an economic, recreation, educational and aesthetic value for their owners and users.  These benefits can be seriously impacted when ponds are left unmanaged.  80% of the clients served by OSU Extension, Franklin County pond management programming expressed greater ability in diagnosing future problems and preventing problems with better management practices.

• Nuisance Wildlife, Friend or Foe?  Growing urban and suburban nuisance wildlife problems have homeowners scrambling for assistance.  OSU Extension, Franklin County assisted over 800 homeowners to finding solutions to their nuisance wildlife problems.  60% of the time, solutions resulted in homeowner cost savings, since long term options were explained and utilized rather than just short term fix-its.  Thirty-five Master Gardeners were trained to be able to assist horticulture hotline callers with nuisance wildlife issues.

• Consumers Learn About Agriculture's Importance:  2500 consumers learned about current agriculture issues through A-Maiz-ing Harvest Fest, a two-day agriculture event, coordinated by OSU Extension, Franklin County in partnership with the Franklin Park Conservatory.  Families explored food safety advances in food and fiber products, biotechnology, and much more through ten interactive learning stations.  Developed media partnerships enabled OSU Extension, Franklin County agriculture staff to reach over 300,000 households with information on the economic importance of agriculture to the county and how technological agriculture changes are benefiting consumers health and budget.

Horticulture

• Junior Master Gardeners:  A group of 20 Master Gardener volunteers, lead by Marlin Languis, worked with Ohio Hunger Task Force to present the Junior Master Gardener program to 90 youth at St. Stephen's Community Center this season.  The program was conducted weekly from March through August.  The children started plants from seed, held a plant sale and raised $200, planted vegetables and flowers at the Center, and harvested and ate their produce.  They also shared produce and flowers with local area shut-ins.  At the beginning of the season, none of  the kids could name more than 5 vegetables; by the end of the season, they could name 29 out of 30!

• Master Gardeners Teach, Serve and Train:  Franklin County Master Gardener volunteers are an outstanding group!  This season, 125 volunteers contributed over 4200 hours to Extension program in outreach education and research efforts.  They answered questions for 2045 gardeners over the phone, met and shared information with over 1200 gardeners in public events, and directly taught 455 people in programs.  Several volunteers are now teaching new Master Gardener trainees; they trained 165 in 2001 classes, some in other counties.  In addition, Bob Staut, a volunteer who was trained in 1999, won the SW District Extension award for "Master Gardener of the Year" for his efforts in the program.

• Home Gardener Series Continues:  The Home Gardener Series continues to be a great program for county gardeners.  This season, 280 people participated in programs on landscape design, woody landscape care, lawn care, vegetable gardening, perennial gardening, and container gardening.  Evaluations showed that 100% learned at least one new thing in programs and that 100% planned to use the information in their gardening efforts in 2001.

• More Master Gardeners Trained:  In 2001, thirty-five new volunteers were training in Franklin County.  97% were certified "Master Gardeners" at the end of the season.  These volunteers contributed 1890 hours to the Extension program, which was 26% of the total Master Gardener hours donated this season.  These new volunteers donated an average of 55.5 hours, 5.5 hours above the minimum requested.  

• 4-H Is Growing!  7806 Franklin County youth, ages 5 to 18, participated in Franklin County 4-H Programs in 2001.  This is over a 300% increase in participation by Franklin County youth from 2000 .  Increase has come from expansion of agriculture and environmental youth education programs and new partnerships with local YMCA's, Boys and Girls Club, Columbus Recreation and Parks, and Franklin County and Columbus City School Districts.

• 4-H Volunteers Contribute Time And Extend Resources:  250 volunteers give leadership to over 60 4-H community clubs reaching over 800 youth with positive youth development programs and experiences on a monthly basis.  This is a 15% increase in 4-H volunteers working with the Franklin County 4-H Program from 2000.  Teen and adult volunteers contribute over 42,000 hours to the Franklin County 4-H Program, a cost benefit of $440,000.

• 4-H Livestock Members Learn Important Quality Assurance Practices:  122 youth acquired important skills through the Franklin County Livestock Quality Assurance Training.  Evaluations indicated:  94% of participants could explain the differences between ethical and unethical livestock practices; 91% of participants had an increased understanding of calculating withdrawal times; and 88% of participants could explain why quality assurance is important to the food and animal industry.

