Improving communication with Grant County 4-H members and their families has been a top priority for the new Grant County 4-H Agent, Mason Malin.  Good communication lays the foundation for growth and enhancement of the 4-H program in the county, thus better serving the county’s youth. 

 In order to improve communication, efforts began with creating a survey for all Grant County families, including those families with no youth currently participating in 4-H.  The survey’s goal was to discover the following: 

1. Method of communication families preferred, 
2. Current and/or previous 4-H involvement, 
3. Activities in which their children were currently involved
4. Factors that may inhibit participation in Grant County 4-H Program (Involved in other activities, meeting dates/times, content being provided, etc.)

 The survey was distributed through the Grant County 4-H Facebook page, as well as through the Grant County Schools’ Family Resource Coordinators.  Eighteen (18) responses were received, providing the following insight: 

1. Information about meetings and activities needed to be provided in a timelier manner, 
2. Several 4-H families did not have or use social media, 
3. For those families with social media, not all individuals saw the program’s social media posts on a regular basis, and 
4. Not all families viewed the newsletter sent through 4-H Online. 

 In response to the initial survey results, it was decided to enhance the 4-H newsletter.  For  January 2025, the newsletter was printed and mailed to all current 4-H families, as well as various businesses in the community  The following new items were added to the newsletter: 

1. Calendar of events, displaying upcoming activities and club meetings, 
2. Highlights of current 4-H Clubs, displaying what these clubs had to offer,
3. SNAP Recipe of the Month. 

Moving forward, Grant County 4-H Agent, Mason Malin, along with the rest of the Grant County 4-H Staff will continue to monitor survey results and have conversations with community members to further improve communication efforts for the Grant County 4-H Program to keep making the program the best it can be.