A recent move to more spacious quarters in West Philadelphia means residents will have easier access to Penn State Cooperative Extension resources and programs.
Many people don't know a lot about Extension and what it has to offer, says John Byrnes, county extension educator. "Our move to the Philadelphia Outreach Center gives local residents easy access to the resources and expertise of Penn State University. We offer interactive educational programs and provide publications and answers to questions on a wide variety of topics."
Penn State has Extension and Outreach centers in almost all 67 Pennsylvania counties to help people learn and solve problems of every day life. According to Byrnes, the Philadelphia Outreach Center offers programs for children, youth and families. 4-H programs enrich the lives of community youth and help them acquire life skills such as personal development, problem solving and decision making, managing resources, and how to communicate and develop relationships with other people.
Nutrition programs teach youth and adults how to make healthy food choices for preparing nutritious meals and snacks. "Food handlers receive Serv-safe certification," Byrnes explains.
Horticulture programs teach youth and their families how to grow and maintain vegetable gardens, ornamental trees, shrubs and flowers and turf. They learn about natural resources and how to use them wisely in the garden and landscape. Programs are taught by Master Gardeners, certified volunteers who support the program in the community.
Field-based educators work closely with Penn State faculty and staff to support a variety community and economic development programs. These educational programs are designed to meet the diverse needs of our communities, while maintaining a high standard of quality, professionalism, and objectivity," Byrnes explains.
The Outreach Center is also home to the Philadelphia School and Community IPM Partnership (PSCIP). "We work with local residents, neighborhood organizations and schools to educate and empower them to safely manage pests such as roaches, rats and mice in their homes and schools," says Michelle Niedermeier, PSCIP coordinator with the Pennsylvania IPM Program. "Our focus is on their health, especially pests and pesticides that can trigger asthma, she explains. IPM, or integrated pest management, is a way of controlling pests by outsmarting them and combining the tactics that are most effective, including prevention and alternatives to pesticides.
High school students and their parents can also find out more about what Penn State has to offer to obtain an undergraduate degree. Penn State offers more than 250 majors and has campuses all over the state.
The Philadelphia Outreach Center is located at the Kirkbride Center, 111 N. 49th Street, Suite KN3-100, 3rd Floor North, Philadelphia, PA 19139. For more information, contact them at (215) 471-2200, or visit their Web sites at http:// www.pscip.org and http://philadelphia.extension.psu.edu/.
Penn State Cooperative Extension provides nonformal outreach educational opportunities to individuals, families, businesses, and communities throughout Pennsylvania. Its mission is to maintain a competitive and environmentally sound food and fiber system and to prepare youth, adults and families to enhance the quality of their lives and participate more fully in community decisions. For more information, see Web site http://www.extension.psu.edu/.
For more information contact Kristie Auman-Bauer
Email: kma147@psu.edu
Phone: 814-865-2839
http://www.paipm.org