Kentucky State University opens new extension office in Barren County

GLASGOW, Ky. – Kentucky State University has made its way to Barren County with a new cooperative extension office located at 107 Myrtle Street in Glasgow.

“We just really feel good about this happening and making our juncture even tighter. Congratulations to each of you,” mayor Henry Royse said during his speech at Thursday’s ribbon cutting.

The College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources is going to be the main users of the facility, and their dean actually scouted the location himself.

“I visited Barren County with one of the farmers about August 2024, and I said it would be great to establish a Kentucky State Cooperative Extension presence here to serve our farmers,” Dr. Marcus Bernard says.

There’s one main reason he decided to choose Barren County specifically to plant their flag.

“Hay production in Barren County is top tier, one of the most productive crops in the county, and so we wanted to see how can we help improve and work with the farmers here to make it more profitable and a better product,” Bernard says.

Associate Dean Dr. Avinash Tope agrees, saying that production is why they couldn’t go anywhere else in the Commonwealth.

“This is the largest hay producing county, you have the most cattle intense county. This is where the services are needed the most, and that’s the reason we couldn’t go anywhere else but here,” he says.

Tope has one message for the community at large as the new office opens.

“We are here to help. Let’s help one another and let’s see all those dreams come true,” he says.