By Amy Harder, Associate Dean & Associate Director, UConn Extension 

Smith-Lever Funding

UConn Extension provides nonformal education through the planning, implementation, and evaluation of programs intentionally designed to address critical issues relevant to the people of Connecticut. Critical issues are determined on a five-year basis and outlined in the University of Connecticut Research and Extension and Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station – Research Combined Plan of Work (POW) (2021-2025). Most of Extension’s budget is a result of federal Smith-Lever funding and the required state match. Smith-Lever Act funding is only available to 1862 Land-Grant Institutions and is one of several types of capacity grants. The purpose of funding provided by Smith-Lever sections (b) and (c) “is to conduct cooperative agricultural extension work” (USDA NIFA, n.d., para. 1). An implied focus on serving rural populations and farms is evident in the formula used to allocate funds. States with higher percentages of rural populations and farms receive more funding. The phrase formula funding refers to this method of allocating Smith-Lever resources to LGUs. Federal Smith-Lever and state matching funds must be used for extension programs and activities approved in our POW.

What’s an Extension Program?

To answer this question, we should first define Extension and differentiate it from outreach, engagement, or service. Extension is both a proper noun and a verb. Extension as a proper noun is the system created to conduct the extension work articulated by the Smith-Lever Act of 1914. Extension as a verb refers to:

the development of practical applications of research knowledge and giving of instruction and practical demonstrations of existing or improved practices or technologies in agriculture, uses of solar energy with respect to agriculture, home economics, and rural energy, and subjects relating thereto to persons not attending or resident in said colleges in the several communities, and imparting information on said subjects through demonstrations, publications, and otherwise and for the necessary printing and distribution of information in connection with the foregoing; and this work shall be carried on in such as manner as may be mutually agreed upon by the Secretary of Agriculture and the State agricultural college or colleges or Territory or possession receiving the benefits of this Act (Sec. 2 [7 U.S.C. 342]).

Key aspects of this lengthy definition include an emphasis on the practical application of research through instruction; providing education to individuals who are not attending the university, and the agreement between the USDA and the Land-Grant university.

• Practical application of research through instruction: The first aspect makes clear that there is a direct linkage between the extension and research mission areas; this is the foundation for integrated activities. Extension is the system that makes research accessible and applicable to local populations. Strong relationships between university researchers and university extension educators are required for this element of extension work to be successful.
• Providing education to individuals who are not attending the university: Extension is mandated to provide education to residents throughout the state so that benefiting from the Land-Grant university’s knowledge and research is not restricted to those able to attend as formal education students. The term extension is thus associated with extending university science out to the public.
• Agreement between the USDA and the Land-Grant university: Programs conducted in support of the university’s five-year Plan of Work approved by the USDA, and at least partially resourced by Smith-Lever federal funds and/or the state match, can and should be defined as an extension effort.

The second part of answering whether something is an Extension program requires understanding what a program is and what it is not. Programs are “the product resulting from all the programming activities in which the professional educator and learners are involved” (Boone, 1981, p. 5). Programs are not single activities, like a 4-H evening program, a field day, or performing a diagnostic test, but rather a collection of intentionally planned activities designed to help learners achieve specific measurable outcomes. A comprehensive program might include a field day, farm visits, soil tests, a blog, Extension fact sheets, and webinars all aimed at helping small-scale producers adopt best practices that will lead to improved sustainability and profitability. It is common to plan programs using well-established models such as logic models or the TOP Model; program plans are valuable tools to attain the appropriate resources, ensure the right audiences are being targeted, and to determine if a program has been successful in achieving its outcomes.

Smith-Lever Expenditures

The USDA-NIFA provides an annual capacity grant to provide financial resources that support the implementation of the POW. Most of the federal grant, and the corresponding state matching funds, pays directly for salaries and fringe benefits for individuals in the Department of Extension but also supports varying percentages of time for approximately 30 individuals in academic departments. Individuals paid with Smith-Lever funding and/or the state matching funds are expected to contribute to accomplishing the goals outlined in the POW with effort proportionate to the amount of time (.FTE) they have assigned to Extension. The USDA-NIFA articulates these expectations in the RFA for FY 2023, explaining “the purpose of this [Smith-Lever] funding is to conduct agricultural extension work” (p. 7) and that “required matching funds for the capacity programs must be used by an eligible institution for the same purpose as Federal award dollars” (p. 11). In CAHNR, we provide Smith-Lever funds to all departments to support UConn Extension programs aligned with our POW.

Local Impact of Smith-Lever Funds

In 2024, UConn Extension demonstrated significant statewide impact through its integrated programs addressing climate resilience, health and well-being, sustainable agriculture, and landscape stewardship. Over 500 in-person events and extensive digital outreach engaged thousands, supported by 4,300 volunteers contributing 174,000 hours. Climate adaptation efforts led to over 6,600 acres on which recommended practices were adopted and 3,500 acres protected from forest loss. Health initiatives reached youth and adults alike, with over 2,600 youth gaining subject matter knowledge and more than 1,400 adults improving dietary habits. Agricultural programs empowered over 2,600 participants to adopt new practices, impacting over 2,200 acres, while also enhancing food safety and economic resilience. Landscape programs trained nearly 3,500 Green Industry professionals and supported sustainable practices on over 7,000 acres. These outcomes reflect UConn Extension’s commitment to evidence-based programming, stakeholder-informed priorities, and measurable community benefits across Connecticut.