What is Extension?
Community needs drive our work. Our mission is to provide information and education, and encourage the application of research-based knowledge in response to local, state, and national issues affecting individuals, youth, families, agricultural enterprises and communities of Colorado.
We are part of the land-grant university system nationwide. We draw from the University’s research-based resources to strengthen community partnerships, boost the economy, engage families and youth, and enhance our quality of life.
Extension’s job is to determine what issues, concerns and needs are unique to each community, and offer sound and effective solutions. Whether you have a question about health, nutrition, financial literacy, weeds, pests or gardens, 4-H or youth development, or child-care issues, CSU Extension can connect you to the latest, most accurate data.
Our educational programs are available through a variety of methods including web-based platforms, social media, traditional group meetings, one-on-one contacts, and diverse electronic program delivery channels.
CSU Denver Extension:
Denver Extension is urban, inclusive, and engaged with the Denver community!
The local Extension office serves as Denver’s face for Colorado State University and delivers programs that are driven by community demand. Our non-credit programs range in scope from youth development to nutrition education to Master Gardener training. All of our traditional, or legacy, Extension programs have been urbanized to better adapt to the needs of Denver residents.
We are a partner with the City of Denver Parks and Recreation Department and work closely with other community partners and organizations to best serve Denver and all its residents.
Contact Us:
Our office is located in lovely Harvard Gulch Park, at 888 E. Iliff Avenue, Denver CO 80210.
Have a question or want to connect with our programs- call us at (720) 913-5270/
Text (720)254-1519
To connect with an individual staff member or program area please check out our Meet Our Staff page.
What is a land grant institution and what does that mean?
The idea of the land-grant university arose in the middle of the 19th century around a set of converging social and cultural changes in the United States. In an era of economic, social, and political turmoil, U.S. Representative Justin Morrill proposed the notion of government land-grants to support practical public education for the working classes. President Abraham Lincoln signed the first Morrill Act into law on July 2, 1862. This act dictated that proceeds from the sale of land in each state would be invested in a perpetual endowment to support colleges of agriculture and mechanic arts. The signing of the second Morrill Act in 1890, the Hatch Act in 1887 (to establish Agricultural Experiment Stations), and the Smith-Lever Act of 1914 that created the Cooperative Extension Service formed the basis of the land-grant university model as it exists today.
The spirit of the Morrill Act was, and is, to enable all citizens of the United States to participate in the nation’s economic and social progress. After 150 years of profound social and economic transformation, the core values embodied in that spirit remain.
Today, land-grant universities have a three-part mission – research, education/training, and outreach/extension – that commits university resources to address state needs. At CSU, that is reflected in many ways, including robust extension, cutting-edge research in areas, and furthering programs that help make the world safer and more sustainable. There is at least one land-grant institution per state, plus institutions in DC and the U.S. territories. Since 1994, Native American Colleges have been included as well.
Land Acknowledgement:
Land grant universities belong to the people. Colorado State University is a land-grant university. CSU came into existence as part of Lincoln and Morrill’s dream to make a great college education available to every American. Colorado State also acknowledges, with respect, that its campus today sits on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Ute Nations and peoples. While the University honors its mission to provide access to education and inclusion, we also recognize that CSU’s founding came at a dire cost to Native Nations and peoples, both those whose land the campus was built upon and those whose land was sold to support its formation. As we carry out our mission today, we do so with this recognition of our institutional history, responsibility, and commitment.
