I Know MI Numbers

Michigan residents and communities face critical problems that affect their quality of life, challenge government and household budgets and put Michigan’s recovery at risk.The quality of our water, rising levels of obesity–especially among children, fiscal soundness of local governments, low achievement in science literacy and low levels of child-readiness for entering school are just five issues that threaten Michigan’s efforts to move forward. All five are identified as critical issues on Gov. Rick Snyder’s “dashboard” to measure how Michigan is faring.

To help win these battles, Michigan State University Extension (MSUE) is encouraging all Michigan residents to understand how their personal actions can make a difference for themselves and the state.  MSU Extension is launching targeted, focused programs to be executed over the next six-to-nine months that take aim at these specific, chronic challenges. The programs constitute the I Know MI Numbers effort.

The I Know MI Numbers initiative is intended to inspire Michigan residents to actively engage in understanding what “numbers” translate into healthier living, a cleaner environment and educational achievement. The I Know MI Numbers initiative identifies indicators that reflect critical elements of an improved Michigan and mirror indicators used by the State of Michigan dashboard. 

Read an overview of the success of the I Know MI Numbers initiatives. 

Agriculture that Protects Michigan’s Waters

Michigan’s economic future and quality of life depend on the agriculture sector thriving and the innovation of Michigan’s agriculturalists taking on responsibility for practices that protect and enhance our state’s natural resources. Water is a tremendous resource in Michigan for agriculture, manufacturing, tourism and recreation.  Clean and safe water resources are crucial to our quality of life and a bright economic future.  Water quality is one of the 21 metrics on the governor’s dashboard. 

The I Know MI Numbers program was successful in:

• Preventing nearly a million pounds of nitrogen from being used on almost 90,000 acres.
• Helping surveyed farmers save nearly 6 million gallons of water.
• Encouraging the use of cover crops, which has prevented more than 500,000 tons of soil sediment loss and nearly 137,000 pounds of phosphorus from making its way to surface waters.

Read more about how I Know MI Numbers uses agriculture to protect Michigan’s waters

Reducing Adult Obesity

In Genesee and Saginaw counties, 34 percent of the adult population is considered obese – the highest in the state. This MSU Extension program aims to reduce individual’s BMI through education, activities and peer support. Working with faith-based organizations, worksites and through its existing programming, MSU Extension lead nutrition education classes with an increased emphasis on obesity reduction.

The I Know MI Numbers program was successful in:    

• Helping nearly 7,000 Saginaw and Genesee County residents improve their diets and increase physical activity.

Of participants who were measured as part of a 10-week program:

• About 65 percent had lost weight.
• Half increased their daily intake of vegetables to at least 2.5 cups a day.
• The number of days they were doing moderate activity increased on average from about two days to more than three days.

Helping our Cities and Towns Succeed

Local governments and school districts in Michigan make up a $50 billion enterprise that provides basic public services such as police patrols, ambulance service, clean water, open space and parks and education. And in Michigan, this enterprise is increasingly under financial stress. Lower tax revenues, less state revenue sharing and a sluggish economy have put many Michigan counties, cities, villages and townships in serious financial stress threatening these basic public services. In responding to this crisis, the governor and Legislature are providing new tools for elected and appointed local officials.

 MSU Extension educators, working with partners from the legal and financial sectors, are providing the educational foundation for local officials to use these new tools, address the fiscal crisis and reduce the cost of government. 

The I Know MI Numbers program was successful in:    

• Creating a searchable database with hundreds of fiscal indicators for each one of the 1,856 counties, cities, towns, villages and townships in Michigan.
• Educating hundreds of government workers and community leaders about changes to state revenue sharing guidelines and managing fiscal crises guidelines.

Read more about how I Know MI Numbers helps cities and towns succeed.

Increasing Early Childhood Literacy

More than a third of children enter kindergarten without the pre-reading skills needed to benefit from the instruction they receive. MSU Extension partnered with the Molina Foundation to distribute 50,000 books across the state to help improve early childhood literacy. The books were bundled with other learning resources that give parents and caregivers the tools they need to better prepare Michigan’s youngest learners for a lifetime of greater literacy and greater success. Supporting literacy education is how MSU Extension helps our youngest citizens to be reading at grade level by the third grade.

The I Know MI Numbers program was successful in:    

• Distributing nearly 200,000 free books to children aged 8 and under in 43 Michigan counties.
• Training parents and caregivers of nearly 10,000 children to help children improve reading proficiency. About 96 percent said they would read to their children more often as a result of the training.
• Distributing books to more than 10,000 kids through 4-H programs designed to decrease the decline in reading skills over the summer.

Read more about how I Know MI Numbers helps increase childhood literacy.

Improving Science Literacy

MSU Extension has a long history of providing science education in a non-formal setting that uses an experiential, learn-by-doing method.  Science literacy for school-aged youth in Michigan is below the national average. MSU Extension supports teachers across Michigan with resources, experiments and lesson plans around three science focus areas: biology (animal and veterinary sciences), plant sciences and environmental sciences (including bioenergy). After-school and community-based programs such as 4-H Science Blast and National 4-H Youth Science Day events were held across the state. Combined, these efforts help improve student science scores in schools and connect classroom learning with real world experiences.

The I Know MI Numbers program was successful in:    

• Holding 54 4-H “Science Blast!” events that reached more than 12,000 people around the state. About 90 percent of the attending youth said the event made them want to learn more about science.
• Distributing more than 230 4-H Science Blast! in the Class teacher’s guides to science education providers. Roughly 90 percent of them say the guide will help them teach science to youth, and 92 percent say the guide will help youth learn science concepts.

Read more about how I Know MI Numbers helps improve science literacy and college preparedness.