MSU Extension St. Joseph County

MSU Extension, St. Joseph County
612 E. Main St. Centreville, MI 49032
269-467-5511 | https://www.canr.msu.edu/st_joseph

Our Staff

• Carma Johnson and Jackie Brazo, County Support
• Kayla Mitchell, 4-H Program Coordinator
• Jon LaPorte, Farm Management Business Educator
• Eric Anderson, Soybean Educator
• Lyndon Kelley, Water Management & Irrigation Educator
• Nicolle Ritchie, Field Crops Agronomist Educator

Message from the Interim District Director

Thank you for another great year of partnership and community impact! We appreciate your support in helping MSU Extension serve the residents of St. Joseph County.

Sincerely,
Bill Hendrian

Impact in St. Joseph County

• 2,063 participants from the County attended programs
• Residents participated in 269 programs (across the State) and 32 programs (hosted in County)
• 647 4-H enrolled youth
• 250 MSU Extension volunteers
• 228 County residents participated in health & nutrition programs
• 819 County residents participated in ag & agribusiness programs
• 38 answered Ask Extension questions
• 187 client consultations

4-H & Youth Development

Children and families of St. Joseph County continued to benefit from a variety of programs in partnership with dedicated 4-H volunteers and MSU Extension staff.

Topics included:

• Career exploration and workforce development
• Child & family development
• Healthy living
• Leadership & civic engagement
• Science literacy

By the numbers:

• 25 4-H clubs
• 246 4-H volunteers
• 647 4-H members
• 2,296 4-H youth participants

Pictured: Kayla Mitchell, St. Joseph County 4-H Program Coordinator

2025 4-H Camp

The 2025 Summer 4-H Camp in St. Joseph County welcomed 53 youth ages 8–12, including participants from Cass and Branch counties. Held in June at the Amigo Centre in Sturgis, the three-day, two-night camp offered activities such as canoeing, fishing, crafts, hiking and team-building experiences. New in 2025, five youth ages 13–15 participated as Camp Counselors-in-Training (CITs), working alongside counselors and supporting campers. They demonstrated strong leadership, enthusiasm, and readiness for future counselor roles.

Pictured: 4-H Campers at the Amigo Center in Sturgis

Fourth Grade Conservation Tour

St. Joseph County MSU Extension, the Conservation District, and Parks & Recreation hosted a Conservation Tour for 4th graders, with participation increasing in 2025 to 396 students from 10 local schools. The Centreville FFA Chapter supported the event by providing six student volunteers to serve as tour guides.

Students rotated through seven 16-minute educational stations covering topics such as trees and forest products, macroinvertebrates and pond ecology, wildlife identification, invasive species and pollinators. Partners including the Conservation District, DNR, 4-H, and MSU Extension educators delivered hands-on learning, from planting white pine seedlings and identifying animal furs and skulls to creating bean necklaces and exploring rainfall and soil erosion through a rain simulator.

Agriculture & Agribusiness

Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide

In December 2025, Jon LaPorte was co-lead and author/contributor of the highly anticipated Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide. The downloadable guide provides a pathway to resources a new farmer or decision-maker may need to get started and support their production journey. Starting with production in mind, resources give farmers an introduction to important farming topics and direct them to education and decision-making tools as well as how to connect with agricultural partners.

Over the course of two years, over 50 authors and contributors worked through multiple phases of content development. This included content reviews, guide layout and design, and a final round of design reviews before the guide was ready for publication. The Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide is a living document that will be routinely reviewed. Over time, new content will be added to ensure that the guide continues to meet the needs of Michigan’s beginning farmers.

Pictured: Jon LaPorte, MSU Extension Farm Business Management Educator for SW Michigan.
QR code in the original: Scan to download the Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide.

Associated Press Interviews Nicolle Ritchie

In August, a reporter from the Associated Press reached out to MSU Extension Communications for an interview on corn pollination in Michigan. Nicolle Ritchie received the request based on her recent SW Michigan field crops update. Ritchie provided information on how the crop in SW Michigan was looking and with permission, shared contact information for two local growers to speak with the reporter. The article was published about a week later and multiple growers shared positive feedback. This was a success for Ritchie (and for MSU Extension) because it was a high-profile article that focused on both the science and the in-field observation aspects of farming in SW Michigan.

Pictured: Nicolle Ritchie, MSU Extension Field Crops Agronomist Educator for SW Michigan.
QR code in the original: Scan to download the AP Article: “To get that perfect ear of corn, weather has to cooperate. But climate change is making it dicier.”

Summer Irrigation Workshop

The Summer Irrigation Workshop, held August 1, 2025, at the Kellogg Biological Station in Hickory Corners, MI, brought together 24 growers, agribusiness professionals, MSU Extension educators, and industry representatives from 10 counties. Participants, representing farms primarily between 0–500 acres, networked and explored current irrigation issues. The program opened with introductions by Angie Gradiz, followed by a hands-on soil texture demonstration led by Dr. Younsuk Dong and student Caden Wade, where attendees tested their own samples to better understand irrigation scheduling.

Participants were guided through a catch-can uniformity test and a demonstration of variable rate irrigation, with insights from Dr. Dong. After a vendor session featuring six organizations and an interactive sprinkler demonstration by Lyndon Kelley, the workshop shifted to irrigation scheduling tools, where participants worked in small groups based on their interests. The event concluded with a roundtable discussion facilitated by Christine Charles, allowing participants to share perspectives on the future of irrigation in Michigan, including key challenges and opportunities.

