| Public organizations have always searched for methods to increase impact while minimizing cost. This research compares a traditional approach to public service delivery to an alternative, volunteer-based approach. Texas Cooperative Extension (TCE) provides the setting for the research. TCE has County Extension Agents (CEAs) in every county, and one of the core discipline areas is health and nutrition education. Volunteer-based programming is an idea that has been suggested by agency administrators as a method to extend health education further into the community. However, some CEAs have resisted due to a belief that this strategy would result in a sacrifice of quality, and there has been little evidence to document the effectiveness of such an approach. This research uses a quasi-experimental design to compare outcomes from volunteer-led education sessions to outcomes from professional-led sessions in adjacent urban counties. Specifically, the Dallas CEA recruited, trained, and monitored volunteers as they presented a six-month health and nutrition education series at various locations in the county. At the same time, the Tarrant CEA implemented the same series to groups directly. The basic measure of effectivness in the education series is change in specific health behaviors targeted by the program, such as increasing physical activity, eating proper portion sizes, variety within the diet, and increasing fruit and vegetable consumption. Pre- and post-evaluations were completed by participants and analyzed to determine whether any significant behavior change occurred by the end of the series. Comparison of matched outcomes and of cost-effectiveness in the two approaches indicates that volunteers can be a viable method of extending health education further into the community. Findings support further exploration of volunteer use. |
