“Tools for Healthy Living,” a curriculum about healthy homes and food safety, has been accepted as a national peer-reviewed curriculum by the National 4-H Council. The curriculum, designed for students in grades four through six who are in afterschool 4-H programs, was developed by UConn Extension as part of a 5-year Sustainable Community Project grant […]
UConn Extension
Healthier Food at the Right Price
Moms from Grassroots Academy learned about saving money at the store while feeding their family healthier foods during a grocery store tour at Price Rite in Danbury last week led by EFNEP educator and dietitian Heather Peracchio and extension aide Juliana Restrepo-Marin. The tour was in partnership with the Cooking Matters at the store program.
Mmmm…Strawberry Season
By Diane Wright Hirsch, Extension Educator, Food Safety One of the best things about early summer in Connecticut is strawberry season. I will never understand why folks buy California berries at the supermarket in June. I recently saw a post on a local farm’s Facebook page where a customer shared a picture of two […]
National Adaptation Forum
By Juliana Barrett Connecticut Sea Grant and UConn Extension In early May, over 700 people gathered in St Louis, MO for the second National Adaptation Forum (NAF). The purpose of the NAF is to promote and share climate adaptation research, issues, tools and strategies. Participants gathered from across the United States and Canada including federal, […]
Enfield & Worcester PEP Graduations
Congratulations to our People Empowering People (PEP) graduates from Enfield and Worcester. Both classes graduated in early May. At the Enfield graduation, the mayor was there, and the Police Department as they are working alongside the PEP program in a project. For the project, police and PEP graduates exchange phone numbers and when an emergency happens […]
Students First Funds Golf Tournament
The UConn Extension team had a great day at the 7th Annual UConn Students First Funds Golf Tournament on Monday. Left to right: Paul Gagnon, Career Consultant for the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources; Steve Geary, Department Head of Pathobiology; Bill Field, Division of Environmental Health and Safety; and Mike O’Neill, Associate Dean and Associate […]
Build a Rain Garden
Want to build a beautiful garden that also helps to protect local waterways? Let the NEMO Rain Garden App show you how. Spring means the urge to create gardens. Spring also means rain and polluted runoff flowing into the street, down the storm drain, and into the local brook or wetland. Why not solve both […]
Barnum School in Bridgeport
Barnum School 4-Hers in Bridgeport celebrated Earth Day on April 25th. Parents, students and community volunteers celebrated with a Garden clean up. Twenty-seven beds were cleaned, wood chips laid, and eight new beds were built.
Biological Control Programs for Ornamentals
Proven Biological Control Programs for Indoor and Outdoor Production of Ornamentals UConn Extension and UMass Extension are sponsoring, Proven Biological Control Programs; for indoor and outdoor production of ornamentals. This one day educational program will be held on Thursday, June 18, 2015 in Room 100 of the WB Young Building, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT. The […]
More PEP Graduates
Congratulations to our most recent UConn Extension People Empowering People (PEP) graduates from Meriden! The People Empowering People Program is a personal and family development program with a strong community focus. Created by Cheryl Czuba, UConn Extension Educator, the PEP program builds upon individual life experiences and strengths to encourage growth in communication and problem solving skills, parent/family relationships and […]
The Season for Strawberries
Photo and article by Susan Pelton for UConn Extension We moved into our home in December of 1996 and by June of 1997 I had broken through the sod, tilled the soil, fenced in an area, and planted a new garden. One of the first additions to that garden was a strawberry bed. Even […]
Making Soup
At St. Luke’s food pantry in Bridgeport UConn Extension reaches SNAP recipients with healthy eating tips and recipes. Heather Peracchio made minestrone soup with attendees. Canned vegetables are best for our health when labeled “no salt added,” or if you have regular or reduced sodium rinsing and draining the veggies or beans can help to […]
NOAA Website Uses CLEAR Technologies
The NOAA Office for Coastal Management has come out with a new web-mapping site, How to Use Land Cover Data as A Water Quality Indicator, that was constructed based on a project that UConn Extension’s Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR) did for them in 2013. It uses metrics and analyses recommended by CLEAR, and in […]
Mansfield/Coventry PEP Graduation
Congratulations to another group of People Empowering People (PEP) graduates. The Mansfield/Coventry group celebrated with an inspiring evening of community projects and joy.
