Chris Branam

Public Issues Education Leader

I serve as the lead public information officer in the OSU Extension Communications office. I cover 4-H, Family and Community Health, Extension Outdoor School and Oregon Sea Grant Extension. I can be reached at 541-737-2940.

541-737-2940
[email protected]

Department/Unit: Extension Communications

Biography

Originally from Fresno, I worked as a newspaper reporter and editor for nearly 20 years before moving to university communications in 2012. I joined Extension Communications in December 2016. I cover 4-H, Family and Community Health, Open Campus, Outdoor School, and Oregon Sea Grant Extension.

Content by Chris Branam

OSU Extension garden-themed nutrition lesson teaches second graders how to plant healthy vegetables

Hundreds of schools across Oregon received seed-starting classroom kits through the Grow This! Oregon Garden Challenge, OSU Extension’s statewide seed giveaway.

Chris Branam | May 17, 2023 | News story

Juntos National Convening features celebrations, innovative ideas and networking

OSU’s Juntos program is now the largest in the country based on the number of communities it serves. North Carolina State is No. 2.

Chris Branam | May 12, 2023 | News story

Food Hero adds annual garden calendar to its growing catalog of gardening resources

More than 100,000 thousand copies – 80,000 in English and 25,000 in Spanish were produced for distribution through OSU Extension offices and Oregon Department of Human Services field offices across the state.

Chris Branam | Mar 24, 2023 | News story

Watch chickens hatch on OSU Extension’s popular livestream

Since the annual livestream launched in 2014, more than 83,400 people from around the world have watched chicks hatching on the OSU Extension website and more have watched on TV station websites.

Chris Branam | Mar 10, 2023 | News story

Using logs, OSU Extension teaches kids how to grow mushrooms for food

It was the first time that Mandy Hatfield, a nutrition educator, and Alicia Christiansen, a forester, had worked together on a project.

Chris Branam | Feb 28, 2023 | News story

OSU Extension statewide seed giveaway set to return for fourth year

Starting Feb. 6, individuals and households, schools and groups can sign up to receive an individual/household seed kit, group kit or seed-starting teacher classroom kit through the mail. 

Chris Branam | Feb 3, 2023 | News story

Coba, Bales appointed to represent OSU Extension on national land-grant advocacy council

Coba and Bales will represent Oregon State University Extension Service on the Council for Agricultural Research, Extension and Teaching

Chris Branam | Feb 1, 2023 | News story

OSU Extension vaccination outreach creates comfortable environments

Featuring music and food, the Building Immunity by Building Communities town hall-style event in Corvallis drew about 60 people.

Chris Branam | Jan 25, 2023 | News story

Coordinators with deep ties to their communities join Open Campus and Juntos

Nayeli Contreras will serve as coordinator for Malheur, Morrow and Umatilla counties. Emily Chavez Romero will serve as coordinator for Deschutes and Jefferson counties and provide support for the program in Crook County.

Chris Branam | Dec 15, 2022 | News story

Extension faculty and staff honored for dedication, innovation and contributions

The OSU Extension Association (OSUEA) presented its annual awards, and the Gamma Chapter of Epsilon Sigma Phi – the national association for Extension professionals – recognized its chapter and national winners. The Extension ...

Chris Branam | Dec 12, 2022 | News story

New OSU podcast aims to broaden understanding of being an Oregonian

The podcast is a vehicle to to share stories from across the state that broaden and deepen our understanding of what it means to be an Oregonian.

Chris Branam | Nov 1, 2022 | News story

Fusion of music and technology draws teens to 4-H Mariachi STEAM Camp

The summer residential camp brings students to the OSU campus to expose them to technology through their interest in mariachi music.

Chris Branam | Oct 24, 2022 | News story

Extension Internship Program concludes third year with record participation

The goal is to provide a meaningful service-learning experience for students, and they could learn more about OSU Extension and its land-grant mission.

Chris Branam | Sep 23, 2022 | News story

Marine scientist hired as new Oregon Sea Grant Extension coastal hazards specialist

Felicia Olmeta-Schult succeeds Patrick Corcoran, who retired in 2020 after 32 years with Sea Grant Extension.

Chris Branam | Aug 19, 2022 | News story

4-H Investigators at Home provides summer enrichment for students and families

Students receive a monthly box designed for third- through fifth-grade students with activities, instructions and all the needed materials to explore hands-on STEAM activities.

