Newswise — ITHACA, N.Y. – The Military Families Learning Network (MFLN), has been selected to continue and expand its work serving military family service professionals around the world, receiving a Department of Defense/USDA grant that will further its success.
Cornell University Cooperative Extension faculty member Keith Tidball is working with the Military Families Learning Network to lead the new Community Capacity Building concentration area, as well as continuing to contribute to other MFLN concentration areas. Tidball, a veteran himself, has been conducting applied research and extension activities with returning combatants and their families for almost a decade at Cornell. “Working with the MFLN has been such a rewarding experience in the past few years, and the opportunity that this funding represents to continue and expand this work is very exciting!” he said.
Kyle Kostelecky, Project Director, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Elbert Dickey, Principal Investigator for the current project at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln announced recently that the new award will be housed at the Chez Family Foundation Center for Wounded Veterans in Higher Education on the University of Illinois campus. The current MFLN originated as a special project of eXtension at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2010 and work will continue at the University of Nebraska until completed.
“The University of Nebraska and eXtension were the perfect place for this project to form and grow into the tremendous resource it is today. The Center for Wounded Veterans at the University of Illinois is a fantastic next step, bringing the innovation of eXtension to a new educational effort serving one of our nations most important resources - our wounded, ill, and injured veterans. The current and new programing the MFLN will develop will be a great fit for the Center as it works with transitioning service members and their families into the next stage of their lives,” said Kostelecky.
“The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University is proud to be part of a nationwide network of Land Grant institutions delivering innovative programmatic and educational support to those who support our nation’s military families around the world,” said Kathryn J. Boor, the Ronald P. Lynch Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
Chris Watkins, Director of Cornell Cooperative Extension added “We are proud of our Cornell Cooperative Extension efforts serving our wounded, ill, and injured veterans, from the Military Projects of the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research, to the Returning Warriors in Outdoor Recreation, Restoration, and Resilience study, to the efforts to increase involvement in agricultural careers among veterans. This award offers extension ever greater opportunity to continue to make a difference.”
The MFLN currently serves to increase the availability of research and evidence-based educational resources to connect with and educate military family service professionals. These professionals currently serve military families and communities in the areas of Personal Finance, Family Development, and Military Caregiving, supported by work in in Network Literacy.
“We are excited that our new funding will allow us to expand our work to include providing online professional development, educational programming, and engaging communities in the areas of Community Capacity Building, Families with Special Needs, Transition, and Nutrition and Wellness,” said Sarah Baughman, Project Leader, Virginia Tech.
In addition to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the University of Illinois, and Virginia Tech, the MFLN includes Cooperative Extension faculty at Auburn University, Cornell University, Fort Valley State University, Iowa State University, North Carolina State University, North Dakota State University, Rutgers University, Texas A&M University, University of Florida, University of Georgia, University of Minnesota, University of Nevada-Reno, University of New Hampshire, Valdosta State University, Washington State University, and West Virginia University, The MFLN was created through eXtension, an initiative of the U.S. Cooperative Extension System, in partnership with The Office of the Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Military Community and Family Policy (MC&FP), and the United States Department of Agriculture/National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA/NIFA).
Cornell University has television, ISDN and dedicated Skype/Google+ Hangout studios available for media interviews.
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