Connecticut 4-H Citizenship Day 2015
By: Marc Cournoyer UConn Extension 4-H Program Coordinator Approximately 100 4-H youth and adults converged on the state Capitol in Hartford on Wednesday, April 15th for the annual state 4-H Citizenship Day. Representing all corners of Connecticut, these individuals came together to meet with legislators, explore our state Capitol, learn a bit more about […]
Plymouth PEP Class of 2015
The kick off for this UConn Extension People Empowering People (PEP) community project in Plymouth was Tuesday, April 14th. The mayor gave out the first key for Plymouth Keys For Kindness and praised the UConn Extension PEP program. The Peppers include: Jennifer DeForest, Vianna Hartley, Donna Koser, Tanya Long, Heather MacAulay and Jennifer Yezierski.
Meet Our Summer Interns
Each year UConn students apply to and compete for paid internship opportunities with the UConn Cooperative Extension Service. Through its offices located throughout Connecticut, UConn Extension connects the power of UConn research to local issues by creating practical, science-based answers to complex problems. Extension provides scientific knowledge and expertise to the public in areas such […]
Bloomfield PEP Graduates
Congratulations to our UConn Extension People Empowering People (PEP) Bloomfield graduates. The ceremony was on April 6th at the Laurel Elementary School.
On Farm Food Processing
Processing Food for Sale from Your Connecticut On-farm Residential Kitchen Are you a farmer interested in processing jams, jellies, acidified foods (pickles, relishes), or maple syrup from your on-farm residential kitchen? Connecticut regulations allow farmers, using the fruits and vegetables they grow, to manufacture these foods in their home kitchen with the intent to sell them […]
My Connecticut Woods
Middlesex County Extension Center Announces a Year-long Series of Twelve Workshops for Woodland Owners and Nature Lovers called My Connecticut Woods. Workshop #1: Field Trip to a Local Vernal Pool Come join us as the UConn Extension Forestry Team and guest lecturers explore a variety of topics about Connecticut’s natural resources. Each class will begin […]
Land Use Academy Wins Award From CT Planners
CLEAR’s Land Use Academy has won the 2014 Education Award from the Connecticut Chapter of the American Planning Association. The Academy, created in 2007, provides basic training for municipal land use commissioners on roles and responsibilities, legal requirements and site plan reading, as well as advanced training on emerging topics. As we all know, land […]
Jonathan Visits
We’re working on the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) website – and wanted a photo of Jonathan in a search and rescue vest. We had a great visit and photo shoot. Photos: Kevin Noonan for UConn CAHNR.
Litchfield County 4-H Programs
The Litchfield County 4-H Fair Association made up “Birthday Parties in a Bag” which are distributed to shelters and food kitchens. Every child wants a birthday party, and every child should be able to celebrate their birthday. They have been doing this community service project since 2012, when three 4-Hers went to a leadership Conference with Jann […]
Tree Warden Banquet
The Tree Warden’s Association of CT held their 23rd Annual Meeting and Dinner on March 26, 2015. The speaker was Colleen Murphy-Dunning who is Program Director at the Hixon Center for Urban Ecology at Yale (Partnerships for Improved Urban Forest management Presentation). Roy Cavanaugh, Watertown Public Works Director, received an award for his work with […]
Communication Skills with PEP
A UConn Extension People Empowering People (PEP) class in March 2015. Madre Latina Inc., a Community organization from Waterbury visited. We were happy to have them because their experiences and knowledge help us to continue the process of help others. At another class, students made a game out of active listening and communication through crafts. […]
Shellfish Mapping Tool
A new version of the Connecticut Aquaculture Mapping Atlas has been launched at: http://clear3.uconn.edu/aquaculture/. The new and improved website was built based on feedback from shellfish interest groups like yours. The latest version of this interactive map viewer includes new data layers and functions. The viewer includes updated commercial and recreational harvest areas, natural beds, […]
10 Tips for the April Gardener
Purchase onion sets for planting and set 1 inch deep and 4 to 5 inches apart when soil can be worked. Early spring is a great time to spot spray or hand-dig dandelions. If spraying, choose a product that won’t kill grass. If digging, wait until after a rain, when soil is soft. Apply […]
Winter Survival of Insects – the Right Stuff
Photo and article by Pamm Cooper for UConn Extension During the cold New England winter months, we are blissfully ignorant of all the survival drama going on in the natural environment, at least as far as insects are concerned. Out of sight, out of mind, so to speak. While we have heated homes, running […]
CLIR: Forever Learning
By Cathleen Love and Betty Heiss The Center for Learning in Retirement (CLIR) became an UConn Extension program in 2013. CLIR’s mission is to provide meaningful intellectual activities for adults from all walks of life, which closely matches with Extension’s mission to provide the knowledge and expertise of the university through outreach and public […]
PEP Facilitators Impact Communities
UConn Extension People Empowering People (PEP) facilitator Gloria Mora from Danbury Children First speaking at the Parent Trust Fund Rally 2015 at the Capitol in Hartford on Wednesday.
