Extension Council Members We want communities and farmers to thrive, and families and children to be healthy. And eventually we want to turn the world over to the next generation better than we found it.

Poweshiek County

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach connects the needs of Iowans with Iowa State University research and resources. We are working with the people of Poweshiek County for what we all want: a strong Iowa.

Extension Council

Every Iowa county has an elected extension council that guides local educational programming by partnering with staff. From needs assessment through program implementation and evaluation of outcomes, the council represents the issues and people of the county. We have identified these local issues as priority topics for current and future programming:

Agriculture and Natural Resources Community and Economic Development Health and Well-Being K-12 Youth Outreach

Community and Economic Development

The Poweshiek Leadership Program represents a dynamic group of individuals who represent a cross section of the community and bring diverse strengths to a program that is held annually. The program started in 2005-2006 with the partnership of Iowa Valley Community College, Imagine Grinnell, POWI80 and Poweshiek County Extension. This program has 450 alumni and continues to be a program that continues to grow. This program starts in September and continues through May. One session occurs every month and a fundraising event is held in May that is organized by the graduating class. The goals of the program are: Unite emerging leaders from diverse backgrounds and perspectives, increase participants’ knowledge and understanding of county issues, broaden a collective vision of a better county-wide community, enhance each individual’s ability to lead. There were 20 members in the 2016-2017 class. These people are able to attend this program because of the sponsorship of their business or organization that they are part of.

Melissa Doty Council Chair

Dane Lang Council Vice President J.O. Parker Council Secretary

Mike Geiger Council Treasurer Liz Roberts Council Co-Treasurer

Dan Doty Council Member

Corey Latcham Council Member

Gina McKeag-Hall Council Member

Janet Dimit Council Member

New Local Programs

The ISU PrISUm Car stopped at the Drake Community Library in Grinnell in June which was attended by over 75 residents.

Row by Row JR. is a program that our

local quilt stores supported to create an interest in sewing. The youth went with an adult to each store to purchase a kit to sew a row for the 5 row quilt. The Poweshiek County Extension Office has offered a session every other month to sew one of these rows. These quilts will be completed by spring of 2018.

The Growing Up Wild –Exploring Nature

curriculum was developed by a partnership of agencies with experience in nature education. Human Sciences Family Life Specialists attended training to become certified trainers of this curriculum. Poweshiek County Extension then received a grant to support brining the training locally. Recruitment efforts were targeted at childcare providers, preschool teachers, early elementary teachers and Clover Kid leaders. Nineteen participants attended the four-hour Growing Up Wild session at the Foster Center near Montezuma. During the session the participants were given background on the importance of getting children outside exploring nature, experienced some hands-on nature activities, were introduced to the Growing Up Wild resource book, experienced a more in depth look at an activity from the resource book, and learned more about the community resources available to them.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

The Lynnville Ag Marketing Club was formed to help farmers and producers do a better job economically through marketing, risk management and agronomy skills. This club holds meetings once a month from November through March. In 2018, they presented sessions by Steve Johnson, ISU Extension Farm Management Specialist, Ray Jenkins, ISU Extension Crop Specialist, Steve Bohr, Iowa Farmer Today, Elwynn Taylor, ISU Extension Climatologist, Sean McMahon, Iowa Water Alliance, Chris Barron, Ag View Solutions, LLC, and Ken Ferrie, Farm Journal and Crop Tech Agronomist.

This club has numerous partnerships with local banks, ag organizations and businesses, and commodity groups. An Ag Appreciation Day was held in August in Grinnell by the Lions Club. This is an annual event to recognize agriculture and gather local appreciation for the industry. ISU Extension and Outreach was represented by John Lawrence, interim Vice-President, Wendy Wintersteen, then Dean of the College of Ag and Life Sciences and now the President of Iowa State University, and Bob Dodds, assistant vice-president for County Services. Both Dr. Lawrence and President Wintersteen spoke to the crowd. The Poweshiek Master Gardeners and Imagine Grinnell formed a partnership to apply for the 2017 ISU Master Gardener Mini Grant for Growing Together and received $5,000 to develop gardens on an acre of property located within the Grinnell City limits called Marvin Gardens. Raised beds, fruit orchards, nut trees, and berry bushes were planted. The food that is produced on this site is used for low income families. There is a stand on the property for people to pick up produce or it is delivered to the Food Pantry. Also, this garden is part of the Caring Gardens program in Grinnell. Marvin Gardens produced over 500 pounds of food to be given to families in Poweshiek County this year.

The Poweshiek County 4-H Program had 11

active 4-H community clubs and 4 after school

clubs with 30 adult volunteers and 208 active youth.

