Kathryn A. Stofer

0000-0002-3659-490X

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: SMART Social Media—Planning for Success

Lisa Lundgren, Kathryn A. Stofer, Kirsten Hecht, and Tyus D. Williams

BioBlitzes: Citizen Science for Biodiversity in Florida

Mathieu Basille and Kathryn Stofer

Florida Peaches: A Perfect Snack

Joy Rumble, Kara Harders, and Kathryn Stofer

In 1952, a stone fruit breeding program started at the University of Florida with a goal of breeding trees that would produce peaches and nectarines to grow in Florida.

Selecting the Right Type of Educational Experience for Your Agritourism Operation

Joy N. Rumble, Kathryn Stofer, and Hoda Manafian

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: Ecotourism and Agritourism

Getting Engaged: Facilitating Virtual Events for Maximum Accessibility

Kathryn A. Stofer

Virtual and hybrid events present both challenges and opportunities for engaging persons with disabilities. In particular, accommodations for people who are blind or low vision, and deaf or hard of hearing, are common challenges that technology has been able to address but still require some work on the part of facilitators in similar manners to in-person events. Centering accessibility, however, opens up your events and often makes them more welcoming for non-disabled participants as well. This document will overview strategies for event facilitators for ensuring maximum accessibility for virtual events to allow a wide variety of participants.

Planning for Casual Public Engagement Events: The Example of “talk science with me”

Kathryn A. Stofer and Cheyenne Hoover

This guide to the UF/IFAS Extension scientific public engagement program, "talk science with me," is designed to help interested facilitators host their own version of the events.

Best Practices for Grant Development: Starting With the Idea

Kathryn A. Stofer

Grant writing has become an expectation for Extension faculty at the state and county level. However, aside from a few workshops provided by the university, new faculty may feel like they have few resources to help them sharpen their practices at applying for and securing grant funding. This publication is meant to support Extension professionals, especially at the county level, in building good grant development habits.

Emphasizing the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) in Agricultural Extension

Kathryn A. Stofer, Laura A. Warner, and Steven Arthurs

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Special Handling==

Preparing for Research Engagement at Conference Career Expo Booths

Kathryn A. Stofer, Md. Samiul Basir, Justin Pitts, Fabio A. Castiblanco, and Yaguang Zhang

Organizations, including research teams and centers, non-profits, industry and government recruiters, and university departments hoping to attract students, often staff tables at career expos such as those at national conferences. This publication, intended for anyone who may coordinate an organization’s representation at a similar event, will take you through the steps of planning, materials preparation, and setting up and staffing a conference booth at a career expo. This publication is one of a series related to work from the Internet of Things for Precision Agriculture (IoT4Ag), a National Science Foundation-funded Engineering Research Center. Written by Kathryn A. Stofer, Md. Samiul Basir, Justin Pitts, Fabio A. Castiblanco, and Yaguang Zhang, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, June 2025.

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: Creating a Community through Best Practices

Tyus D. Williams, Kathryn A. Stofer, Lisa Lundgren, and Kirsten Hecht

Creating a community is the way you establish and ultimately present yourself through social media, combining marketing strategy, content production, and community engagement. The objective of this new 5-page publication of the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication is to guide people through the preliminary stages of online community building to engage with a community about science. This document is part of a multipart series on social media titled Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research. Written by Tyus D. Williams, Kathryn A. Stofer, Lisa Lundgren, and Kirsten Hecht.

Creating and Maintaining Balance in News Consumption

Kathryn A. Stofer

Becoming informed about an issue does not happen overnight. This publication shares strategies for identifying sources, building habits, and becoming more confident in your knowledge on various current topics. Written by Kathryn A. Stofer, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, September 2024.

Helping Agritourism Visitors Learn During Their Visits

Kathryn Stofer and Joy N. Rumble

Agritourism is a growing industry in Florida, combining the state's assets in tourism and agriculture to provide a learning and entertainment opportunity for Florida residents and out-of-state visitors alike (Florida Agritourism Association, 2018). Adding agritourism to traditional production agriculture can provide operators with a new revenue stream, as well allow them to support local agriculture as a whole through education (Gil-Arroyo, Barbieri, & Rich, 2013). In order to support agritourism operators in offering meaningful programming to their visitors, this document outlines ways to incorporate meaningful educational opportunities into your operation. To support this, we present the results of focus groups with Florida residents as to their topical interests for learning about agriculture. This document is one of several on agritourism designed to help you improve or start your own agritourism operations.

Centering and Engaging Farmers in Technology Development to Facilitate Innovation Adoption: Designing Your Approach

Shiala M. Naranjo and Kathryn A. Stofer

Researchers, engineers, scientists, and program designers can use the information from this publication to engage better with farmers and to ensure programs and products from research are beneficial and easily adopted. This publication shares background on the importance of engagement and several high-level strategies for consideration as you approach engagement, especially for the first time, illustrated by the work of the IoT4Ag Center. Overall, the strategies center the farmer, addressing how to design engagement around audience needs, understand externalities, and determine shared values, highlighted by a case study of how engagement has gone wrong. Written by Shiala M. Naranjo and Kathryn A. Stofer, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, September 2025.

Factors Preventing Widespread Vaccine Uptake among Adults

Alissa V. Katsaras, Kathryn A. Stofer, Helen Yates, and LaToya J. O’Neal

This publication is part of the Adult Vaccination in Florida series. This document explores the prevailing factors preventing widespread vaccine uptake by adults in the United States and outlines the most relevant trends and patterns that are seen in direct connection to vaccine uptake among adults. Written by Alissa V. Katsaras, Kathryn A. Stofer, Helen Yates, and LaToya J. O’Neal, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, October 2024.

