Author: Kelsey Chadwick
Planning Unit: Graves County CES
Major Program: Leadership
Plan of Work: Developing Youth and Adult Leaders in the Community
Outcome: Initial Outcome
The 4-H School Club Program in Graves County is growing by leaps and bounds. In three years, the program has expanded from three school clubs to 30 in-school clubs and three afterschool clubs. These school clubs are present in all three school systems in Graves County--the city schools, county schools, and private school. These programs work to present youth with a well-rounded view of 4-H by providing a lesson on each of the seven curriculum areas. Youth begin the year by learning about leadership qualities and nominating youth in their classroom to be officers. At the second meeting, youth running for an office give a campaign speech, officers are elected, and youth participate in a hands-on lesson about STEM. At the third meeting, youth officers are installed and the whole club is given a short training on how to conduct 4-H meetings, followed by a lesson on agriculture. The spring consists of 4-H camp promotion and a health lesson in January, 4-H speech and demonstration preparation in February, 4-H communication contests in March, and a natural resources lesson with service project for the final meeting of the year. Currently, over 600 youth are involved in 4-H school clubs, and these experiences provide a pathway from school to community club involvement. Many youth get their start in a 4-H school club. We are proud of the leadership skills that youth demonstrate in school clubs and are excited to see them grow in the future.
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