A national organization recently awarded Fort Valley State University's Cooperative Extension Program two first place awards for assisting more than 600 families with estate and long-term planning.
On Sept. 27, a team of eight FVSU extension specialists and agents received first place for the national and regional Extension Housing Outreach Award at the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences conference held Sept. 24-28 in Columbus, Ohio. Three members of that team accepted the award at the conference.
The team consisted of housing specialist Keishon Thomas, director of field operations Marc Thomas, Peach County extension agent Gail Adams, LIFE project coordinator Maureen Lucas, Houston County program assistant Leon Porter, Twiggs County extension agent Terralon Chaney, Hancock County extension agent Ginger Chastine and Macon County program assistant Ricky Waters.
"It is such an honor to receive the national, as well as the regional award. While it is great to assist Georgians, it is also great to be acknowledged by our colleagues for our contributions to the region," Thomas said.
Both awards honor extension programming in the area of housing with outreach programs geared towards low-income and minority families. FVSU's Extension program received these awards for the creation and implementation of the Housing Education and Long Term Planning (HELP) program.