Pictured: Lyndon Kelley, MSU Extension Water Management & Irrigation Educator, presenting.

New MSU Extension Bulletin E3541 for Dairy Feed Applications

High-oleic soybeans (HOSB) offer farmers an opportunity to improve profitability while meeting growing demand for healthier oils and high-quality livestock feed. Developed to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. soybean oil against alternatives like palm, olive, and canola oils, HOSB differ from commodity soybeans primarily through their elevated oleic acid content. Demand has increased in recent years, driven by food manufacturers and dairy producers incorporating roasted HOSB into feed rations. This bulletin, co-authored by Eric Anderson, highlights the nutritional benefits of high-oleic oil, key agronomic and production practices, and marketing opportunities, including contract considerations, with additional guidance available in MSU Extension Bulletin E3541 for dairy feed applications.

Pictured: Eric Anderson, MSU Extension Soybean Educator for SW Michigan.
QR code in the original: Scan to download the MSU Extension Bulletin E3541.

632 St. Joseph County residents participated in St. Joseph County-based agriculture programming in 2025.

Health & Nutrition

Teens Drink their Greens

Cooking at home empowers us to choose nutritious, flavorful ingredients, with fruits and vegetables making up half of a healthy diet. Sixth graders at Three Rivers Middle School explored this through Cooking Matters for Teens, learning about MyPlate and basic cooking skills while making Popeye Power Smoothies. Although hesitant at first about adding spinach, most students tried and enjoyed the smoothies, showing how exposure and positive encouragement can shift perceptions. The lesson highlighted how adults influence youth attitudes toward food and demonstrated that healthy cooking can be quick, simple, and adaptable. By building knowledge and confidence, SNAP-Ed helps youth see that preparing nutritious meals is accessible and within their control.

“I think this is the first thing I’ve eaten with spinach in it.” – Three Rivers Middle School student participant

Special Note: For over 30 years, MSU Extension SNAP-Ed staff delivered evidence-based, hands-on nutrition and physical activity learning opportunities that empowered youth and adults to build healthy eating habits and be more active on a limited budget. Following a federal decision to end funding, the program was discontinued after July 4, 2025.

2025 Fast Facts

• 66,592 people participated in MSU Extension health programs, either in person, virtually, by telephone, and self-directed toolkits.
• 3,085 programs offered by health and nutrition educators and program instructors
• 1 Million+ content views across our MI Health Matters and Think Food Safety social media channels

Through education, outreach, and practical, evidence-based resources, we empower individuals and families to improve their well-being—from helping older adults stay active, to guiding parents in raising healthy eaters, to supporting farmers in managing stress.

91 St. Joseph County residents participated in health and nutrition programs in 2025. Residents benefited from a variety of topics including:

• Food Safety (31)
• Health and wellbeing (29)

For additional success stories, and access to classes, articles, health resources, and more, explore: https://www.canr.msu.edu/food_health

Community, Food & Environment

MSU Extension Training Increases Confidence of St. Joseph County Land Use Decision Makers

On June 3, 2025, MSU Extension hosted a 90-minute training in St. Joseph County led by Extension Educator Tyler Augst, attended by 25 local planning commission members and elected officials. The session strengthened participants’ understanding of planning commissions by covering legal authority for planning and zoning in Michigan, roles in meetings, and ethical decision-making. Post-training evaluations, completed by 15 participants (60% response rate), indicated the program was highly valuable and increased participants’ knowledge, skills, and confidence, with detailed results summarized in the following pages.

Pictured: Tyler Augst, MSU Extension Government & Community Vitality Educator for Southwest Michigan.

Government and Community Vitality Programming in St. Joseph County

In 2025, MSU Extension Educators provided a variety of government and community vitality programs to 65 St. Joseph County residents, on topics including:

• Understanding the Land Division Act
• Communicating Through Conflict
• Zoning Board of Appeals Certificate
• Governing Essentials
• Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities Conference
• Fiscally Ready Communities Series
• Citizen Planner

Housing and Money Management Programming in St. Joseph County

In 2025, MSU Extension certified housing and money management counselors delivered trusted, unbiased education to St. Joseph County residents. Topics:

• Financial Home Ownership
• Every Penny Counts
• How Much Home Can You Afford?
• Mortgage Foreclosure Basics
• Make a Spending Plan Work for You

Community, Food & Environment Statewide

• 73,800+ people participated in more than 2,000 community, food and environment programs
• 226 partnerships and 121 coalitions supported by our educators
• $1.8M in volunteer time value leveraged for programming

MSU Product Center Statewide

• Clients: 566
• Counseling Hours: 3,365
• Annual Sales of Clients: $84,677,879

MSU Extension’s Statewide Impact

Helping people improve their lives by bringing the vast knowledge and resources of Michigan State University directly to individuals, communities and businesses.

• 66,154 participants in MSU Extension agriculture and agribusiness programs
• 1 Million+ content views across our MI Health Matters and Think Food Safety social media channels
• 139,000 total youth participants
• $1.8M in volunteer time leveraged for programming
• 66,592 people participated in Food Safety programs including ServSafe®
• 73,800+ participants in Community, Food and Environment Programs
• 1,998 Extension Master Gardeners (EMG) spent 95,067 hours helping individuals and communities grow