K-12 Youth Outreach

Progressive Ag Safety Day - 270 youth and 20 teachers from the Grinnell-Newburg 3rd and 4th grades attended this annual event in May at the Poweshiek County Fairgrounds. Participants rotated through 10 different safety stations presented by Monsanto, Van Wall Implement, Poweshiek Conservation, Kubota, Iowa DNR, I-CASH and Iowa Agricultural Safety. Each participant received a rural safety book and a tree to plant. Lunch was provided by Poweshiek County Farm Bureau. This event was made possible by the generous support of local organizations, businesses and the Grinnell-Newburg FFA who together provided 25 volunteers.

Entrepreneur for a Day (E4D) is a business program that teaches basic entrepreneurial skills. This program was offered to 5th and 6th graders within the communities of Poweshiek County. Local entrepreneurs are invited to attend the second session of this program to share their business plans and answer questions from the youth. 6th graders from Montezuma are also invited to take a field trip to visit businesses to see work places in action.

FIRST Lego League - 3 first year teams competed in the Animal Allies competition in the fall. Each team received financial support from Monsanto, John Deere and Rockwell-Collins. EV3 Robotics - 5 week courses were held in Grinnell and Montezuma to further enhance young people’s knowledge of robotics.

Babysitting Basics - 30 5th-8th grade youth were trained in babysitting throughout 6 week courses offered in Brooklyn, Montezuma, and Grinnell. This year a Poweshiek Alliance Grant was received to purchase 8 Lateral CPR babies. STEM Festival - Held in Brooklyn for K-6 graders. There were 12 stations for youth to participate in or see STEM in action. Stations were presented by John Deere, Grinnell Medical Hospital, Monsanto, Blank Park Zoo, University of Iowa Hospitals, Ellsworth College, Iowa State University Extension, and Manatt’s.

The Poweshiek County Clover Kids Program served over 190 Kindergarten-3rd grade youth in an after school setting. Programs were held at Bailey Park Elementary School in Grinnell, Montezuma School in

Montezuma and BGM Elementary School in Brooklyn. Each group met once a month October through April. The program is funded in Grinnell with United Way funds. Sessions are led by volunteer presenters from local organizations including Nutrients for Life, Monsanto, and Poweshiek County Conservation.

In June, the after school Clover Kids program ends with a day damp at Diamond Lake in Montezuma.

There are Clover Kids also being served by our 4-H Community Clubs.

Over 850 youth received education programs from the outreach programs during 2017.

County Extension Staff

Iowa State University Extension and Outreach does not discriminate on the basis of age,

disability, ethnicity, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, national origin, pregnancy,

race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, or status as a U.S. veteran. (Not all

prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies may be

directed to Ross Wilburn, Diversity Officer, 2150 Beardshear Hall, 515 Morrill Road, Ames, Iowa

50011, 515-294-1482, wilburn@iastate.edu.

ISU Extension and Outreach Poweshiek County PO Box 70 Montezuma, IA 50171 641.623.5188 www.extension.iastate.edu/poweshiek

Cathy Lents Executive Director

Tammy Sutfin Program Assistant

Ashley Wenke 4-H and Youth Outreach Educator

Vickie Beyer Office Assistant

Health and Well Being

Food Preservation 101 was attended by 10 community members at the Grinnell United Methodist Church. As a result of this program, it was decided to schedule a Preserve the Taste of Summer (PTTS) Workshop the following summer. A cooperative effort among Poweshiek County Staff and Nutrition and Wellness Specialists led to the offering of group online lesson viewings to allow individuals the opportunity to complete the online lessons in a group setting prior to attending the hands-on workshop. In June 2017, a PTTS Pressure Canning Workshop was held at the Grinnell United Methodist Church and delivered by Human Sciences Nutrition and Wellness Specialists, Rachel Wall and Sara Sprouse. Each of the youth were able to prepare and process their own jars of carrots and green beans using a pressure canner to take to the fair as projects. One of the youth’s canning project was selected to go to the Iowa State Fair and received a blue ribbon. Another workshop focusing on Salsa Making, Boiling Water Bath Canning, and Freezing was held in August 2017 at the Grinnell United Methodist Church and delivered by Human Sciences Nutrition and Wellness Specialists, Rachel Wall and Sara Sprouse. This program was supported with funds from the ISU Mini-Grant that was awarded to Poweshiek County Master Gardeners and Imagine Grinnell.

Community and Economic Development Continued

The Poweshiek County VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) was brought back to the county after a year of not offering it. Poweshiek County Extension with 8 volunteers from the Grinnell Community were able to serve 45 low income families this past year with the program. Scheduling is done by calling the Poweshiek County Extension office and the volunteers meet with clients at the Drake Community Library in Grinnell. This program is offered on Saturdays starting in February and goes through the month of March. The program is supported with funds from the IRS and DHS.