Chris Branam | Aug 18, 2022 | News story

Denny named OSU associate vice provost for engagement

As associate vice provost, Denny will build, sustain and implement a compelling vision of the role of Extension and engagement within the university and Oregon communities, and regionally and internationally.

Chris Branam | Jul 29, 2022 | News story

Releasing non-native fish to control mosquitoes is often ineffective and harmful to environment

"Do-it-yourself” solutions aren’t effective for mosquito control, and they aren’t good for the environment.

Chris Branam | Jul 29, 2022 | News story

Outdoor School leader named OSU Extension associate director

Elliott has been the director of the OSU Extension statewide Outdoor School Program since 2017.

Chris Branam | Jun 7, 2022 | News story

Caregivers have a new resource for trauma-informed nutrition and feeding

OSU Extension has partnered with the nonprofit organization SPOON to launch “Nourished and Thriving Children” a free, self-paced course that contains eight learning modules that focus on the six principles of trauma-informed ...

Chris Branam | May 18, 2022 | News story

Extension taps Hibbard-Swanson for new food safety and security position

Jared Hibbard-Swanson is OSU Extension's inaugural program manager for food security and safety.

Chris Branam | Apr 4, 2022 | News story

OSU Extension organizes community preparedness for extreme smoke in the Columbia River Gorge

Extension's work will result in better smoke monitoring, better communication and reduced levels of smoke in the air in the Columbia River Gorge.

Chris Branam | Mar 16, 2022 | News story

Clackamas 4-H volunteer’s compassion leads to donation in her name

The Clackamas 4-H Horse Advisory Board recently voted to use the $750 donation made in Shirley Byrne's name to pay for all of the members’ pre-fair entry fees.

Chris Branam | Mar 1, 2022 | News story

Oregon 4-H boasts several top-10 results at national horse, poultry contests

Oregon 4-H finished second in horse bowl, third in horse judging and 10th in hippology at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup, and sixth in avian bowl at the National 4-H Poultry and Egg Conference.

Chris Branam | Feb 3, 2022 | News story

Juntos expands to serve Hillsboro students and families

Juntos, which has served students and families in the Forest Grove School District since 2018, expanded to Hill High School in Hillsboro in the spring of 2021.

Chris Branam | Nov 30, 2021 | News story

Linn County couple inducted into National 4-H Hall of Fame

Fay and Sherm Sallee were among 16 people inducted for their achievements and contributions to 4-H in a ceremony held on Thursday at Gallaudet University in Washington, D.C.

Chris Branam | Oct 15, 2021 | News story

Extension promotes awareness of federal Emergency Broadband Benefit

So far, more than 46,000 Oregon households have signed up for the program.

Chris Branam | Sep 24, 2021 | News story

Extension begins grassroots effort to increase vaccine uptake among Latinos

OSU Extension, through its Family and Community Health Program in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences, has received grants to accelerate its local outreach to improve vaccine confidence and uptake in the state’s Latino population.

Chris Branam | Aug 19, 2021 | News story

Extension offers free summer day camps for first time at Oregon 4-H Center

The camps will feature arts and crafts, STEM learning, canoeing, fishing, archery, swimming and more.

Chris Branam | Aug 4, 2021 | News story

Oregon 4-H’ers finish in top 20 at national shooting sports championships

Oregon 4-H sent a delegation of 12 competitors and four coaches to Nebraska, which hosted the championships in June at the Heartland Public Shooting Park,

Chris Branam | Aug 3, 2021 | News story

Sea Grant Extension Shop at the Dock tours return to Oregon Coast

Participants are given behind-the-scenes guided tours of commercial fishing docks to learn about how seafood is caught and how to buy it directly from fishermen selling off their boats.

Chris Branam | Jul 27, 2021 | News story

Middle-school cooking class leads to serious conversations about food

A benefit of students making meals at home was that they were able to work independently and create a whole dish, unlike in the classroom environment in which they would work in groups on a single aspect.

Chris Branam | Jun 21, 2021 | News story

OSU accelerates local efforts to improve Latinx vaccine confidence and uptake

Oregon's Latinx population has been disproportionately affected by the pandemic and whose vaccination rate lags behind other races and ethnicities.

Chris Branam | Jun 16, 2021 | News story

OSU Virtual Art Show provides creative outlet for Portland-area youth

The show features the works of 25 young artists opened at the OSU Portland Center. The pieces include digital art, ceramics, watercolor and acrylic painting and even a musical composition.

