Click on the image above for the PDF version of the 2012 East Baton Rouge Parish Profile.

Program Highlights

Family & Consumer Sciences
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the prevalence of obesity among children aged 6 to 11 years increased to 19.6 percent in 2008. Therefore, it is important to educate young people on the importance of making healthful food choices and being physically active daily. Moreover, by providing youth the skills to incorporate healthful lifestyle choices; they can share the knowledge and behavioral practices with their families. During the 2010 – 2011 school year, The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) in East Baton Rouge Parish conducted the Smart Choices Youth program with 7,102 youth in 17 schools and 8 summer day camps. Youth participants learned to make healthy food choices, read the food label, the importance of physical activity and other methods to improving health through regular nutrition classes. As a result, 40 percent of the 5,137 students from 12 groups showed improvements in healthful lifestyle knowledge according to the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

4-H Youth Development
Louisiana is losing valuable wetlands. Therefore, environmental education is extremely critical to youth in Louisiana in an effort to make them good environmental stewards. The Youth Wetlands Program provides curriculum and supplies to teachers in an effort to promote wetlands education that reinforces science concepts being taught. During the 2010 – 2011 school year, 3,026 students and 50 teachers in East Baton Rouge Parish participated in the LSU AgCenter’ s Youth Wetland Program. The Youth Wetlands Program’s pre and post test results indicated that participant's general science knowledge increased on an average of 25 percent across grades 4th - 12th. During the current school year, participation in the Youth Wetlands Program has remained steady, impacting 65 teachers and 2,818 students in East Baton Rouge Parish.

Agriculture & Natural Resources
Horticultural related concerns continue to play a major role in the agricultural industry in East Baton Rouge Parish. The parish is estimated to have 156,000 single family homeowners who are responsible for their yard and landscape. Of this total, demographics estimate that 75,000 maintain a landscape and 35,000 grow an edible food garden (vegetables & fruits). In 2010, approximately 6,000 consumers were reached dealing with horticultural issues whether it is plant selection and planting, pest control for plants, fruiting trees and shrubs, vegetable gardens, disease identification, and landscape issues. A weekly news column is published promoting horticultural issues with circulation of over 235,000. Additionally, 240 Master Gardener volunteers are trained and assist with outreach on consumer horticultural practices. Last year, participants in the Master Gardner program provided over 9,581 volunteer hours making over 115,971 contacts with East Baton Rouge Parish residents. The economic impact of the volunteer efforts of the Master Gardeners totals approximately $220,747.

Who we reach.
47,972 - Youth (includes 894 4-H members, 25 school 4-H clubs, school enrichment -Smart Bodies, Smart Choices, Youth Wetlands Week)
20,992 - Adults: 7,743 Ag & Natural Resources; 13,249 Family & Consumer Sciences

How we reach them:
4-H clubs, class series, school enrichment, demonstrations, field days, workshops, newsletters, mass/social media, publications, websites.

Expanding our efforts:
375 Volunteers - 4-H, Master Gardeners, Family & Consumer Sciences, Master Horsemen.

Parish Facts
LSU AgCenter County Agents provide research-based information on plant, fisheries, wildlife and animal enterprises to East Baton Rouge Parish clientele. The 2010 total dollar amount from these commodities was:

• Plant enterprises - $24,841,367.
• Aquaculture and wildlife - $160,724.
• Animal enterprises - $9,849,475.

Data from the Louisiana Ag Summary Website

Population - 440,171
Land area (square miles) - 455.37
Persons under 18 years old - 23.6 percent
Persons 65 years old and over - 10.9 percent
Median household income - $46,179
Persons below poverty - 18.4 percent

Local Issues & Plans for this year.

1. Increase productivity and profitability of Louisiana Agriculture.

• Conduct series of Master Gardener & Master Horseman classes.
• Actively cooperate with parish’s green industry and commercial producers.
• Conduct farm and home educational visits.

• Conduct private pesticide recertification classes and worker protection standards classes.
• Enhance the public’s understanding of and appreciation for the benefits of forest and related resources.
• Youth participate in educational programs and activities that promote environmental stewardship.

• Enhance and expand service learning projects throughout the parish.
• Enhance existing volunteer development program.
• Promote safe behavioral practices, enhance leadership skills, advance science, engineering and technology (S.E.T.) within schools and community.

4. Strengthen families and communities.

• EFNEP and FF-NEWS clients will receive training on feeding their families nutritionally on a budget.
• Expand nutrition and health education to youth in an effort to prevent childhood obesity and promote wellness.
• Conduct nutrition education classes to promote healthful lifestyle choices to reduce incidence of disease.
• Conduct parenting classes to teach proper parenting skills to parents with children under one year.