Arizona Cooperative Extension - Program Areas

Within program areas, reporting categories focus on specific issues, topics, crops or animal products. Working groups plan, implement, and evaluate projects and activities within the reporting category. They are led by "coordinators", which may be the State Extension Specialist or another Extension faculty member with expertise in that area.

Campus-based partners include the School of Family and Consumer Sciences and the Departments of Nutritional Sciences and Agricultural Education. Outputs

Promote respectfulness, self-sufficiency, value, diversity and safety to build strong families.
Provide access to accurate information and skills to adolescents so that they can make wise personal decisions and solve problems about sexual behavior and interpersonal violence.
Improve the quality, affordability and accessibility of child care by linking the integrated teaching, research, education, technology and 4-H youth development expertise of county Cooperative Extension offices in local communities to the University of Arizona.
Provide leadership development opportunities for youth and adults.

Outcomes

Arizona families are self-sufficient, have appropriate life skills, and make a positive contribution to their communities.
Healthy adolescent relationships as indicated by decreased number of adolescent pregnancies and increased number of relationships that do not involve physical, sexual or emotional abuse.
Child care settings offer educational programs that stimulate optimum physical, intellectual, social and emotional development.
Arizonans engage in increased participation in family, community and public issues.

Consumer Science Reporting Category

Projects within this reporting category
- Master Consumer Advisors
  Contact: Daniel McDonald, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Pima County Cooperative Extension.

Family Care Reporting Category
Projects and activities include parenting.

ARIZONA CARES Working Group
The Arizona Cares Initiative: Children Matter team represents this state’s response to the National Extension Cares Initiative
Coordinators: Patty Merk , Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Maricopa CountyCooperative Extension and Darcy Dixon, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Santa Cruz County Cooperative Extension.
Working Group Update; Faculty Conference 2005 (ppt. 452 K)

BRAIN BUILDERS FOR LIFE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT Working Group
The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension has produced a curriculum, Brain Builders for Life, that, in its first phase, Prenatal to 3 Years, integrates child development and early brain development. This 16-hour curriculum has been peer-reviewed and is in the process of being edited. Following the current editing, the next steps are to develop a slick marketing package that reflects the curriculum and then to train other Extension Agents to use this curriculum, so that they can use it with their respective audiences.
Coordinators: Darcy Dixon, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Santa Cruz Cooperative Extension.

EARLY BRAIN DEVELOPMENT Working Group
To maximize intellectual growth, stimulation of the brain must be done within the first three years of a child’s life. It is during these years that more rapid brain development takes place than at any other time. This has implications for parents and other caregivers of young children. Everyone giving direct care to infants and toddlers must be educated about the effects of their interactions on brain development.
Coordinators: Darcy Dixon, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Santa Cruz County Cooperative Extension, Patty Merk , Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Maricopa CountyCooperative Extension, Marta Stuart, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Yavapai County Cooperative Extension, Lynne Durrant, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Mohave County Cooperative Extension

GRANDPARENTS RAISING GRANDCHILDREN Working Group
The objectives of this program are to explore core issues and concerns of grandparents raising grandchildren and to collaborate with other agencies to develop educational materials.
Coordinator: Linda Block, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Pima County Cooperative Extension.
HEALTHY STEPS FOR YOUNG CHILDREN ASSESSMENT Working Group
The Healthy Steps for Young children program is a new approach to primary health care for young children, birth to age three. Provides the information and support that parents and caregivers want and need regarding their child’s health and development in a pediatric setting.
Coordinators: Marta Stuart, Family and Consumer Science Agent, Yavapai County Cooperative Extension, Patty Merk, Family and Consumer Science Agent, Maricopa County Cooperative Extension; Evelyn Whitmer, Family and Consumer Science Agent, Cochise County Cooperative Extension, and Darcy Dixon, Family and Consumer Science Agent, Santa Cruz County Cooperative Extension.

Financial Management Reporting Category
Projects and activities include youth and adult financial management

FINANCIAL SECURITY AND MONEY MANAGEMENT Working Group
Financially knowledgeable consumers are required to have an effective and efficient marketplace. However, the financial marketplace of the 21st century has become more complex. Information and the ability to interpret and use information in making financial decisions is more important that ever before.
Coordinator: Linda Block, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Pima County Cooperative Extension.

Projects include:
- Money 2000+
  Linda Block, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Pima County Cooperative Extension.
- High School Financial Management

SMALL STEPS TO HEALTH AND WEALTH Working Group
There are many parallels between factors that affect good health and those that foster financial success. Societal problems that have been reported include over 60% of adults being overweight or obese and a higher incidence of Type II diabetes being documented in youth. At the same time, household savings rates remain low and household debt high. It is anticipated with the surge in fuel costs debt will dramatically increase. As a result of lifestyle choices, many Americans today have health and personal finance issues. The Small Steps to Health and Wealth (SSHW)TM program will teach participants 25 behavior change strategies that can be simultaneously applied to improve health and increase wealth and track their progress over time.
Coordinator: Linda Block, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Pima County Cooperative Extension.

Workforce Preparation Reporting Category
Projects and activities include life skills and team building.

Projects within this reporting category
- Extension Connection
  Contact: Darcy Dixon, Family and Consumer Sciences Agent, Santa Cruz County Cooperative Extension.