Author: Kara Back-Campbell
Major Program: Agriculture 4-H Core Curriculum
The second annual Horticulture Day Camp was held this past summer for 4-Hers. This camp not only gives kids an opportunity to participate in fun summer activities, but it also is a fun educational opportunity as well. The 4-H kids learned about various horticulture topics such as plant propagation, pollinators, and how the care of different types of plants can be unique, for example succulents in relation to a willow tree. The 4-Hers also prepared the
Author: Laura Huffman
Forbes Magazine states “Millennials and younger youth are struggling to pass life skills 101 in todays society”. However, opportunities in the Hart County 4-H Program are more than just project related, 4-H teaches youth skills that will help them stand out as young adults. For the past several years the Horses @ Hart 4-H Club lead by Hart County 4-H volunteers have taught a variety of lessons on equine science, showmanship, horse judging, communications, equine nutrition
The Hart County and Caverna School Systems asked the Hart County 4-H Program to work with students in the classrooms on science related topics. The 4-H Youth Development Agent developed a variety of science related lessons for youth of all ages. One of those lessons included studying life cycles. A series of six lessons were developed for youth in kindergarten through 4th grade. The 4-H program also provided a visual hands on learning opportunity for youth to incubate fertile e
Author: Jacob Brandenburg
Lee County 4-H partnered with Lee County FFA to write a $1000 dollar KVEC grant. The purpose of this grant was to conduct educational workshops around the importance of Honey Bees and other pollinators. Orval Bennet and CEA Jacob Brandenburg received this grant to purchase two bee hives and the equipment needed to maintain them. These two organization will partner in the fall and spring of the coming year to promote pollinator habitat and provide education on the importance of pollinators such a
Author: Christopher Boyd
There are necessary skills that all individuals need in order to be successful productive members of society. These skills include responsibility, punctuality, determination, and a good work ethic. With an unemployment rate of 8.1% (homefacts.com) in Greenup County it is important to teach our youth the basic life skills they need in order to be competitive in the work force. That is why the Greenup County Extension Council has identified enhancing life skills of our youth as a
Author: Catherine Weaver
Jessamine County Livestock ChallengeThe Jessamine County 4-H Program has partnered with the Jessamine County FFA to put on the Livestock Fitting show for many years. This show dates back to the 1970’s, and used to be solely run by our FFA department as a way for Beef exhibitors to share their knowledge with non ag youth. The fitting show was just a showmanship show to give youth a chance to practice and start out the show season. As youth livestock numbers have continued to inc
Author: Brandon Darst
According to YOUTH AND AGRICULTURE: KEY CHALLENGES AND CONCRETE SOLUTIONS, a coordinated response to increase youth’s access to the agricultural sector is more important than ever. Rising global population and decreasing agricultural productivity gains imply that young people must play a pivotal role in ensuring a food-secure future for themselves and for future generations.The CES recognizes that urban youth in the community do not receive much agricultural interaction or education.  
Author: Paula Tarry
One of the goals of the LABO International exchange program states “KY 4-H Families and youth have the opportunity to make a lasting connection with a child from a different culture”. That goal was achieved in the Spring, as one of the LABO students who had stayed eight years ago with a Barren County 4-H family returned for a two week visit. He commented to the newspaper reporter that he “wanted to see the difference in us after so many years. Big difference.”
Author: Stacey Potts
The Kentucky 4-H Horse Program has multiple objectives including developing leadership, self-reliance, promoting a greater love for animals and humane treatment of them, experiencing the pride of working with a horse, pony, or mule and being responsible for its management and welfare, enhancing horsemanship skills and increasing knowledge of basic safety precautions. District 6 North 4-H Horse Camp is an overnight experience which includes educational workshops, riding time under the super
Author: Larissa Tucker
The current population in well removed from the daily agriculture production system. This leads to a lot of misinformation about how food is produced and the safety of the food being produced. One way to help combat this misinformation is by allowing the public to tour farms and maybe even bringing a small part of the farm to them. During this program year over 700 youth have been exposed to the dairy industry in a positive manner through dairy farm tours, agriculture field tri
Author: Joe Maynard
Plants are essential to the balance of nature and in people's lives. Green plants, i.e., those possessing chlorophyll, manufacture their own food and give off oxygen during photosynthesis. Plants are the ultimate source of food and metabolic energy for nearly all animals, which cannot manufacture their own food. Besides foods (e.g., grains, fruits, and vegetables), plant products vital to humans include wood and wood products, fibers, drugs, oils, latex, pigments, and resins. Coal and petrol
Author: Madison McAlmond
4-H Chili Supper and Live AuctionThe Nicholas County 4-H Council hosted a chili supper and live auction on Saturday March 23rd to support the Nicholas County 4-H Camping program. Over the years our camping program has reached on average 90 people per year, this year we are able to take even more to camp at 130. Being able to take more people this year we knew we needed to have a way to provide camp at the base price and be able to provide scholarships. The Nicholas County 4-H Council worked hard
Author: Deana Reed
The Junior Master Gardener program is an international youth gardening program of the university cooperative Extension network. JMG engages children in novel, “hands-on” group and individual learning experiences that provide a love of gardening, develop an appreciation for the environment, and cultivate the mind. In spring 2019, JMG hosted a pilot test for their Early Childhood Learn, Grow, Eat & GO! Curriculum; the curriculum was developed around the six main plant parts
Author: Jeremiah Johnson
For many years, Henderson County has had a strong livestock program. Due to its size, it sometimes was difficult to make sure all youth were being served and given the same opportunities. Since 2014 Henderson County has been in the process of developing a livestock club to help organize our local livestock program. Currently there are 31 youth that completed club work in 2015-2016 year. The 4-H members completed record books this year to help them determine their profits and losses, as well as k
Author: Julie Brown
Julie Brown, Warren Co. Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development, and Catherine Webster, Simpson Co. Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development, served as the co-contact agents for the 2019 South Central KY 4-H Horse Camp. This was the 40th year for horse camp. There were four planning meetings with the committee which included twelve volunteers from Mammoth Cave Extension counties, three of which served as tri-chairs for the camp. Ninety-eight youth and 120 adults attended the
Author: Matthew Chadwick
Tractor Short CourseIn conjunction with our county FFA program, we had the second annual tractor short course. Youth from ages 8-17 participated in 6 sessions over a three-month period. If they attended four of the six sessions and assisted with the antique tractor show, they earned the reward of attending the National Farm Machinery Show in Louisville. In total we had 8 4-Her participate fully in the program and attend the award trip.
Mitch Daniels, Contributing columnist of Washington Post, June 11, 2019 wrote in his article “In farm children, I see virtues that one sees too rarely these days” “Along with the rise of women and the expansion of civil rights, the most important social transformation of America’s first quarter-millennium has been the triumph of modern agriculture over famine and the ceaseless, backbreaking effort simply to feed one’s self that had been the dominant fact
Author: T. Adam Probst
Each year the Woodford County Extension Service offers a 4-H Lawn Tractor Safety program and driving competition. Taught and led by the ANR Agent, 14 youth participated in 2018. Those 14 youth all learned proper safety precautions when operating and working around machinery and equipment, then was able to directly apply it in the driving competition course. Eleven months later two youth stated that they still apply the lessons they learned through that course into their daily l
