The National Urban Extension Leaders subgroup held its first virtual chat on Friday, May 13 titled, Reimagining Our Future…Together with Urban Extension Leaders. During the 1-hour virtual chat attendees discussed topics on Lessons Learned from the Pandemic, Working in Non-Conventional Spaces, Measuring Impact, and Ten Years from Now.

Key highlights from the Lessons Learned from the Pandemic discussion were that it seems like there is are still adjustments as we transition from virtual back to in-person programming with participants numbers being lower and staff stress at an all-time high. Positives from the pandemic have been that some educational topics have been a draw for new audiences to Extension and virtual programming broadened the reach of Extension. The pandemic forced Extension professionals to be adaptable and accessible. Hybrid educational outreach will remain.

As Extension professionals continue Working in Non-Conventional Spaces, virtual chat participants shared that there is great value in person to person educational delivery. The pandemic also brought to light the unequal access of technical infrastructure to certain communities. Some audiences flourished in virtual formats while others were accessible. It remains important to provide targeted audiences with the tools—educational kits, new equipment and technologies—to succeed.

Virtual chat participants shared powerful ideas for Measuring Impact in Extension by assessing impact usage of new techniques as well as changes in behavior. Participants also shared the importance of short, easy to complete evaluations with open-ended questions, stories and testimonials as well as supportive data to share with stakeholders and decision makers. It’s important to begin with the end in mind.

As Extension professionals look to the future, Ten Years from Now attendees were hopeful that Extension would be well positioned to proactively handle society’s pressing issues using targeted educational programming and partners to build capacity. Participants were hopeful that Extension would be a known as a key partner in providing research-based educational outreach.

Thank you those who were able to join the Connect Extension National Urban Extension Leaders Subgroup’s first virtual chat! We look forward to offering more opportunities to engage through Connect Extension in the future. The virtual chat is archived here.