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.
Agriculture and Natural Resources: Sydni Ingram
The Agriculture & Natural Resourcs Agent, Sydni Ingram, collaborated with the UGA Extension Sustainability Specialist and Gentian Creek in 2025 to apply for funding from the Middle South Georgia Soil and Water Conservation District. The educational grant was awarded to help establish more native plant species on the Gentian Creek Preserve to educate children on the importance of native plant protection and associated food webs. Dr. Singleton and the agent also plan to collect data on emergence and establishment to help educate foresters and row crop growers on how they can improve sustainability in their operations in 2026.
Family & Consumer Sciences: Olivia Tumlin
Through chronic disease prevention programs, the FACS Agent impacted the behavior of both adults and youth. Every student in kindergarten through fifth grade (4,000+) heard from the FACS Agent about trying new nutritious foods through newsletters, videos, and recipe sampling. The FACS agent also kicked off a year-long diabetes prevention program for adults at risk of developing diabetes. This program is proven to help participants reduce the risk factors for multiple chronic diseases.
4-H Youth Development: Cindy Wynn and Maria Bassham
The youth in Thomas County need more opportunities to develop intellectual, emotional and social skills so that they are more open to challenge and discovery. Cloverleaf Project Achievement provides opportunities for youth to develop those skills but because of a lack of resources, including funds, time and transportation, city school students have not been able to participate in after-school CPA practice held at the county extension office. Extension staff coordinated with Thomasville City Schools and Scott Elementary School to implement in-school Cloverleaf DPA practices to increase student participation. Sixteen 5th grade students submitted essays for CPA and attended in-school work shops and practices. Twelve of those students attended CPA competition in a neighboring county. At the conclusion of the event, a subset of participants completed a questionnaire. 70% of the respondents indicated that they agreed or strongly agreed that they would not have been able to participate in Cloverleaf Project Achievement if the practices were held at the 4-H office after school. 90% of respondents indicated Cloverleaf Project Achievement made them feel more confident in their public speaking abilities or performing arts skills. 80% of respondents strongly agree that they plan to participate in DPA again this year. One participant commented, “I liked getting to practice in school because it helped me feel more confident. I did it because it sounded fun, and it was fun.” Another student remarked, “I didn’t really want to do it at first when I found out that I would have to get up on stage and dance by myself but when the other students said that they would do it, I decided to try.” One other student stated, “I liked doing CPA because it made me feel important and confident. I was very scared, but it does not matter if you win or not, it matters how you feel. And I also liked it because two of our teachers came and our principal came to the competition.” The Thomas County 4-H Program has since been invited to program with two other elementary schools in the Thomasville City School System. In 2025, Thomas County hosted Southwest District's Cloverleaf District Project Achievement.