The Ohio State University

2009 Seed Grants

Computer Art Service-Learning Course with Indianola Middle School Girls

This grant is intended to secure a partnership between OSU Extension, the Art Education Department, and Gidget Technology for Girls through a newly existing service-learning course (GEC) on computer art. The seed grant will allow a quarter to fine-tune the service-learning course, which will meet both on-campus and in the community in an effort to share resources and recognize assets located in both locations. In order to make this course sustainable beyond the faculty instruction of Karen, the grant will allow for a GTA to be trained and prepared to teach the course for at least 5 quarters beyond the Autumn of 2009.

The potential outcomes of this partnership for the girls include the acquisition of important computer skills in the areas of graphic design and computer art. It will enhance the mission of the Gidget project by addressing the technology gap for low-income individuals and, especially, females. This will enhance the mission of OSU Extension's After-School Program at Indianola Middle School by introducing structured curricular activities including photography, Photoshop, and collaborative artmaking in the children’s neighborhood and on campus. This will similarly enhance the mission of the OSU Art Education Department by preparing students to incorporate education and service into artmaking activities with the computer as a tool. Additionally, this will prepare a GTA to incorporate service-learning in his or her own career work as a future academic. Finally, this will enrich the community by utilizing a collaborative artmaking approach through exploring and exposing community assets in photography and Photoshop techniques.

This grant was submitted by Karen Hutzel, Assistant Professor, Art Education; Susan Colbert, OSU Extension, Indianola Middle School After-School Program; Catherine Girves, Director of University Area Enrichment Association, Gidget Technology for Girls Project

Co-Parenting: Strengthening and Enhancing Communities, Neighbors and Families

OSU Extension – Mercer County, Department of Education at OSU-Lima, and O.U.R. Home Family Resource Center have formed a partnership and designed a program to slow or reverse the increasing number of family court cases in Mercer County. Specifically, educational programming will be provided for families dealing with parental separation. Objectives for the program include helping parents: (a) identify the effects of their separation on children at various developmental stages, (b) learn how to develop an effective co-parenting plan, and (c) in conjunction with their children, identify and practice techniques to strengthen communication. Outcomes for the co-parenting program will include (a) parents will have skills that enable them to make responsible parenting decisions based on the needs of their children, (b) parents will have skills that enable them to resolve problems for themselves and/or seek help with problem solving before difficulties escalate out of control, and (c) parents will build a family support network. Children will expand their developmentally appropriate problem solving skills. The long term outcome will be fewer families seeking court intervention, particularly for visitation issues. Programming will be offered in six week sessions, provided on week nights and/or weekend mornings. Evaluation will use a pretest/posttest design, with a long-term (six month) follow-up survey to ensure that participants are practicing the skills acquired. During this initial period of programming, the community partners have committed to involving a larger number of local agencies and organizations, in order to develop sustainability prior to the termination of the OSU CARES seed grant.

This grant was submitted by Barbara Hennard, Extension Educator, Family and Consumer Sciences and 4-H Youth, OSU Extension Mercer County; Karla Kessler, O.U.R. Home Family Resource Center; Young Ah Lee, Assistant Professor of Education, OSU-Lima; Cynthia Torppa, Assistant Professor and Specialist, Human Communication and Family Science, OSU Extension

Dining with Diabetes – Outreach into OSU Medical Center Communities: A Strengthening Families and Communities Effort

Diabetes is a growing health concern in the state of Ohio. Currently, 705,099 adults, 18 and older are estimated to have diabetes. A partnership between The Ohio State University Medical Centers and Ohio State University Extension will result in readily accessible diabetes management information for county residents in three Ohio counties with OSU Medical Center affiliates or hospitals.

This grant was submitted by Cindy Oliveri, Extension Specialist, Family and Consumer Sciences; Jennifer Landau, Ohio State Health Network; Erin Bontrager, Department of Communications and Marketing, OSU Medical Center; Julie Meddles, Associate Director, Food and Nutrition Services, University Hospital East

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