Youth adolescents are challenging many boundaries during this formative time of their lives. Their views of their body, youth-adult connections and the influence of peers often pull an early teenager in many ways. For youth seeking a positive way to guide and reinforce their relationships may have few options in a protected, educational venue. Kentucky 4-H and Green County 4-H offers an option for this age group to gain leadership, team building and personal skills through an adult-young adult and teen leadership conference called Kentucky 4-H Summit. 

The Kentucky 4-H Summit is a three-day educational event where youth can select a major and minor area of interest like a college format. The event’s activities are led by adults and older teens who are active on the state 4-H teen advisory council. Green County 4-H offered the program to our youth and was among the 481 middle school participants statewide.

 Creating an experience where the youth felt acceptance was an important foundation of the event; 98.3% of the youth felt accepted by their team while 88.9% made a connection with their teen advisors. 90.8% of the participants gained the skills necessary to conduct a leadership activity back in their home county. Green County’s participants returned and helped to plan and conduct an orientation for 4-H summer camp members and their families. These youth have sought out additional leadership training and taking an active role in planning activities for their peers and younger 4-H members.