CSU Extension, Jefferson County strives to meet the needs of our community. We prioritize offerings in the areas of Land, Youth and Community, and welcome people of all backgrounds and identities to participate in our offerings.

Program Assessment Highlights

CSU Extension, Jefferson County 2024 Report

2024 Highlights

• Two Jeffco Specialists selected for President role of state organizations in their field.
• CSUE Jeffco Director has been selected and is participating in Jeffco Leadership year-long program of learning about the county and building connections.
• Jeffco Natural Resources Specialist writing curriculum for the statewide Rocky Mountain Naturalist program- coming soon to CSU Extension!
• 4-H Club Enrollment continues to increase!
  • 49 new/1st year members in 2022-23
  • 52 new/1st year members in 2023-24
  • 60 new/1st year members in 2024-25 – as of 12/20 with a lot of months to go for registration!
• Jeffco Colorado Master Gardener program completed focus groups, surveys, and feedback to discover the needs of the program and volunteers. Implemented changes including community building activities, strengthened communication, simplification of processes, variety in volunteer opportunities, and training are showcasing an improvement in reported positive morale and excitement for the program!
• Celebrated the 50^th anniversary of the 4-H Eagles Nest Owls Roose (ENOR) summer environmental camp.  Eagle’s Nest Owl’s Roost (ENOR) Environmental Discovery camp embarked on outdoor adventures and learning with 236 campers during the summer of 2024. Campers visited 19 unique parks and open spaces, spanning 7 land agencies and recreation districts, giving the campers a broad view of local outdoor recreational opportunities. Eighty percent of campers stated on post-camp evaluations that a week at ENOR inspired them to be a good steward of nature.
• CSUE team received several nominations and awards for excellence in curriculum and offerings from CSU, regional and national entities.

Quarter 4 Highlights (October-December)

• Colorado Master Gardener onboarded 22 new apprentices! Two have already completed green school and the rest are going through green school and all are doing the in person labs. The labs are offered at night and during the day – the first was on soils in November and the second is this week on trees and tree care!
  • Appreciation Event in November celebrated the hard-work and thousands of volunteer hours provided by the Master Gardeners, and supported by the Jeffco Horticulture team.
• Exploring Captain Ca$h and Aging Mastery programs possibilities in Jefferson County.
• Pre-visits for the 2025 National Western Stock Show kicked off in four different schools, three of which were new for classroom visits. 258 students were educated about ranching and agriculture, with a re-vamp to the beef byproducts lesson.
• The annual 4-H Achievement Night welcomed 140 guests to celebrate the accomplishments of 4-H youth and leaders over the past year. A venue shift created a cozy environment, and a nice evening allowed for an outdoor potluck and play time prior to the program.
• New community workshops provided, with positive reviews, including Jeffco Open Space Wreath Making, plant diagnostics with Wheat Ridge High School, and public class in the Horticulture Garden.

Quarter 3 Highlights (July-September)

• 571 pounds of food have been grown and donated to the Arvada Veggie Van by Colorado Master Gardeners in the Jeffco Horticulture Demonstration Garden.
• Low Ignition Garden debuted at Lookout Mountain Visitor Center.
• Teen Urban Farmers: Adventure Camp
  • Another great camp was held in 2024 at the Jefferson County Public Library in Evergreen. Teens dove into great experiences by learning hands-on about various agricultural fields, including animal and veterinary sciences and horticulture. A small snippet of activities include leather stamping, making mozzarella, wet felting and painting the muscular structure on a horse. 100% of participants reported that they had a great time learning about topics they had never been exposed to previously!
• Jeffco 4-H Fair
  • This year’s fair was another great one enjoyed by all! From a Fair Kick-Off in the dark due to a power outage to a record high price of a steer sold in the Youth Livestock Auction, it was certainly one to remember! Beautiful projects were exhibited in the Exhibit Halls, including a crocheted cat couch that advanced to the Colorado State Fair and was awarded Grand Champion. Youth showed a variety of animals, including horses, alpacas, beef, sheep, swine, goats, rabbits and poultry. Team bonding was evident every day of fair – especially during the coveted Ag Olympics.
• Presented two food preservation workshops.
• ENOR campers gave camp a 4.3 star rating. Campers gave a staff a 4.75 star rating

Quarter 2 Highlights (April-June)

• 900 apples bagged from the on-site orchard demonstration and 17 pound of food grown and donated to the Arvada Veggie Van early in the season.
• 10 Native Plant Master 3-day courses offered in this quarter.
• 235 youth 4th-8th grade participated in ENOR summer environmental camp.
• 4-H has had several preparatory events for Jeffco and State fair projects coming up, and has been busy in the community leading many STEM, Horticulture, and outdoor camp activities.

Quarter 1 Highlights (January- March)

• ENOR Summer Camp received the Gamble Oak Award for the camp’s efforts in education and sustainability for 50 years in Jefferson County. Camp spots are open for 2024, register today!
• 4-H Youth development collaborated with the National Western Stock Show and Front Range Region of CSU Extension to educate thousands of youth in local schools about agriculture. The team visited schools before the NWSS, and then met field trips group at the show.
• 4-H Youth Development provided a Spring Break camp that featured vet science, wellness, canning, cooking, and baking workshops for youth 5-18.
• The Colorado Master Gardener Fruit Tree team received 38 requests for site visits and have completed 24. These visits are an opportunity for Jefferson County residents to learn the proper care for fruit trees one-on-one.

CSU Extension, Jefferson County 2023 Year Report

• Nearly 125 4-H members exhibited at the 2023 Jeffco 4-H Fair in 32 different divisions ranging from animal projects to heritage arts and shooting sports educational displays to beekeeping. Fair Family Fun Day welcomed members and the public alike to the Jeffco Fairgrounds for a day full of activities, including the leader and alumni livestock show, relay races, tie dye, the youth livestock auction and a youth farmer’s market.
• Colorado Master Gardener received over 50 applications to join the program.  20 apprentices will begin in October; this is the second cohort of apprentices since the pandemic.  We’re growing!
• Family Leadership Training Session hosted a youth class to over 40 young people, in partnership with the Jefferson County Libraries. 
• Natural Resources completed the Low Flammability Extension fact sheet alongside Extension professionals from across the state, and sent to partners.
• The Low-Ignition garden at Lookout Mountain Nature Center had it’s first-ever planting day! The garden is based on a list of low ignition plants put out by the University of Idaho, consisting of plants that have been tested for their flammability, or likelihood to catch fire and their BTU output. The planting day had a great turnout and wonderful weather!
• Our fermentation classes are a hit! We had 24 participants that were brand new to our Extension programs join us to make kimchi, yum!
• Family Leadership Training Institute (FLTI) is transitioning to our local non-profit community partner, Edgewater Collective. We are excited to see the connection of their programming to this outstanding CSU Extension initiative.
• Natural Resources (NR) worked with numerous community partners, such as local fire departments and municipalities, to plan for wildfire preparedness and mitigation.
• 4-H staff and youth from CSU Extension in Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Jefferson and Weld counties facilitated agricultural education exposure through direct, experiential learning of 7356 students and 2376 teachers and chaperones at the 2023 National Western Stock Show.

CSU Extension, Jefferson County 2022 Year Report