Author: Bernita Cheirs
Major Program: Community Vitality and Leadership – 4-H Youth Development
According to the National Home Education Research Institute, about 3.1 million homeschooled students in grades K-12 in the United States in 2021- 2022. According to the John Hopkins School of Education, 5% of Kentucky’s K-12 students were homeschooled. In Kentucky's far Mississippi River counties, the number of homeschooled students seems to have significantly increased since the COVID-19 pandemic. As this number continues to rise, homeschool families are looking to take advantage of E
Author: Dawna Peters
It is inspiring to see the dedication and effort put into fundraising for Leslie County 4-H. Initiatives like the Chocolate Covered Strawberry Fundraiser, Ghost Walk, and Annual Silent Auction clearly play a vital role in supporting the youth programs, especially given the economic challenges in the area.The Chocolate Covered Strawberry Fundraiser has always turned out to be a remarkable success, demonstrating the community's support. The Ghost Walk at Wendover not only raised funds but also
Author: Melissa Goodman
Author: Shelley Crawford
Teen Conference 2024Success StoryThe 100th Annual Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference took place at the University of Kentucky from June 11th to 14th, 2024. The conference aimed to achieve several objectives for its participants, including developing leadership and teamwork skills, improving communication abilities, fostering civic engagement, expanding knowledge in 4-H core content areas, and enhancing social skills through networking. Additionally, the event provided an opportunity for youth to becom
Author: Charles Stamper
Many times 4-H Youth Development Agents feel they go from one activity to another activity without understanding the depth of what they are teaching. This leads to employee distress and burnout and and a lack of engagement from Agents, Assistants, and Collaborators. The Kentucky 4-H Youth Development Program designed the 4-H Youth Development Institute (YDI) in 2016 to address this issue. YDI is a 12-month intensive educational experience focusing on ensuring 4-H Professionals understand &q
Author: Rhonda Jewell
The primary goal of the Cloverbuds program (youth ages 5-8) is to promote children's healthy development - mentally, physically, socially and emotionally. Cloverbuds also encourages creativity and learning through play. The 4 -H Cloverbud program provides an excellent opportunity for youth to reach their highest potential because of experiences and exposure.There has been a large increase in interest in 4-H for youth ages 5-8 in Caldwell County the past several years. A volunteer
According to recent studies, students who develop leadership skills in middle school are 70% more likely to excel in high school and beyond. The Teen Leadership Academy (TLA), a middle school 4-H leadership program, has proven to be a catalyst for such development among young learners.The TLA program, designed for middle school students, selects four students from each participating school to engage in a comprehensive leadership program. This year, the program focused on building skills across v
Each year, Caldwell County 4-H members that participate in state events and contests are recognized for their efforts and achievements. This is a chance to let our 4-H members shine and share their accomplishments with their family and friends. The banquet is typically held the week of Thanksgiving with attendance growing each year. Five years ago attendance was 85 and in 2023 attendance was 115. 4-H Council members and 4-H’ers themselves take part in the program. A
Author: Paula Tarry
The Festival of Giving 4-H Team of ten adults and teens serve as the coordinators for many of the Barren County 4-H Community Service projects. The members volunteer to serve on the Team annually, some of the volunteers continue to serve while new individuals are encouraged to join. The individuals assess the needs of the county and develop community service projects to meet those needs.Barren County 4-H teens and adult volunteers collaborated with the KY State Mental Hospital Staff
Author: Melissa Schenck
The problemAccording to the Pew Research Center, about 66% of Americans voted in the last Presidential election. However, voting turnout is highly inconsistent. Only 37% of eligible Americans reported to have voted in all three of the last national elections held in 2018, 2020, and 2022. The turnout is even less when only local elections are on the ballot. The educational program responseA lack of understanding of the legal system and belief that their vote makes and impact is believed to c
The mission of the migrant program is to provide educational and human resource service opportunities that strengthen and enhance the development of the migrant child and the migrant family. The Migrant Program focuses primarily on the educational needs of the Migrant child and attempts to eliminate barriers to provide for successful educational achievement. Two of the local Migrant Program Coordinators approached the Barren County Extension Agent for 4-H Youth Development about st
Author: Lois Carter
The problemInclusivity at county fair The educational program responseSunshine DayThe participants/target audiencedifferently abeled and sensory issue adults and youthOther partners (if applicable)Community volunteersProgram impact or participant response.Sunshine Day at Bourbon County FairFor the second consecutive year, Bourbon County Extension helped plan and implement the second “Sunshine Day” at the county fair. This free family event creates a fun but calmer event fo
Author: Anna Meador
In today’s society, youth have a wide variety of activities to choose from. Therefore, we have to ask the question, why choose 4-H? As youth development professionals, we believe 4-H provides a premier opportunity for youth to build interpersonal skills, develop leadership, make a difference in their community and find their connection with others. Through our research-backed curriculum driven programs, we strive to provide opportunities for positive youth development.In
Author: Diane Kelley
Volunteers are important to the process Cooperative Extension has in local communities. Volunteers are integral to the duties, functions, and tasks and possess varied and diverse knowledge, skills, and backgrounds…(Radhakrishna & Ewing, 2011). The success of Extension programming is due, in part, to the dedication of a large cadre of volunteers (Smith, Dasher, & Klingborg, 2005). The U.K., Cooperative Extension Service and Kenton County Extension Council (CEC) vol
Author: Jocelyn Kemp
The problem was that we have a large and diverse community within Hardin County that may not be familiar with 4-H positive youth development. We felt that the community could benefit from being given an opportunity to meet the 4-H community at the Hardin County Extension Office. We felt like there was a large amount of youth and families who were interested in 4-H but not sure how it works or what to do to be involved. The educational program response was quite large and successful. We had
Military youth are known to be resilient due to their families lifestyle and being involved in the military. 4-H is a partner with the military and Hardin County works closely with leaders on Fort Knox (located in Hardin County) to make sure that 4-H programming is available and successful for military youth. Not only is 4-H programming conducted on site at the Fort Knox School Age Center and Devers Teen and Middle School Center but I am working on brining 4-H even closer to youth by working wit
Author: Carissa Miske
The success of the Cooperative Extension Service programming is due, in part, to the dedication of a large cadre of volunteers (Smith, Dasher & Klingborg, 2005). The 4-H Youth Development Programs within Extension especially depend heavily on adult and teen volunteers to play integral roles in 4-H programming by performing a wide variety of duties and functions. The Owsley County Cooperative Extension Service hosted a Councils 101 Workshop led by Dr. Ken Culp III, principal exten
