Laurel County Youth attend the 2022 Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference 

The 98th Annual Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference was held at the University of Kentucky June 14-17, 2022. The objectives of Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference are: develop leadership and teamwork skills, improve communication skills, foster civic engagement, expand knowledge and skills related to 4-H core content areas, gain club, county and state 4-H program skills, have fun, create a sense of belonging, expand social skills through networking, develop youth-adult partnerships, and become acquainted with the University of Kentucky to aid in college and career readiness of Kentucky 4-H’ers. 

The educational experience returned to full participation in 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic shut down typical programming in 2020 and 2021. After the impact of COVID-19, many youth reported they were eager to return to face-to-face experiences, Kentucky 4-H Teen Conference being one of those.  . The leadership event attracted 489 individuals to the University of Kentucky campus: 389 youth and 61 adults from 84 Kentucky counties. The event was sponsored by the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food, and Environment Cooperative Extension Service 4-H Program, the Kentucky 4-H Foundation, Farm Credit Mid-America, and the Kentucky Soybean Board. 

During the educational experience all youth participated in a UK recruitment session with the Office of Enrollment Management. Additionally, they received academic exploration materials from the College of Agriculture, Food and Environment Center for Student Success. This exposure provided youth the opportunity to see what the University of Kentucky has to offer and begin the conversation about their potential to attend the University of Kentucky as a student. 

4-H partnered with 35 different units and departments across the University for participants to gain six hours of educational content in a subject (major) of their choice. Youth engaged in hands-on lessons inside and outside of classrooms at the University of Kentucky, showing them what student life might be like if they attended UK. The majors focused on: agriculture, health, natural resources, expressive arts, family consumer sciences, science, engineering and technology, and communication. 

In addition, participants 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. 

Laurel County youth were excited to experience their first in-person teen conference. Teen Conference impacted the three Laurel County attendees and has encouraged the teens to restart the Teen Leader Club in Laurel County. Since Teen Conference, the teens have been working on a marketing plan, goals, and lining up educational opportunities for the new teen leader club. Teens also plan on using the hands-on lessons received during their on-campus major sessions to teach younger youth about the subjects they are passionate about. Additionally, the conference has given the teens confidence in planning on running for officers in their primary 4-H clubs