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Contact Information

Craig Wood, Ph.D
Acting Associate Dean & Director
UK Cooperative Extension Service

S-107 Ag. Science Center North Lexington, KY 40546-0091

+1 (859) 257-4302

craig.wood@uky.edu

Impacts

Contact Information

Craig Wood, Ph.D
Acting Associate Dean & Director
UK Cooperative Extension Service

S-107 Ag. Science Center North Lexington, KY 40546-0091

+1 (859) 257-4302

craig.wood@uky.edu




Fiscal Year:
Jul 1, 2024 - Jun 30, 2025


Success StorySTEM-Tastic Event- Fort Knox



STEM-Tastic Event- Fort Knox

Author: Jocelyn Kemp

Planning Unit: Hardin County CES

Major Program: Community Vitality and Leadership – 4-H Youth Development

Plan of Work: Enhancing Life Skills through Youth Projects and Activities

Outcome: Initial Outcome

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 with the Fort Knox school system. With the nature of military being that families typically move every 2-3 years, youth may not get the opportunity to experience 4-H programming or may not know about 4-H at all. I am working on breaking that barrier through partnering not only with the care centers but also with the school system. I attended a family friendly event called Stem-Tastic as a guest booth and brought along small sphero-bots for youth to engage with. While youth enjoyed the robots, I was able to speak with families/parents about 4-H programming. 

All youth and families enjoyed the 4-H guest booth both in that they got to experience working with robots and to learn about all that 4-H offers. 

The main target audience was the family unit/military community as a whole. I was able to make connections with parents and youth to teach them about all the opportunities that are available to them through 4-H programming. I was also able to assist new Hardin County residents in getting acquainted not only with Hardin County 4-H but also the Extension office. In total at this event, I was able to interact with 100 parents, 200 school age youth, and 35 other volunteers and community members. 

I worked with the Fort Knox School Liaison Officer to organize this partnership. 

Many families were interested in participating more with 4-H. They had many delivery modes to choose from such as the care centers on Fort Knox that was already available to them, 4-H programming at the Hardin County Extension office, 4-H Summer Camp, and potentially their child's school system on base in the future. 






Stories by Jocelyn Kemp


Hands-on Heritage: Learning Through the 4-H Country Ham Project

about 2 months ago by Jocelyn Kemp

The 2023 UK Cooperative Extension Community Needs Assessment revealed that Hardin County residents v... Read More


Food, Farming, and Community: Connecting Urban Youth to Agriculture

about 2 months ago by Jocelyn Kemp

In Hardin County, most youth have limited exposure to the local food system and few opportunities to... Read More


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about 27 days ago by Chandra DeRamus

Within Hardin County, a disproportionate number of Kentucky families live in economically distressed... Read More


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about 27 days ago by Chandra DeRamus

Within Hardin County, a disproportionate number of Kentucky families live in economically distressed... Read More