Carson City Programs
Social Media Training

Extension teaches social media for businesses, community members, scientists/agriculturalists and Extension professionals
Relevance/Issue
Nevada businesses, community members, Extension professionals and international scientists/agriculturalists expressed a need for social media training:
- Many businesses need social media for survival and growth, but using social media does not always come naturally.
- Many community members, including youth and seniors, want to use social media to connect with friends and family, but are not comfortable with the platforms and do not know how be safe and responsible online.
- Extension professionals want to learn how to use social media effectively: to improve their educational efforts aimed at sharing research-based knowledge and programs with targeted audiences, and to reach youth, who often rely on social media for information and communication.
- Scientists/agriculturalists can use social media for collaboration with and inspiration from each other, and to stay informed about public concerns. As such, they should stay current on social media and social networking best practices.
Response/What’s Been Done
Extension provided Social Media 101, Facebook, Instagram & Pinterest, and Videos & Editing courses in 2016 at the request of the Carson City Chamber of Commerce. Carson City Library representatives who attended the trainings wanted to offer similar classes to the community, so Extension added and taught classes for Twitter, YouTube, Social Media for Parents and Social Media for Seniors from fall 2016 through spring 2017. Also in 2016, Extension presented on social media/networking best practices for scientists/agriculturalist at the Third Annual Canadian Wheat Symposium. In 2017, Extension gave 14 presentations: six as a continuation of the 2016 community series, four for scientists/agriculturists at the American National CattleWomen Region 6 meeting in Elko, Nevada, and four for Extension professionals. All trainings ranged from 30 minutes to four hours, and 680 people were trained, including 270 in 2017.
Results/Impact and Partners
Community sessions were informal, with attendees asking questions and the instructor covering topics of interest to those in attendance during that particular session, so no data was collected. However, community feedback was positive, and Extension and the Carson City Library plan to continue offering classes on a regular basis. In addition, the Carson Water Subconservancy District asked for training for their team members and partners.
In 2017 trainings for Extension professionals, Extension taught each of two classes twice — once in northern Nevada and once in southern Nevada — for a total of four trainings. Attendees rated each of the two classes on a scale of one to five. For the “Social Media: What I’ve learned” class in August, 55 responded, including responses from both north and south. The training was rated:
- 4.43 for how informative it was
- 4.27 for usefulness
For the “Social media: Facebook Profiles, Pages and Groups” training in December, 48 responded, including responses from both north and south. The training was rated:
- 4.32 for how informative it was
- 4.19 for usefulness
Partners included the Carson City Chamber of Commerce, Carson City Library, American National CattleWomen and CropLife International.
IMPACTS
680
people trained since 2016
“I now know what I need to about each social media platform and how it can benefit my business.”
— Business training attendee
Contact: Lindsay Chichester, 775-887-2252
Programs | Program Information |
---|---|
4-H Youth Development 4-H is a community of young people across America learning leadership, citizenship and life skills. | |
Carson City Community Garden The Community Garden began in 2001 and allows community members who don’t have room for a vegetable garden to rent a 4-by-16-foot garden bed for $20 a season at a 25-bed garden complex on Beverly Drive east of the cemetery. The price includes water, soil preparation, some seeds and fertilizer. | |
Family Storyteller Literacy Program National award-winning Family Storyteller is a literacy program aimed at encouraging and training parents to play a vital role in the literacy development of their children. Developed by University of Nevada Cooperative Extension (UNCE), KNPB-TV, the Washoe County libraries and Washoe County School District, the statewide program creates an opportunity for parents and young children to interact around literacy and language activities. Family Storyteller is designed especially for families that may have limited language skills and few children’s books at home. | |
Grow Your Own, Nevada ![]() | |
Living With Fire ![]() | |
Master Gardeners in Nevada ![]() | |
Nevada Radon Education Program The Nevada Radon Education Program is a partnership with the Nevada State Health Division to educate Nevadans about the possible health risk posed by elevated levels of radon in the home. University of Nevada Cooperative Extension (UNCE) offers literature, educational programs and radon test kits in many county Extension offices. | |
Nevada Wildfire Awareness Month ![]() | |
Social Media Training ![]() | |
The Greenhouse Project The Carson City Greenhouse Project was conceptualized in November 2008 in partnership between UNCE; the Carson City Cultural Commission; The Greenhouse Project Committee, a grassroots, community organization; the Carson City School District; Nevada State Parks; and numerous volunteers. The Greenhouse Project serves as a teaching facility for hands on programs at the Carson City High School. Students help to cultivate and distribute vegetables and herbs for culinary classes and community food banks. Additional flower baskets are grown to beautify downtown Carson City. |
Statewide Programs *Statewide programs may not be available in all counties
Programs | Program Information |
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Cattlemen’s Update | |
Food Safety Project | |
Herds and Harvest | |
Integrated Riparian Management/Creeks and Communities | |
Invasive Species (Weeds) | |
Nevada State GEAR UP | |
Nevada Youth Range Camp | |
People of the Land | |
Pesticide Safety Education Program | |
Risk Management | |
Stronger Economies Together | |
Weed Prevention and Management | |
Youth for the Quality Care of Animals |