Specialist Honored for Excellence in Extension
Family and Consumer Sciences Work Noted
Dr. Dorothy Brandon received the 1890 Extension in Excellence Award from the Association of Extension Administrators for her body of work in the areas of family and consumer science and workforce development.
Brandon oversees several outreach initiatives, including PREP, the workforce development program now aimed at helping former inmates at day reporting centers to find meaningful employment. Through the program Making Money Count, thousands of individuals have reduced debt and now better manage their finances. Older adults, however, continue to be one of her favorite audiences as she instructs them on using computers for daily life applications and how to successfully “age in place” within their own homes and communities.
For the past five years, Brandon and her team have also coordinated the Family Day of Education and Fun, reaching thousands of participants and garnering state and national recognition. Family Fun Day is part of the Parent-Child Reading Enhancement Program activities that help parents teach their children how to be successful readers at a critical stage in life.
In addition to program development, Dr. Brandon was awarded more than $792K in grant funding.
As the 2019 1890 recipient, she received a plague and a monetary gift at the Southern Program Leadership Network Award Luncheon in New Orleans. This award makes her eligible for a National Excellence in Extension Award. The national award is to be presented by the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy in November during the annual meeting of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities in San Diego, California.
“We are proud of the work that is coming from our Extension programming staff here at Alabama A&M University. What’s more important is that our programs continue to achieve national recognition among our peers,” said Extension Associate Director Dr. Celvia Stovall.
Previous 1890 Extension in Excellence Award winners from Alabama Extension at Alabama A&M University are Dr. Andrea Morris in 2018; Dr. Karnita Garner in 2016; Kimberly Burgess-Neloms in 2015; Dr. Roger Richardson in 2013; and Dr. Maria Leite-Browning, Edna Coleman, Dr. Julio Correa, Kevin Crenshaw, and Robert Spencer in 2012.
For more information on Alabama Extension family and consumer science and workforce development programs, please contact Dr. Brandon at (256) 372-5458 or dpb0010@aces.edu