The expanded food and nutrition education program (EFNEP) is designed to assist limited-resource audiences in gaining the knowledge and skills needed to make informed choices about food, nutrition,…

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Langston University $128,149 under the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP, CFDA 10.514) on October 1, 2025, for the period through September 30, 2030.

EFNEP delivers hands-on nutrition education to limited-resource adults responsible for planning family meals (emphasizing households with young children) and limited-resource youth in rural or urban areas and schools where 50 percent or more of students receive free or reduced lunch. Paraprofessionals deliver direct nutrition education lessons in collaboration with community-based organizations, using curricula focused on diet quality and physical activity, food resource management, food safety, and food security. Participants gain knowledge and skills to make informed choices about low-cost nutritious foods, manage family food budgets, improve diet quality, increase physical activity, strengthen food safety practices, and increase food access.

Work is performed in Langston, Oklahoma. Langston University, a historically Black 1890 land-grant institution, administers the program as the prime recipient. Only 1862 and 1890 land-grant institutions are eligible for EFNEP funding. Project periods, including no-cost extensions, do not exceed five years. Recipients must maintain separate records for each grant throughout the award period and retain grant-related records for at least three years beyond project completion.

The expanded food and nutrition education program (EFNEP) is designed to assist limited-resource audiences in gaining the knowledge and skills needed to make informed choices about food, nutrition, and physical activity. Our EFNEP target audience is limited resource adults responsible for planning and preparing the family's food, emphasizing households with young children. Youth audiences are limited resource youth living in rural or urban areas and schools where 50% or more of youth receive free and/or reduced lunch. This program is delivered by paraprofessionals using a series of direct nutrition education lessons in collaboration with community-based organizations that serve our target audience. Our program utilizes curricula focusing on diet quality and physical activity, food resource management, food safety, and food security. After completing EFNEP, we expect participants to improve the quality of their diets, increase physical activity, improve food safety practices, and increase their access to food. Program participants gain knowledge, skills, and confidence to make informed choices about low-cost, nutritious foods, manage their family food budgets better, and become self-sufficient.