The first day I began as a county 4-H Extension Agent was January 23, 2010. As I began my new adventure with WVU Extension Service, my guiding principle for all that I accomplish was and continues to be this desired outcome: youth led by knowledgeable caring adults learn and grow positively so that ultimately youth become caring and skilled members involved in their communities. Now in my fourth year, I have begun to reap some of the benefits from my previous three years of successful efforts.
The summer camping season peaks with five summer day camp opportunities, up from three in 2010. Day camps offered an affordable but quality learning environment for younger youth. Each year Kanawha County provides two residential camps serving roughly 160 youth. The number of residential campers increased from 150 in 2010 to 164 in 2013. Continued efforts to provide quality programming through community partners such as afterschool providers, schools, and youth-serving organizations provide fruitful results. 4-H community clubs continue to see slow but diverse growth as there are three specialty clubs and five traditional clubs. Science programming is provided weekly at three afterschool programs; nutrition education is provided at twenty elementary schools yearly; two Energy Express sites served 40 youth; Heath Rocks! was integrated into camping, schools, outdoor classroom, and afterschool programming; and the Choose to Change research project began its third year.
Faculty Assignment Goal #1: To increase the capacity of youth, adults and families to make informed, science-based decisions which prevent chronic disease and maintain healthy weight status through physical activities and intake of nutrient-dense foods.
Having children lear...
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...hood or environmental education journal. I remain an active co-investigator on the Health Rocks!® team. My scholarly work included a published Global Skill-a-Thon that has been submitted to be peer reviewed by the 4-H National Council.
I have met the goals outlined because of my continuous diligence and exceptional performance throughout the year. I have, in my humble opinion, exceeded the substantial qualifications for teaching, service and research as set forth by my Faculty Assignment Document. I am pleased to be part of the West Virginia University Extension Service and was honored to receive the 2013 WVSE4-HA and NAE4-HA North East awards for Urban Programming for an individual. As 2013 comes to a close, I am proud of my excellent accomplishments and quality contributions to 4-H and look forward to creating additional programming for youth in West Virginia.
I am very honored to have been part of this organization for the 2013-2014 school year and I plan to participate next year as well. At the end of the event I always feel so inspired and ready to make even more a difference in the lives of others, whether through volunteering, my future profession, or other organization at the University of Northern Iowa. I have learned so much from the Miracle Kiddos and their families, and plan to carry those life lessons with me as I pursue a career in the exercise/health science field.
Tibbetts, John. "Environmental Health Perspectives." January 2006. Louisiana-A lesson in Nature Appreciation Vol. 114, Number 1. 4 December 2010 .
Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2011). Population health and issues in disease prevention. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Obesity is a rising problem in the United States. With obesity rates on the rise something must be done to prevent this massive issue. There are ways to help including educating at young ages, improving nutrition facts at restaurants, and providing more space for citizens to get physically active.
This day and age people are living longer with respect to various factors, for example, technology and evidence based practice which guide practices, in order to deliver safe and effective health care. However, many young adults are developing diseases that were once confined to adults. The prevalence of childhood obesity is rising and so is the steady incline of comorbidities in young adults. Education is perhaps one of the best options that can either control or prevent the rising rates of childhood obesity. The presentation was taught at a local recreation center where there are programs for people of all ages. My intended audience was adolescents, because they need to be educated about childhood obesity and health issues it may cause. This can prevent or control the obesity rates and in turn reduce cormorbidities that are associated with obesity.
“Healthy People provides science-based, 10-year national objectives for improving the health of all Americans.” ( United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Healthy People 2020 , 2011). It acts as a national guide for disease prevention and health promotion. There are various objectives and goals which serve as the guideline to achieve overall improvement in health . ‘Educational and Community-Based Programs’ is one of them. According to U.S Department of Health and Human Services the main goal of these programs is to “Increase the quality, availability, and effectiveness of educational and community-based programs designed to prevent disease and injury, improve health, and enhance quality of life.” (HHS, Healthy People 2020, 2011). This particular goal of Healthy People 2020 focuses on increasing the number educational and community based programs to increase awareness about disease prevention and health among every individual of the society. It focuses on educating them on various topics including chronic diseases, substance abuse, prevention of injury and violence to encourage and enhance health. It emphasizes on increasing the quantity and quality of such programs so that a larger population could benefit from the program and gain effective knowledge to achieve a healthy life.
