Success StoryGrowing the Skills of County 4-H Agents



Growing the Skills of County 4-H Agents

Author: Julie N. Zimmerman

Planning Unit: Community & Leadership Development

Major Program: Staff Development

Outcome: Intermediate Outcome

Continuing to upgrade the skills of county agents is important for all Extension program areas.  Organized by Kim Ledger and Chuck Stamper, the 4-H Youth Development Institute is geared toward 4-H agents who have established themselves in the county, and who have begun to take a critical look at their 4-H program and ask “why we do what we do.”  As a result of participating in the Institute, agents gain a better understanding of Positive Youth Development concepts, how to apply the concepts in designing their local 4-H program, and they learn not only how to go into more depth in programming but also in making a greater impact.

The Instituted was first conducted in 2016 for which I was asked to provide a presentation that not only addressed how to use secondary data, but included a discussion of the importance of research ethics and how a philosophy of knowledge is embedded in the research-based approach of Cooperative Extension.   Since participants in the 2016 Institute ranked my presentation as among the most influential, in 2018, I was again asked to be a part of the 4-H Youth Development Institute and have already be asked to return for the 2020 Institute.  






Stories by Julie N. Zimmerman


Data for the “Extension Transition”

about 4 years ago by Julie N. Zimmerman

Prior to COVID-19, Cooperative Extension had begun a process to conceptualize and implement a new ad... Read More


Partnership with the UK Appalachian Center

about 4 years ago by Julie N. Zimmerman

The Appalachian Center at the University of Kentucky has a long history of providing data for counti... Read More


Stories by Community & Leadership Development


For the Love of Empanadas and Other Tales of Argentina: Connecting Food, Culture, & History Through Foodways

For the Love of Empanadas and Other Tales of Argentina: Connecting Food, Culture, & History Through Foodways

about 4 years ago by Nicole Breazeale

Diane Mason, FCS Agent in Boone County, is a leader in Kentucky Cooperative Extension international ... Read More


Ripple Effect Mapping & Other Story-Based Methodologies to  Energize Volunteer Groups and Jump Start Participatory Planning: The Case of the Green River Area Extension Master Gardener Association

Ripple Effect Mapping & Other Story-Based Methodologies to Energize Volunteer Groups and Jump Start Participatory Planning: The Case of the Green River Area Extension Master Gardener Association

about 4 years ago by Nicole Breazeale

In August of 2019, CLD Extension faculty member, Dr. Nicole Breazeale, met with Horticulture Agent, ... Read More