WSU Skagit County Extension staff briefed the Skagit County Board of Commissioners Jan. 28 on a suite of county-supported programs spanning agriculture, nutrition education and community health. Don McMoran (WSU Skagit County Extension) led the quarterly update and introduced staff and collaborators who described programming and funding needs.

Shauna Beese of Whatcom County Extension described a rural neighborhood development project that adapts tools used in urban and suburban research for rural contexts; she said the work studies "how trust is built within that community" and that a core survey and interviews are being tested across six counties including Skagit.

Don McMoran and staff highlighted staffing changes (the retirements of long-time employees Beth Meengan and Dorothy Elsner and the addition of grants coordinator Rosa Cantu) and thanked the commissioners for full funding this year, including for a forestry program featuring Kevin Zobris.

Esther Carpenter, SNAP‑Ed program coordinator at WSU Extension, gave details on SNAP‑Ed activities in Skagit County. She described direct education in elementary and middle schools, indirect education such as resource events and food demonstrations at food banks, and policy-systems-environment (PSE) work to make healthy food and physical activity more accessible. Carpenter said SNAP‑Ed is federally funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture through Food and Nutrition Service and implemented at the state level by Washington State University and the Department of Health.

Ebert Rivera described bilingual technical assistance for Latino and Spanish-speaking farmers. Rivera said extension staff help producers apply for grants and loans (including USDA and state programs), assist with organic certification paperwork and reporting, provide on-site interpretation, and support farmers participating in soil-health trials and market connections. He said the program is managing roughly 25 cases and helping farmers access about $35,000 in funding through various grant programs.

Diane Smith, family and consumer sciences specialist, summarized public health and food-waste prevention initiatives, including a worm-bin pilot, community education that reached thousands, and a planned April food-waste prevention week. Smith also said Skagit County is among two Washington counties selected to pilot a climate steward certificate program from UC California.

Don McMoran closed by inviting commissioners and the public to upcoming events including the Skagit Ag Summit on Feb. 7 (WSU Northwest REC), workshops through February and March, and outreach tied to farm safety and farmer support. Several presenters noted a temporary USDA grant freeze affecting grant timelines.

Commissioners thanked the extension staff for programming that supports agriculture, small farms and community health and noted the outreach and translation services that improve access for Spanish-speaking residents and producers.