University of Maine Cooperative Extension - Oxford County

University researched programs & information geared to assist families, homeowners, businesses, farms, and communities in making informed decisions that best meet their needs.

The Cooperative Extension Service is a nationwide network of land-grant universities charged with bringing research based information into local communities. It has been doing this since 1914. In the century since its creation, this nationwide educational and outreach network has made significant contributions to American life — particularly in rural areas — and improved lives across the country. Extension's engagement with rural America helped make possible the American agricultural revolution, which dramatically increased farm productivity, allowing fewer farmers to produce more food. TODAY Over the last century, extension has adapted to changing times and landscapes. Fewer than 2 percent of Americans farm for a living today, and only 17 percent of Americans now live in rural areas (versus 30% farming and 50% living in rural areas then). Yet, the extension service still plays a significant role in American life — rural, urban, and suburban. With its unprecedented reach — an office in or near most of the nation's approximately 3,000 counties — extension helps farmers and ranchers achieve greater success, assist families with nutrition and home economics, and prepare today’s youth to become leaders tomorrow.