Listening to EARS-What the FY 2008 Education and Administrative Report (EARS) said about SNAP nutrition education activities

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (previously the Food Stamp program) currently serves about 31 million people in the U.S.each month. SNAP is the nation's first line of defense against food insecurity and provides food resources as well as support for nutrition education to assist consumers in making healthier food choices. SNAP nutrition education (SNAP-Ed) is an important but optional part of the program. Over the past 18 years, the number of States offering nutrition education increased from 7 (1990) to 52 (2008) and the federal share of funding rose from $661,000 to about $350 million during this period. States are reimbursed for 50% of allowable expenditures. While most States provide annual reports, there is considerable variation in the types of information included and in definitions of data elements. As a result, there is very little national data available to describe the scope or reach of SNAP-Ed activities. FNS designed EARS to obtain uniform data and information about SNAP-Ed to inform management and policy decisions, enable the agency to describe SNAP-Ed services and answers questions from policy officials. EARS data also supports policy and legislative initiatives, budget requests, and planning at the national, state and local levels. FNS used a collaborative process in developing EARS that involved a diverse group of stakeholders in identify essential components. Development required over 4 years and included an assessment of existing reports, identification of essential content, field-testing, clearance, training, implementation and monitoring. The clearance process allowed opportunities for public review and input States. EARS implementation began in FY2008, and must be fully implemented by 2010. However, many States submitted full reports for FY 2008. The reports provide valuable insights about characteristics of participants, types and amounts of education delivered, behavioral goals, educational strategies, venues used to deliver SNAP-Ed and resources expended. EARS data paints a national picture of SNAP-Ed for policy officials and nutrition professionals. This presentation summarizes the developmental process for EARS, shares national FY 2008 data, discusses the utility and implications of the data, and outlines next steps.