WVU Extension Launches Statewide Needs Assessment, Weston Among Sites for Regional Sessions
By Connect-Bridgeport Staff on April 27, 2026
West Virginia University Extension, a unit within the WVU Division for Land-Grant Engagement, strives to improve the lives and livelihoods of all West Virginians by delivering relevant, research-backed educational programs throughout the state. These programs are designed to address critical issues that affect our communities, but periodically, needs can change.
This year, WVU Extension will launch a statewide needs assessment to ensure programs, opportunities and initiatives exist within the Division for Land-Grant Engagement to address the needs of the communities, industries and students we serve.
These efforts will begin in May with a series of listening sessions to be held across the state. These open-forum events will include a brief presentation by WVU representatives, but the majority of the sessions will be allocated to hearing from stakeholders.
Listening sessions will be held on the following dates at these locations:
May 2, 9 a.m. – WVU J.W. Ruby Research Farm, Reedsville
May 7, 6:30 p.m. – Jefferson County Extension Office, Kearneysville
May 11, 7 p.m. – WVU Jackson’s Mill Assembly Hall, Weston
May 14, 6 p.m. – Wood County Courthouse Annex, Parkersburg
May 20, 6 p.m. – Eastern Community College, Moorefield
May 26, 6:30 p.m. – WVU Building, State Fairgrounds, Fairlea
Community members who are interested in attending a listening session can register here.
“Collectively, these stakeholder touchpoints will help identify current needs, guide the development of statewide and local program priorities, inform future research directions and support decisions on how Division for Land-Grant Engagement resources are allocated in the next five years as we work to carry out our mission,” Jorge Atiles, associate vice-president and dean of the Division for Land-Grant Engagement, said.
In addition to the listening sessions, the statewide needs assessment will include a stakeholder survey that will be available in late spring and run through late summer as well as targeted county meetings in the fall.
WVU Extension and the West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, both units in the Division for Land-Grant Engagement, are required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to document stakeholder input in their priority-setting process.
If you want to learn more about WVU Extension, visit extension.wvu.edu or follow @WVUExtension on Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram.
