MASTER GARDENERS
The Carson City has a community garden with 28 garden beds total and 25 were rented to Carson City community members. The other 3 are demonstration beds for lessons and learning opportunities. The were 2 orientations held during the year and work community workdays as well. There were 3 workdays between April and October.
Carson City Community Garden held educational talks that were open to the public. 20 different research-based fact sheets were provided to participants. There was one class with 10 participants.
Master Gardener Program is a program for anyone to participate in. There are monthly meetings from January to December with 11 meetings in the past year. There was one Master Gardener Info Hour held with 2 participants. They also participated at the Farmer’s Market for Pollinator week and partnered with Bee City Carson City. Master Gardeners also partnered with Greenhouse Project for a Pollinator Plant Walk where 10 participants were in attendance.
4-H YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
4-H has completed day camps for the summer and will continue through fall and winter. We had our fall festival and participated with a booth at Boonanza in Carson City. Awards night for last year’s accomplishments was Nov 6th at the governor’s mansion.
SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM EDUCATION – SNAP
Extension’s Health and Nutrition department collectively delivered SNAP-Ed programming to 742 limited-resource, SNAP eligible Carson City and Storey County residents through nutrition education, health promotion, policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) approaches. During the 2023-2024 time period, the Health & Nutrition team:
Taught school-aged children at Title I schools about healthy eating and being physically active through evidence-based curricula and other targeted efforts to reduce and prevent childhood obesity. Efforts included nutrition education, fruit and vegetable exposure through tasting events, and supporting student wellness through lunchroom initiatives.
Made direct contact with 1,173 youth in Title 1 elementary schools and community sites:
- Provided classroom-based nutrition education to 158 fourth-grade students, with 1,062 total contact interactions, in two Title 1 Elementary schools: Edith W. Fritsch Elementary and JC Fremont Elementary.
- Provided summer nutrition education to 80 youth participants, with 111 total contact interactions, at local community sites serving limited-resourced youth audiences.
- Supported student wellness by conducting Smarter Lunchroom assessments to support the School Wellness Policy and lunchroom environments in one Title 1 elementary school, reaching 470 students.
- Held a school-wide tasting event, which promoted healthy snack options and showcased nutrient-dense tasting portions of spinach and blood oranges to K-5 students at Edith W. Fritsch Elementary, serving 384 students.
- Through indirect efforts, an estimated of 34 parents of school aged children were reached through monthly nutrition flyer distribution.
- During the 2023-2024 SNAP-Ed program year, 5 community partnerships were established, including two Title 1 elementary schools and Carson City School District Nutrition Services, Chartwells, and the Boys and Girls Club of Western Nevada (Carson City Clubhouse).
NEVADA ECONOMICS ASSESSMET PROJECT (NEAP) ACTIVITES
The Nevada Economic Assessment Project (NEAP) is a statewide program with the mission to develop and maintain an extensive data archive with timely, meaningful, and consistent characteristics and a set of analytical tools used to provide Nevada’s communities with research and analysis of emerging issues through outreach and engagement.
State Parks Visitor Use Surveying
NEAP has partnered with State Parks since early 2022 for visitor use surveying across all 27 State Park locations in Nevada. State Parks staff recruit visitors at each park to take an online survey. The survey gives an extensive look at the visitors’ experience at the park, preferences for future change, and spending on their travels.
The statewide data profile and economic and fiscal impact reports are available online at: https://extension.unr.edu/neap/default.aspx
Rural Housing Baseline Assessments
Housing affordability and availability is an ongoing issue in Nevada. Housing data is often scattered across many sources with varying reliability and consistency, making it challenging to navigate. NEAP and Nevada Rural Housing have worked together since late 2022 with the goal to gather and analyze data to present the current housing situation in the counties and communities across the state. These tools are intended to inform decision-making by local leaders and private partners interested in contributing to rural Nevada's housing solutions.
Data collection and initial analysis has been performed for most counties across the state. Reports and fact sheets will be available by December 2024 for all counties.
Foundational Public Health Services
NEAP and NACO conducted a survey of public health infrastructure across Nevada's rural and frontier counties. A national Foundational Public Health Services (FPHS) framework describes the baseline level of services that should be offered through all governmental health departments. The results of the survey will help guide future public health advocacy and investment, including the development of regional public health services. The survey asks participants to provide expertise, capacity, and implementation ratings for each of the Foundational Areas and Capabilities, and also provide free response on services/programs they know about in each Area and Capability at the county, state, and community partner level.
Statewide report will be available October 2024. County fact sheets will be available by the end of 2024.
Carson City
- Online surveying and in-person community review and verification workshop
In-person workshop January 24, 2024
RADON
The Radon program continues to hold a strong presence in the Carson/Storey county with 5,560 short term testing kits being distributed amongst both counties. 3,656 kits were used and submitted for lab testing. 66% of the tests given out were used by local homes. The Radon program continues to travel the state and teaching about the potential dangers of the element.