• Inner City Youth Learn About Food and Fiber System:  Over 1500 inner city and suburban youth gained a better understanding of their food and fiber system through Scarlet and Gray Ag Day, Biotechnology in Ag, Governor's Ag Day, Harvesting Readers and numerous other Ag in the Classroom programs coordinated through the educational and partnership efforts of OSU Extension, Franklin County.  Comments from teachers, students and parents indicated a better appreciation for the technology used in agriculture, a broader understanding of the complexity of the food and fiber system and an interest in learning more about the economics and science behind agriculture.

• OSU Extension Trains Child Care Providers:  An educational partnership with Action for Children and OSU Extension, Franklin County offers childcare enhancement classes to child care provider mentors and beginning home child care providers.  The mentors are center or home-based and provide support to other child care providers.  Franklin County Job and Family Services and United Way of Central Ohio provide financial support for this program.  Through the Franklinton and Hilltop OSU DIRECT program, five child care providers were recruited.  These individuals learned how to become home child care providers from this educational partnership.

• Reduce Stress and Manage Time:  A popular class where the participant practices stress reduction techniques and learns how to manage time more effectively has been offered to local businesses, government agencies, Columbus City School parents, and Center for New Directions.  Over 300 participants have benefited from this class.

• Appreciative Inquiry Process:  During the 2001 school year, Linden McKinley High School students, teachers, and administrators participated in "Appreciative Inquiry" Process.  This approach is positive, fun, interactive, and action-oriented while students, teachers and administrators work together to assist their school and community through a long-term planning process.  Forty student leaders were trained on the facilitating process and collected data from all high school students.

• Residents Learn Financial Management Skills:  Financial literacy classes were taught to 150 residents.  These residents learned how to obtain and implement a better budget, checking, and savings program for their families.

• Residents Learn How To Improve Families Health and Stretch Food Dollars:  Franklin County provided instruction in healthy eating, meal planning, food safety, food purchasing and preparation to 810 limited resource individuals in 2001.  The impact of these lessons was extended to over 3,000 family members. 84% of the participants showed improvement in one or more nutrition practices; 75% of the participants showed improvement in one or more food resource management practices; and 58% of the participants showed improvement in one or more food safety practices.  

• Food Safety, Diet and Nutrition:  1338 older Franklin County adults participated in a series of food safety, diet and nutrition courses taught by the Franklin County Family Nutrition Program staff.

• Food Security:  281 clients were taught the importance of food security and stretching their food dollars.  75% indicated they learned new information and 75% indicated that they plan to make the recommended changes necessary to assure their food security.   

• Food Safety:  184 participants were taught food safety and kitchen sanitation practices.  100% indicated they learned new information and 100% plan to make the recommended changes necessary in regard to keeping their food safe.                                                                 

• Diet:  817 participants learned how to improve their diets and use the Food Guide Pyramid to make better food choices.  77% reported gaining new information and 73% plan to make the recommended changes necessary to provide good, sound nutrition for them as they age.

• Aging Adults Learn Skills to Improve Living:  The Ohio State University Extension, Franklin County, offers outstanding, continued educational presentations for older adults through the Senior Series program.  The following educational programs are targeted specifically for the older adult to support and enhance self-care, thus allowing them to continue living within their home communities.  Telemarketing Fraud, Elder Abuse Awareness, Let's Open the Medicine Cupboard, Staying Strong, Living with Arthritis, Young In Mind and Body, When Good People Disagree, How to Talk With Your Doctor and Like No One Else.  The Senior Series team is thrilled to report that 3,227 older adults attended educational programs in 2001.  90% of participants reported gaining new and usable information.

• Elder Abuse:  It is difficult to comprehend that 3.4% to 5% of the 43 million Americans who are 60 and older will become a victim of abuse this year.  How can we protect them?  Ohio State University Extension is raising awareness by offering training to many county organizations.   On May 4, 2001, a rally was held on the Statehouse steps that included speakers and media coverage to raise awareness of older adult abuse.

Keith L. Smith, Associate Vice President for Ag. Adm. and Director, OSU Extension.
TDD # 1 (800) 589-8292 (Ohio only) or (614) 292-1868

Educational programs provided with major support from the Franklin County Commissioners:  Mary Jo Kilroy, Paula Brooks and Marilyn Brown.