Chris Branam | Jun 10, 2021 | News story

New OSU Center for the Outdoor Recreation Economy will support $788 billion U.S. industry

Based in OSU’s Division of Extension and Engagement, partners in the center are the College of Forestry and OSU-Cascades in Bend.

Chris Branam | May 26, 2021 | News story

A cold soak lowers the risk of salmonella growth on ‘sprouted’ foods

If the soaking phase happens at ambient temperature, there is a significant food safety problem, study finds.

Chris Branam | May 3, 2021 | News story

OSU Extension uses statewide network to encourage participation in vaccinations

Efforts include volunteering at mass vaccination clinics, using the OSU Extension website to curate credible vaccine information and provide local access and eligibility details, and working closely with state and local partners to ...

Chris Branam | Apr 12, 2021 | News story

Healthy choices are on the menu in new virtual central Oregon nutrition class

The weekly Eat for Life classes, which began in March, have been taught in English by Katie Ahern, an Extension nutrition educator in Deschutes County, and in Spanish by Diana Cardenas, a nutrition educator in Linn County.

Chris Branam | Apr 2, 2021 | News story

Growing Healthy Kids, featuring video lessons, returns for spring

The video lessons, about eight to 10-minutes long, give students opportunities to learn basic plant parts and encourage students to try a variety of fruits and vegetables using their senses.

Chris Branam | Apr 1, 2021 | News story

Webinar series launches to prepare Oregonians for wildfire season

The “Wildfire Wednesdays” webinar series launches March 17 with a noon-1 p.m. presentation by Extension’s Forestry and Natural Resources Program’s Fire Program team. Webinars are scheduled for March 31, April 14, April 28, May 19, June 2 and June 16.

Chris Branam | Mar 11, 2021 | News story

StrongWomen participants and volunteers gain a resource in new website

The website provides participants with everything they need to know about the program, including exercise videos that allow them to follow along at home.

Chris Branam | Feb 24, 2021 | News story

4-H youths learn emergency preparedness through Extension initiative

MyPI Oregon is a a leadership and educational outreach program training youths to help their communities during disasters, specifically the predicted Cascadia Earthquake.

Chris Branam | Feb 22, 2021 | News story

Farm To School and School Garden programs innovate during pandemic

Extension Farm to School and School Garden educators in Klamath and Lincoln counties came up with creative alternatives to face-to-face experiences.

Chris Branam | Feb 10, 2021 | News story

Oregon Sea Grant Extension uses pandemic survey results to guide its work

The findings have already helped guide Sea Grant Extension’s response to the emergency.

Chris Branam | Jan 6, 2021 | News story

Extension assists with COVID-19 testing in Columbia, Washington counties

So far, the Columbia County clinics have resulted in 585 tests. Extension volunteers are helping with traffic flow, registration, and supporting the medical team with quality control checks.

Chris Branam | Dec 23, 2020 | News story

Tillamook 4-H stitches together a lasting holiday hat-making tradition

Tillamook 4-H sewing clubs, which have gone by different names over the years, have created roughly 100 hats each year over the last 15 years.

Chris Branam | Dec 21, 2020 | News story

High school students serve up meals at home through adapted cooking class

OSU Extension provides weekly video resources, recipes and a detailed syllabus to guide the students as they cook recipes at home.

Chris Branam | Dec 14, 2020 | News story

Garden box project helps increase food security for Warm Springs families

The Grow Where You Are project is helping tribal members on the Warm Springs reservation grow their own food at home through garden kits.

Chris Branam | Dec 7, 2020 | News story

New resource infuses Indigenous studies concepts into outdoor education

The free course is designed to surface some of the common assumptions and misinformation about Indigenous people and cultures, particularly as they relate to outdoor school in Oregon.

Chris Branam | Nov 19, 2020 | News story

4-H youth explore nature and learn a healthy activity in new hiking club

Youths in the fourth through sixth grades gained a better understanding of how to enjoy hiking safely, while at the same time they experienced a lifelong activity that promotes a healthy and active lifestyle

Chris Branam | Nov 18, 2020 | News story

Pacific Northwest youth to explore agriculture through virtual reality, other online activities

Oregon State University’s Precollege Programs and the SMILE Program are partnering with the OSU Extension Service 4-H Youth Development Program to lead the effort to implement an innovative Agriculture Distance Education Toolkit.

Chris Branam | Nov 13, 2020 | News story

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