Preparing for One-on-One Qualitative Interviews: Designing and Conducting the Interview

Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered peer reviewed Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Special Handling==

Peach Consumption: A Profile of Purchasers and Non-Purchasers

Joy Rumble, Kara Harders, and Kathryn Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. Published by Nutrition and Food Systems

Getting Engaged: Improving Your Stakeholder Engagement Practices

Kathryn A. Stofer

This document is part of the Getting Engaged series, which is designed to help Extension and research faculty and other community engagement professionals improve their engagement with a variety of stakeholder audiences. This 4-page document provides basic information that will help faculty and other community professionals become more comfortable with engaging various stakeholder audiences.

Getting Engaged: Program and Event Planning for Clients of All Abilities

Kathryn Stofer

For event planners, it is important to be inclusive of people with diverse physical and mental abilities when establishing accommodations for programs or events. This publication is one in the series Getting Engaged, and will aid Extension professionals and other program/event planners in appropriately accommodating audiences and attendees with various needs.

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: Evaluating Your Success

Kirsten Hecht, Lisa Lundgren, Kathryn A. Stofer, and Tyus D. Williams

This new 5-page publication of the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication focuses on methods and tools for evaluating the success of your social media engagement. It is part of a series on using social media for engaging with the public about research, titled Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research. Written by Kirsten Hecht, Lisa Lundgren, Kathryn A. Stofer, and Tyus D. Williams.

Education and Facilitation Methods for Extension

Kathryn A. Stofer

This document outlines, compares, and contrasts methods that Extension professionals can use with their stakeholders to achieve these goals, including ways to turn traditional one-strategy program formats into programs incorporating multiple facilitation strategies.

Extension Professionals: Anticipating and Solving Common Challenges in Planning and Delivering Educational Programs

Laura A. Warner and Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Special Handling==

Making Action Easier: Behavioral Economics and Nudges for Extension Professionals

Laura A. Warner, Kathryn A. Stofer, and Hayk Khachatryan

A UF/IFAS numbered peer reviewed Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Special Handling==

Adult Vaccine Confidence and Disparities in Florida

Kathryn A. Stofer, Alissa V. Katsaras, Skye Dougan, and LaToya O’Neal

This first document in the Adult Vaccination in Florida series provides an overview of expert medical perspectives towards recommended vaccinations for adults in Florida as well as areas of recognized disparities. Written by Kathryn A. Stofer, Alissa V. Katsaras, Skye Dougan, and LaToya O’Neal, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, June 2024.

Preparing for One-on-One Qualitative Interviews: Logistics

Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered peer reviewed Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: ==Special Handling==

Visualizing Spatially Based Data for Various Stakeholder Audiences

Kathryn Stofer

The work of Extension professionals is often to translate complex research findings into practical recommendations. One of the tools used for communicating with Extension audiences is visual representation of data. These visualizations include graphs, charts, and data overlaid onto maps. Just as text and words must be thoughtfully prepared for broad understanding, images should be adapted from the forms used with highly knowledgeable audiences. This article sheet summarizes research in science communication and education that offers strategic ways for communicators to revise data visualizations for broad meaning-making.

Florida's Agritourism Laws

Mary Beth Henry and Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet for Commercial audience(s). in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: Ecotourism and Agritourism

Resources and Strategies to Build Vaccine Confidence among Adults

Kathryn A. Stofer, Alissa V. Katsaras, Skye Dougan, Miranda Jones, and LaToya J. O’Neal

As Extension continues to expand its purview in adult immunization education, it should provide strategies for communicating one-on-one and in smaller and larger groups, as well as links to resources to build confidence and promote access for adults who have lower confidence in or who may face barriers to vaccination in Florida. This publication is part of the Adult Vaccination in Florida series which examines the general trends in and reasons behind adult perceptions of vaccination. Written by Kathryn A. Stofer, Alissa V. Katsaras, Skye Dougan, Miranda Jones, and LaToya J. O’Neal, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, April 2025.

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: Basics

Kathryn A. Stofer, Lisa Lundgren, Kirsten Hecht, and Tyus D. Williams

A UF/IFAS numbered peer reviewed Fact Sheet for Academic audience(s). Published by ==Special Handling==

Using Social Media to Engage Communities with Research: Accessibility

Kathryn A. Stofer, Kirsten Hecht, and Lisa Lundgren

This new 6-page document, part of a series on using social media to engage communities with research, focuses on making your social media inclusive by integrating accessibility up front for individuals with disabilities of various types. Any Extension personnel, researchers, and other public engagement and communications personnel can benefit from these strategies. Written by Kathryn A. Stofer, Kirsten Hecht, and Lisa Lundgren, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication.

Florida Agritourism Building and Fire Codes

Mary Beth Henry and Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered peer reviewed Fact Sheet. Published by Ecotourism and Agritourism

Getting Engaged: “Public,” Stakeholder, and Community Engagement Practices for Researchers

Kathryn A. Stofer

This fact sheet is part of the Getting Engaged series that aims to help readers become more comfortable with engaging various stakeholder audiences. It is designed for agriscience, natural resources, or other science and engineering faculty with primarily natural or physical science backgrounds who want to get started in stakeholder engagement.

Getting Engaged: Resources to Support Community Engagement Practices

Kathryn A. Stofer

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: Citizen awareness of food systems and the environment

Promoting Ag Awareness through Commodity Fact Sheets

Kathryn A. Stofer, Jessica Sullivan, Joy Rumble, and Libbie Johnson

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. in support of UF/IFAS Extension program: Citizen awareness of food systems and the environment