This introduction to urban Extension provides resources to improve awareness of urban Extension context for all university Extension personnel, colleagues, volunteers, advocates, and partners.
The purpose of this information is not to minimize the value of Extension’s good work and impact in rural and suburban communities, but to increase Extension impact in urban areas through improved knowledge of the urban context and a framework for strategic approaches.
Being a part of the city is a privilege for faculty and staff working with land-grant and other metropolitan and urban serving universities. Metropolitan communities are filled with unique opportunities for teaching, research, outreach, and communications. Urban Extension engages multiple people who share the commitment to the quality of life in urban communities, including urban Extension personnel, urban university colleagues, volunteers, advocates, and partners.
Urban Extension Introductory Guide (3-page downloadable PDF)
Urban Extension Outreach: A Conversation with Dr. Julie Fox - a video interview for the Joint Council of Extension Professionals (9 minutes)
Learn About
Extension is the land-grant university's community-based catalyst for co-discovery and community engagement. Extension engages in work that is sometimes similar to agencies, nonprofits, and the private sector, however, the focus is unique because of the triple mission of land-grant universities.
- Teaching and Learning
- Research and Innovation
- Extension and other community engagement
With federal, state, and local support, Extension professionals work collaboratively with university colleagues and local partners on community priorities – leveraging the resources of vast networks to be relevant locally, responsive statewide, and recognized nationally. For more than 100 years, Extension has addressed contemporary issues with research-based information and respectful community engagement. Worldwide, Extension organizations have long played a vital role in advancing human well-being, technology transfer, and community development in more than 100 countries. In the United States, Extension links research and education with local communities through the land-grant university network and collaborative partners.
Video INTRODUCTION TO UNIversity Extension context
4 minutes
Densely populated areas present unique challenges and opportunities for Extension and other community-based organizations. Extension addresses the population shift in the United States and refers to one or more of the following terms for urban, metro, or city Extension.
- Metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas (metro and micro areas) are geographic entities delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for use by Federal statistical agencies in collecting, tabulating, and publishing federal statistics.
- Urban Influence Codes form a classification scheme that distinguishes metropolitan counties by population size of their metro area, and non-metropolitan counties by size of the largest city or town and proximity to metro and micropolitan areas.
- The Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification is fundamentally a delineation of geographical areas, identifying both individual urban areas and the rural areas of the nation.
Agencies and organizations may also have specific guidelines, but the common essence is the densely populated geographic area, defined as urban context in this guide.
Due to the scale, diversity, and complexity of large metropolitan areas, Extension's work is similar and different when compared with Extension professionals working in rural and suburban areas. One of the unique aspects for urban Extension professionals is that many have not had an Extension experience as a client; and it's common to work alongside colleagues and volunteers who may or may not be familiar with Extension.
Urban-Suburban-Rural Interdependencies: Various indicators demonstrate a dynamic flow of people and other resources throughout all geographic areas along the urban and rural continuum. Extension recognizes that many people live in one county, work in another, and enjoy recreation and tourism in other counties.
The National Urban Extension Leaders (NUEL) published a National Framework for Urban Extension. In fall 2018, NUEL representatives presented Why Urban Matters to Our Future Success and a National Urban Extension Initiative Implementation Plan at the National Extension Directors and Administrators (NEDA) and Cooperative Extension Section (CES) business meeting.
Video INtroduction to Extension engagement with Urban communities
(9 minutes)
Q. Is Extension just for agriculture?
A. While food, agriculture, the environment, and natural resources are important aspects of Extension, other dimensions include community development, health, and youth through 4-H youth development. With a community-based approach, Extension reflects local priorities.
Q. Why do cities need Extension when there are so many other resources available?
A. Extension partners with others in the community to bring unique resources available exclusively through the land-grant university network – adding to and not replacing or duplicating efforts to address the city's most pressing issues. Sometimes, Extension takes the lead and other times, Extension contributes to impacts in other meaningful ways.
Q. What are some examples and best practices of urban Extension?
A. The Journal of Extension (JOE) and the Journal of Human Sciences and Extension (JHSE) document many examples of urban Extension in a variety of impact areas. The Urban Extension Library hosts a collection of Extension journal resources, urban Extension conference proceedings, and academic resources.
Resources
-The U.S. Land-Grant University System: An Overview
-Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU), Cooperative Extension
-Cooperative Extension System (CES), in partnership with NIFA
-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) History
-The National Sea Grant College Program
-NASA initiated the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Project, also known as Space Grant, in 1989
-Hispanic-serving agricultural colleges and universities (HSACUs)
-Association for International Agricultural and Extension Education (AIAEE)
-Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals (ANREP)
-Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities (APLU)
-Epsilon Sigma Phi (ESP)
-Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP)
-Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN)
-Extension Master Gardener
-Extension Risk Management Education
-Extension Foundation
-Joint Council of Extension Professionals (JCEP)
-Journal of Extension (JOE)
-Journal of Human Sciences and Extension (JHSE), (2 urban-themed issues)-National 4-H Council
-National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals
(NACDEP)
-National Association of County Agriculture Agents (NACAA)
-National Association of Extension 4-H Youth Development Professionals (NAE4-HYDP)
-National Association of Extension Program & Staff Development Professionals (NAEPSDP)
-National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (NEAFCS)
-National Extension Climate Initiative (NECI)
-National Extension Conference on Volunteerism (NECV)
-National Extension Directors and Administrators (NEDA)
-National Extension Relationship & Marriage Education Network
-National Extension Technology Community (NETC)
-National Extension Tourism (NET) network
-National Urban Extension Leaders (NUEL)
-National Urban Extension Timeline
-The Extension and Research Support Staff Association (TERSSA)
-The Western Center for Metropolitan Research and Extension - soon to become National Urban Research and Extension Center (NUREC)
Population Density and Diversity
-The Census Bureau’s urban-rural classification is a delineation of geographic areas
-The United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) delineates metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas according to published standards that are applied to Census Bureau data
-Economic Research Service (ERS), U.S. Department of Agriculture
Urban Influence Codes
Rural-Urban Continuum Codes
-National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), Urban-Rural Classification, based on the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) delineation of metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) and micropolitan statistical areas
Government Community
-National Association of Counties (NACo) Large Urban County Caucus
-The National League of Cities (NLC)
University, Extension, and Academic Community
-National Urban Extension Leaders (NUEL)
-Epsilon Sigma Phi, affinity group
-Urban Affairs Association
-Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities (CUMU)
-Coalition of Urban Serving Universities (public, urban research universities)
Urban Community Data and Partners
-Urban Institute
-Bloomberg City Lab in partnership with Aspen Institute
-Brookings Metro
-MetroLab Network
-National Urban League
-Urban Affairs Association
-Urban Communications Foundation
-Urban Research Network
Global Urban Community
-New Urban Agenda
-World Urban Forum