(Alexandria, Va. – June 22, 2009) — Karen M. Ensle, CFCS, County Extension department head and educator, and Barbara O’Neill, CFCS, Extension specialist, Rutgers University, will receive the American Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) Excellence in Extension Grant at the AAFCS 100th Annual Conference & Expo, Celebrating the Past, Sustaining the Future, in Knoxville, Tennessee, on Thursday, June 25th.

The award will be presented to the Rutgers team by Sue Buck, CFCS, AAFCS director-at-large, during the Association Recognition and Celebration event. The purpose of the Excellence in Extension Grant is to provide seed money for programs designed to enhance the well-being of families, support the efforts of AAFCS, and expand the Cooperative Extension program efforts.

Ensle and O’Neill will receive the grant for their program, “Small Steps to Health and Wealth™ Challenge on the Web,” which is believed to be the first long-term program ever developed to motivate Americans to simultaneously improve their health and personal finances. In academic literature, most of the research about health and financial linkages is at the macro level—the cost to society of obesity, diabetes, or smoking—rather than studies of individuals changing their behavior. The Challenge is a behaviorally focused activity that encourages the adoption of recommended health/nutrition and financial management practices. The grant money will be used to develop a website for the Challenge and provide incentives for program participants.

Founded in 1909 by Ellen Swallow Richards, the first woman graduate and professor of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), AAFCS is the only national not-for-profit organization that provides leadership and support to FCS students and professionals across multiple practice settings. FCS professionals help individuals, families, and communities make informed decisions about their well-being, relationships, and resources to achieve optimal quality of life. AAFCS’ 6,000+ members are elementary, secondary, and post-secondary educators, researchers, and administrators; Cooperative Extension educators; and other professionals in business and industry, not-for-profit organizations, and government. These professionals provide research and applied knowledge in the areas of personal finance, child development and parenting, consumer education, housing and environment, apparel and textiles, and health and nutrition. With national headquarters based in Alexandria, Va., AAFCS has 52 affiliates located across the United States and Puerto Rico.

For more information, contact Gwynn Mason at 703-706-4600, ext. 4621, 703-859-8235, or gmason@aafcs.org.