Two new Extension agents in Fairbanks offer programs

February 2, 2017

Two new agents with the Cooperative Extension Service in Fairbanks will lead community programs in nutrition, health and gardening.

Leslie Shallcross, a health, home and family development agent, and horticulturist Julie Riley previously served with the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Extension office in Anchorage.

Shallcross, a registered dietitian and nutritionist, will offer classes on food preservation and cooking, adult health promotion and obesity prevention. She teaches individuals with diabetes and their family members about menu planning and trains community members to lead programs on self-management of chronic health conditions and diabetes prevention.

Shallcross attended Penn State University, where she earned a master’s degree in human nutrition science. She has worked for Extension since 2006 but has 30 years of experience in nutrition and health promotion.

Riley has worked with home gardeners and the commercial horticulture industry for 32 years. She has trained about 1,500 master gardeners since 1985. Her first master gardening series in Fairbanks will begin on Feb. 9. She also expects to offer noncredit classes on vegetables, flowers, herbs, lawns, integrated pest management and soils. Riley will work one-on-one with commercial growers, new horticultural entrepreneurs and home gardeners. She earned a bachelor’s degree in horticulture and a master’s in landscape architecture from the University of Wisconsin.

Details about the master gardener class and other upcoming Tanana District programs are available at www.uaf.edu/ces/tanana. Riley may be reached at 907-474-2423 or jariley@alaska.edu, and Shallcross may be contacted at 907-474-2426 or lashallcross@alaska.edu. The district office is located at 724 27th Ave., in the Fairbanks Community Food Bank Building.

The Cooperative Extension Service is affiliated with land-grant colleges and offers practical, research-based education.