Author: Edwin Ritchey
Major Program: Natural Resources
This short publication was developed to supplement the 4-H Land Judging publication in 2017. The publication has been downloaded over 31.600 times since it was developed. This includes downloads from 178 different countries and over 1,800 institutions. This publication continues to be used heavily all over the world.
We revised the 4-H Land Judging publication to better align with the current NRCS and Cooperative Extension recommendations. Practice standards have changed over the years and we need to keep current with the recommended conservation practice standards. These new practices also better align with National Land Judging contest so the state winners that go to the National Contest are more familiar with the National Contest rules. We also added a Home Site Evaluation to the State contest for the urb
Author: Austin Brewer
On March 31st-April 1st, 2022, 4H Agents from the Franklin County Extension Office facilitated an overnight “Environmental Camp” at J M Feltner Memorial 4-H Camp for 71 fourth grade students from Peaks Mill Elementary School. An overnight camp with an emphasis on Environmental Studies not only builds partnerships between local schools and Franklin County’s 4-H program, but also connects lessons from the classroom to the real world, sparks student interest in the environme
Author: Brittany Osborne
In September 2022, 4-Her Caleb was among an elite group selected to be on the Kentucky 4-H Shotgun GOLD TEAM. After dedicating his time to attending practices for the State Team, hard work paid off! Caleb will be competing at the National 4-H Shooting Sports Competition as one of only FOUR youth representing the Kentucky 4-H Shotgun GOLD TEAM. This is the first time ever Kentucky 4-H is sending a team and it's an honor to have Caleb represent 4-H and our state! Caleb ha
Author: Courtney Brock
In a typical week, The National Wildlife Foundation notes that only 6% of children ages 9-13 play outside, while kids in this same age group devote over 7 hours per day to electronic entertainment, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. In order to combat this epidemic, the Lincoln County 4-H Council, as well as the Lincoln County Extension District Board has identified a goal of creating increased awareness, knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to make informed choices regarding healthy
Author: Alyssa Cox
Kentucky 4-H Shooting Sports began in 1988 and is a nationally recognized program that focuses on fostering life skills and positive youth development through healthy competition, service, leadership, and education. The Rockcastle County Extension Council identified the 4-H Shooting Sports program as a top priority for the Agent who accepted the vacant 4-H Youth Development position. In their list of desires for the new 4-H Agent, they wanted them to be able to start a Shooting Sports club
Author: Rebecca Hayes
The 4-H Homeschool Club worked year long to plan and develop a pollinator garden at the Extension Office. They researched the best flowers, the size, the location, how to manage it, and anything else that was needed. They prepped the ground and planted seeds in seed starters. They then passed the project on to the county's Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences Ambassador, who is also a state Pollinator Ambassador. She taught a group of 9 youth how to plant flowers, how pollination wor
Author: Meagan Klee
A child’s behavior can suffer from an absence of the outdoors. This became an increasing issue during the coronavirus pandemic and the months following as quarantining, isolation, and virtual learning led individuals to stay indoors more often. Nature-Deficit Disorder, coined by Richard Louv in 2005, “is a nonmedical condition that attributes behavioral changes in children to less time spent outdoors”. (https://parentology.com/what-is-nature-deficit-disorder/)To provide additio
Author: Mollie Tichenor
Getting its start in 1988 Kentucky 4-H Shooting Sports is one of the largest 4-H programs in the state with over 2,000 youth enrolled, and more than 850 certified volunteer leaders across 80 counties. Even with its continued success within the state, youth from Kentucky had never participated in the National 4-H Shooting Sports Championship put on annually by the National 4-H Shooting Sports Committee. While not the focus of our program, competition still plays an important role in positive
Author: Blake Newton
In 2022, I worked Dr. Larson (UK Entomology Professor) and Carl Harper (Uk Entomology staff, Office of the State Entomologist) to develop the 4-H KY Keepers programs. KY Keepers are a group of 4-Hers from around the state who work to monitor invasive pests. This year, they focused their efforts on the Spongy Moth. The Spongy Moth is an invasive insect that is already established in the northeastern United States, where it has defoliated an estimated 95 million acres over the last century and cau
In late 2011, news came from the National 4-H Council of a grant opportunity related to pollinator education. With less than a month to prepare, Ashley Osborne (4-H Youth Development State Extension Specialist) and I worked together to write, submit, and receive the grant. The $15,000, one-year grant focuses on teen leadership: with the help of county 4-H agents, we selected 10 4-H teens from around the state to become Pollinator Ambassadors. Their job is to educate younger youth about the impor
Author: Tyrone Gentry
Green County Cooperative Extension partners with Archery in the SchoolTeaching youth ethical and safe handling of archery equipment is critical to protecting our youth and empowering them as adults to be positive influencers of future generations. Green County Cooperative Extension partners with Archery in Schools to offer safety and practice sessions where youth can gain confidence and practice in making and demonstrating their skills. For the past eight years, over fifty youth annu
Author: Dianna Reed
The Johnson County CEC and Adult 4-H Council determined that Leadership, Citizenship, Ag and Natural Resources were important priorities for the Johnson County 4-H Youth Development Education program. In a effort to address these topics, the 4-H Agent, local teen club leader and a teen club member worked together to complete a Monarch and Pollinator Way Station. As a result during this process, the existing 4X4 pollinator plot at the Extension Office was expanded to a 12x12 plot to meet the offi
Author: Logan Sasser
When I began this position last August, I knew that I wanted to start the most successful shooting sports program in eastern Kentucky. With with help of some incredible community members and volunteers I believe we are on our way to doing just that. When we began recruiting at the start of February, we were hoping that we would be able to keep a good core of kids and maintain attendance around 10-15. With the help of Chris Woods and Chris Fugate, our program has exploded in the county and we are
Author: DJ Scully
The COVID-19 pandemic affected schools’ abilities to take field trips to the Campbell County Environmental Education Center. Now that society is returning to our new normal, school are utilizing the center for field trips conducted by the County Extension Agent for Natural Resources and Environmental Management. A Reiley Elementary School teacher (Alexandria, KY) commented, “Students need real world experiences, and this field trip fits perfectly. Our students haven’t been on a
Author: Ashley Marcum
University of Kentucky : College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment Kentucky 4-H Shooting Sports National Championship 2022 Ashley Marcum, Extension Specialist Getting its start in 1988 Kentucky 4-H Shooting Sports is one of the largest 4-H programs in the state with over 2,000 youth enrolled, and more than 850 certified volunteer leaders across 80 counties. Even with its continued success within the state, youth from Kentucky had never participated in the National 4-H Sho
Author: Marsha Hagler
Nelson County, Kentucky is county that has very diverse ecosystems. Driving through the county you see knobs areas, flat areas, karst areas, farm land, residential and so much more. One common thread throughout our community is that it all parts of our culture and economy are very closely tied to water. The agriculture community and the bourbon industry thrive because of easy access to water that is rich in minerals from the limestone in the area. The community has seen a
Author: David Gabbard
On June 21st the Owen County Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development collaborated with the Kentucky Division of Forestry, the Owen County Extension Agent for Family and Consumer Sciences, and the Owen County Moms group to tech children about native trees, what uses them, how to protect them and about their leaves. We used the Owen County Park for this project, we walked approximately 1 mile. The youth that attended were learning all about trees that might grow in their own backyard. After we w
