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06-18-10 Cooperative Extension
Cooperative Extension
WHAT WE DO:
The Cooperative Extension System is a nationwide, non-credit educational network. Each U.S. state and territory, plus the District of Columbia, has a state office at its land-grant university and a network of local or regional offices www.nifa.usda.gov/Extension/index.html. These offices are staffed by one or more experts who provide useful, practical, and research-based financial information and education to small business owners, youth, consumers, and others in rural areas and communities of all sizes http://www.nifa.usda.gov/directories/economics/index.cfm. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is the federal partner providing national leadership for the Financial Security Program www.nifa.usda.gov/financialsecurity.
WHAT WE OFFER:
Targeted Education at the Community Level
Cooperative Extension reaches out to people where they live and work with personal finance workshops, seminars, home-study courses, Web sites, and other educational methods. The emphasis is on motivating learners to take financial action and imparting the technical “how to” strategies to make and maintain change. Applied research measures behavioral outcomes. Cooperative Extension has more than 750 local and state sites, keyword searchable through http://search.extension.org.
Examples of National Partnerships for Financial Education
Cooperative Extension, along with the Credit Union National Association (CUNA) and America’s Credit Unions, works with the National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) to revise, deliver and evaluate the NEFE High School Financial Planning Program® http://hsfpp.nefe.org. Working in partnership with America Saves and the Consumer Federation of America, Cooperative Extension is a leading national partner with America Saves Week, a campaign designed to encourage more Americans to set and achieve a savings goal http://www.americasaves.org and http://www.americasavesweek.org. Cooperative Extension helped to create the Jump$tart Coalition, served on the inaugural Board of Directors and continues strong involvement with this coalition and the American Savings Education Council http://www.asec.org.
Family Economics News
This award-winning monthly electronic newsletter for Cooperative Extension faculty and allied professionals includes research summaries, program updates, description of resource materials, conference listings and other information. To subscribe, send a request to Turn on JavaScript!. Archived issues are available at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/newsroom/newsletters/familyeconnews/familyeconnews.html.
WHAT WE NEED:
Strategic Partners
Cooperative Extension actively seeks partners for local, state, and national financial literacy initiatives that share our vision for a more financially secure America. Many Cooperative Extension educators are leaders in state Jump$tart coalitions.
Resources
Through partnerships with Extension, resources that extend outreach capability, such as staff time and funding, are welcomed.
Volunteers
Cooperative Extension seeks local volunteers to serve on program advisory committees, teach workshops, and review educational materials. Extension volunteers who work for commercial firms may not promote their company or its products.
WHAT’S NEW:
eXtension (pronounced ee-extension)
Personal finance is one focus of Cooperative Extension’s new interactive Internet site at http://www.extension.org. Learners get just-in-time information and educational lessons, more than 1,200 frequently asked questions, an ask-an-expert function with answers in 48 hours, and direct contact with the Extension office nearest you. A new online learning tool, funded by the FINRA Investor Education Foundation http://www.finrafoundation.org, helps farm families understand investing http://www.extension.org/pages/Investing_for_Farm_Families. Other sections focus on managing in tough times and when disaster strikes, money emotions and communications, saving, budgeting, and much more.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Jane Schuchardt, Ph.D., Consultant, Family and Consumer Economics
National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA
1400 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, DC 20250-2215
202-690-2674
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Jim Terry, Program Analyst
National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA
1400 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, DC 20250-2215
202-690-1227
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Jinhee Kim, Ph.D. (representative to the Jump$tart Board of Directors)
Family Resource Management Extension Specialist
University of Maryland
1204 Marie Mount Hall
College Park, MD 20742-7515
301-405-3500
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