Our Impact
Making A Difference in Our County
University of Georgia Cooperative Extension is working hard for its constituents. The following are examples of Extension’s impact in the county over the past year.
4-H YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
4-H Helps Increase Student Connections to Life Science Standard
Summary: Colquitt County 4-H staff have strong partnership with public and private schools. Teachers at a local middle school expressed that students usually have difficulty in understanding the Interdependence of Life portion of the 7th Grade Life Science Standards. With some help from the staff at Reed Bingham State Park, other staff within the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, the ABAC Fishing Team, and UGA’s Invasive Species Department, the 4-H agent and staff organized a hands-on learning experience for the 7th grade students by turning an experience as a state park into an outdoor classroom.
Situation: The teachers at WJW Middle School were looking for hands-on learning that would further develop the students understanding of their 7th Grade Science Standards. The Colquitt County 4-H staff researched options and plans were developed to meet the teachers’ and students’ needs in struggling with Ecology.
Response: The Colquitt County 4-H team designed lessons focused on the Life Science standards, specifically the Interdependence of Life section. The goal is to help students make connections with the standards by being able to see first-hand how a certain environment requires different levels of dependence among species to thrive. 4-H Staff developed a booklet for students to use and answer questions as they rotated through different stations at Reed Bingham.
Results/Impact: There were approximately 90 students attending the fieldtrip. They were able to make connections with what they were learning in their science classrooms. They learned first-hand how organisms depend on each other for survival. Some of the students experienced some new outdoor activities for the very first time. The science teacher took the booklets for a grade. As the school year is still progressing, there are no results yet from testing. It is hopeful that scores will go up on the Ecology portion of tests. The science teacher believes this should be offered for the entire 7th grade on an annual basis.
All collaborators in the delivery of instruction are very willing to continue with more experiential learning opportunities led by 4-H. The Colquitt County 4-H team will offer additional 4-H Life Science experience at Reed Bingham State Park in Spring 2023.
FAMILY AND CONSUMER SCIENCES
Free tax preparation through the Colquitt County Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS) Volunteer Income tax assistance program (VITA) program continues to serve the community. All programs would not be possible without the support of the Extension staff, community partners, and volunteers. In 2020 VITA served 56 Georgians in six weeks and brought a total of $33,612 into Colquitt County while reducing predatory lending, scamming (particularly of high-risk populations) and offered financial education on savings to participants. Financial education and support extended through the COVID-19 pandemic with classes, information sessions, and support for the CARES Act, stimulus payments, and eligibility requirements. Likewise, during the shutdown, the Colquitt County FACS Agent paired with another UGA FACS agent to revise the When Your Income Drops financial curriculum package that FACS offers monthly to the Colquitt County Department of Labor (DOL) clients. This revised and updated curriculum package will serve not only Colquitt County residents but Georgians statewide.
In spite of dramatic programming alterations due to public health concerns, the Colquitt County FACS agent taught four ServSafe Manager courses in-person certifying 18 ServSafe Managers and training all School Nutrition Managers requiring certification for the Colquitt County School System. This remains a beneficial partnership with the Department of Public Health, and key program for Colquitt County food service establishments to meet food safety and regulatory compliance ensuring safe eating experiences for Colquitt county residents and visitors.
AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES
Managing root-knot nematodes in Colquitt County cotton.
Summary: The yield data from the 5 on-farm trials indicated no statistical differences in treatments. The disease pressure was low during these field experiments. The fungicide applications cost an average of $15.00 per acre. If growers plant a hybrid that has good disease resistance in a low disease environment then Colquitt County corn growers could potentially save around $105,000 by not applying at plant fungicides.
Situation: Foliar diseases cost Georgia corn growers over $5 million dollars in 2019. Colquitt County historically has grown 5,000 to 7,000 acres of corn every year. Growers were asking about the using fungicides in furrow and early post emerge (V7-V8) and if that would increase corn yields. The Agent implemented grower directed applied field research to evaluate the use of corn fungicides to increase yields and profit.
Response: Colquitt County Extension Agent initiated numerous on farm research trials to evaluate the potential of applying early season fungicides to corn and increase yields. These on-farm trials were conducted at the Sunbelt Ag Expo with the help of Dr. Bob Kemerait, UGA Plant Pathologist.
Impact: The yield data from the 5 on-farm trials indicated no statistical differences in treatments. The disease pressure was low during these field experiments. The fungicide applications cost an average of $15.00 per acre. If growers plant a hybrid that has good disease resistance in a low disease environment then Colquitt County corn growers could potentially save around $105,000 by not applying at plant fungicides.