CEFS Staff Honored for Outreach and Engagement Efforts

April 28, 2015: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Raleigh, NC:  Several NC State-based staff from the Center for Environmental Farming Systems were honored recently for their outreach and engagement efforts.  Awards were presented at the annual NC State Outreach and Engagement Awards Celebration on April 13.

NC Choices Program Manager Sarah Blacklin was presented with the NC Association of Cooperative Extension Specialists Outstanding Subject Matter Program by an Individual Award for her exceptional work developing Women Working in the Meat Business programming.  NC Choices is a CEFS initiative that promotes the advancement of local, niche, and pasture-based meat supply chains in North Carolina. Over the last several years, Blacklin has developed workshops, classes, and seminars exclusively for women working in the meat businesses.

Dr. Dara Bloom, Principal Investigator, was honored with a 2015-2016 University Standing Committee on Extension, Engagement, and Economic Development  Extension Seed Grant  for “Preparing the Field: Expanding Regional Capacity through Development of a Local Foods Non-Credit Professional Development Course”.  CEFS staff Joanna Massey Lelekacs (Co-PI) and Abbey Piner also serve as strategic partners on this grant, along with Carolina Farm Stewardship Association and faculty from Virginia and South Carolina Cooperative Extension. The funding will seed the work to transition a current graduate course curriculum into online, non-credit professional development training that will provide participants with an overview of local food systems research, as well as resources to support translation of research into practice.

Said CEFS Director Dr. Nancy Creamer, “We are honored to have CEFS’ staff recognized in this way and so proud of the work that Sarah, Dara, Joanna, and Abbey are all doing to develop and deliver meaningful local foods programming to the citizens of North Carolina.”