Eating Healthy with UConn Extension
In March, four classrooms of 2nd grade students at Morris Street School in Danbury explored tasting new vegetables like green beans, sugar snap peas, carrots and cauliflower in celebration of National Nutrition Month. Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and UConn Extension Educator Heather Peracchio MS, RDN talked about the importance of eating a variety of different color […]
Winter Vole Damage to Trees and Plants
By Joan Allen for UConn Extension A lot of snow cover during the winter can be both good and bad. Good because it’s beautiful and nice for winter sports. It also insulates overwintering perennial roots from temperature fluctuations and extremes. One of the negative impacts is that the snow provides cover for the activity […]
How to Help the Bees and Other Pollinators
By Carol Quish for UConn Extension Bees are extremely important and responsibly for 75% of the foods we eat every day. There are more than 4,000 species of bees in North America, and about 350 in the Northeast. They include honeybees, bumble bees, mason bees, carpenter bees, sweat bees, orchard bees, and the list goes […]
Managing Landscape Pests
Click here to watch UConn Extension‘s Donna Ellis present at New England Grows on Managing Landscape Pests.
Extension Educator Honored
Boucher Receives 2015 AAUP Service Excellence Award It was recently announced that Jude Boucher will be receiving the Service Excellence Award from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) on April 6th at a ceremony in the Old Appropriations room of the State Capitol building in Hartford. Jude is the Extension Educator for vegetable crops […]
Gardens, gardens, everywhere…
….be sure to grow with food safety in mind By Diane Wright Hirsch, MPH, RD UConn Extension Educator – Food Safety It is hard to believe that spring is just around the corner. Though we in Connecticut were all teased with 35-degree temperatures, we are quickly back in the deep freeze, surrounded by ugly, dirty […]
Congratulations PEP Graduates
Congratulations to our recent UConnExtension People Empowering People (PEP) graduates from Meriden and Putnam. A few graduates are pictured below, but many more were also recognized. 3 out of 5 graduates were able to make it to the graduation in Putnam, due to bad weather. Sherry Curran (far left) read a short description of each grad and what they brought […]
Get Ready to Guac and Roll!
By Catherine Hallisey FoodCorps Connecticut Service Member It all started with me holding up an avocado, screaming enthusiastically, “WHO IS READY TO GUAC AND ROLL?!” Unfortunately, my quirky pun did not elicit the response I had hoped for— instead students started groaning, “ewww that’s green” and “where’s the ranch?!” even “I am not touching that!” Although […]
Nutrition Education Award
Congratulations to UConn Extension‘s Heather Smith Pease, who received citations from the General Assembly and Senator Richard Blumenthal for the nutrition education she does at Hartford Job Corps Academy.
10 Tips for the March Gardener
Make plans to attend the UConn Garden Conference on March 19, 2015. Go to http://2015garden.uconn.edu Send your soil sample to the UConn Soil Nutrient Analysis Laboratory before April 1st to avoid the spring rush. Add limestone, fertilizer or organic materials as recommended but wait until mid-April to fertilize the lawn. Start seeds of annual flowers […]