The Boyle County 4-H Council has identified teen leadership and travel experiences as two of the most important missions of local 4-H programming.  To meet those goals, 9 high school teens attended Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference at the University of Kentucky June 14-17, 2022. The objectives of Teen Conference include developing leadership and teamwork skills; improving communication skills; fostering civic engagement; and expanding knowledge and skills related to 4-H core content areas.  

Almost 500 youth and volunteers attending participated in educational workshops taught by 35 different units and departments across the University focusing on agriculture, health, natural resources, expressive arts, family consumer sciences, science, engineering and technology, and communication. 

Participants also engaged in five hours of leadership development and service learning. All youth participated in a mentorship workshop led by a youth-adult facilitation team. 4-H collaborated with over 25 community serving organizations to engage in three hours of service work. 389 youth logged 1,167 hours of service. This translates into a cost savings of $8,460.75 (3 hours x $7.25/hour) for organizations versus using paid employees. These efforts supported local service organizations and empowered 4-Hers to think about their ability to impact change in their community. 

All youth from Boyle County reported they learned new information from their major workshops, improved their leadership skills, and gathered information they would use in making decisions about their college and work careers post-high school.