Our future begins with the children of today growing up to be the adults of tomorrow. “Childhood obesity is the condition of being overweight or severely overweight which causes risks to health between the age of 2 and 19” (“Childhood Obesity”). Childhood obesity is taking a huge toll on not only the physical standpoint of the child, but also their mental stability. Childhood obesity is no longer a concern with Americans; it’s now a problem that has spiraled out of control in the world. Obesity will never be resolved one hundred percent, but it’s the little impacts that concerned citizens bring to people’s attention that make the difference. One step in the right directions is better than not taking a step at all. Along with the many health issues associated with childhood obesity, there are three major effects that seem to stand out more around the world; the food we subject our bodies to, setting a pattern for the next generation(s), and it contributes to a child not reaching his or her full potential in life.
"The increased prevalence of overweight and obesity particularly among children and adolescents is a severe public health problem" (Bray, 2005). According to our text, health education and health promotion are recognized increasingly as ways to meet public health objectives and improve the success of public health and medical interventions around the world (Gollust, 2014).
We want to solve the problem by helping kids and adults each healthier by making healthier lifestyle choices when it comes to eating. We also want to also increase physical activity of children and adolescents. I believe with the proper diet and exercise we can help decrease the obesity issue in this country that has grown so much in the past two decades. These steps are vital to helping prevent childhood obesity and even kids who currently suffer from childhood obesity. Since the 1970’s approximately 15 percent of children and adolescents are now overweight. "Prevent Childhood Obesity-Get Your Kids Moving!" Prevent Childhood Obesity-Get Your Kids Moving!
Sabogal, R (2010) Global Environmental Health : Sustainability. Journal of Environmental Health, 73 (3) p26-28.
Having spent the better part of six summers hiking, cooking, orienteering, and practicing archery on the trails of Huddart Park, California, summer camp became a very precious time of my life. When I entered high school, I began working as a Unit Aide at my camp which meant I had the privilege to now teach young girls a whole slew of tasks such as survival skills, first aid, and knife skills. While attending Woodside Priory High School, I heard about similar activities such as archery and overnights that Mountain Camp counselors hosted. Chris Gregory encouraged me to look into the camp and see if it was something I might take interest in, and I soon discovered that it definitely captured my attention. I adore working with kids and would especially
Educational institutions have the potential to, first and foremost, educate and assist the young people of today with making the positive, healthful choices necessary to maintain good health. Over 4,500 students have been followed in recent research studies and these “thousands of sixth graders who participated in a school-based health program were less obese by eighth grade than a group of similar children who did not, according to a new study done for the National Institutes of Health” (Rabin). Schools need to create health programs focused on assisting all children suffering from being overweight or obese. Policies such as fitness programs, nutrition classes, and healthful meals can even impact every student by creating a strong foundation and awareness of the negative, long term effects associated with practicing unhealthy habits. Although the financial expenses would be necessary, the adaption of scho...
... support and we had something in our hearts and minds that told us that we could do it. So just remember, this school board, business owners and our valuable partners believe in you and want you to reach all of your dreams! We 're counting on you to be that next generation to take over all that we 're doing. So you got to be qualified, you got to be prepared, you got to be hungry, and you got to take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way. Board members, you are raising the next generation up to be great! With your dedication to the CTE programs we 're only getting started. Now that you all have a better understanding of what CTE is and how important it is, I want to thank you so much for being here on behalf of our young people. Put your heads together; let 's figure out what more we can do to keep these kids moving in the right direction. Thank you all.
There are plenty of people that do not pay close attention to the nutrition labels on food or do not understand what’s in the food that we eat. If we are expecting the parents, adults, or some of the children to be healthy and are not able to read the nutrition label, how can we expect them to have healthy lifestyles? In order for this new generation be healthy and active. We need to provide them with the support and resources they need. In order, to have a healthy routine. We should be able to offer the support that needs to be able to receive a better outcome for our future generations and as well as the current one.
Let me begin by saying that I am very honored to be addressing the County High School Class of 2012 as students of this institution for the last time. We've spent these last four years creating some serious memories: four years of chieftain power, leaking roofs, questionable Homecoming skits, and musical principals. Four years of good teachers, bad teachers, new teachers, old teachers. Four years of youth, music, growing up and breaking free. Four rubber chickens, four yearbooks, four ASB presidents and four chubby bunnies.