Pike 4-H A Program of Inclusion

“People buy into the leader before they buy into the vision.”-John Maxwell

With a big smile on his face, Johnny A, a principal of a local elementary and junior high said, “I had to walk over here (to the 4-H Fair) so I could see the faces of my students as they are enjoying the experience of their fair.  This makes my heart happy and it brings back so many memories of all the fun I had when I was able to come to the 4-H Fairs (as a 4-H member)!”

You see Johnny had been the sole African American at his elementary school.  He completed college and now Mr. A is the principal of the elementary school that has 4-H in 4^th -8^th grades.  Though we have a membership of 4,000 4-H members, we strive to make it inclusive of all youth.  This is an advantage of having the clubs in the local schools.

Victoria is a native of Vietnam and from another school.    She gave a speech and won the office of president of her 4-H Club.  Though fluent in English, her mom does not speak our dialectal and her dad, a successful businessman, has limited ability to speak our language.  She was invited to attend 4-H Teen Summit because of her leadership.  On the day the office van was to leave, she reported to her local school instead of our Pike County Extension Office.  I got a call from her school telling me she was crying and she thought she had missed the van.  We picked her up at the school and I had to wait for the dad to come to complete the paperwork.  I had to assist him in completing the form.  We were to return to the office on Saturday.  I could not communicate the location of our office, so on Saturday, I dropped her off at his business at the conclusion of the trip.

Leigh Ann is African American and has a mom that is deaf.   We able to communicate with her mom and grandmother of the details of 4-H Teen Summit.  She reported that “I started out not knowing anyone and now we are best friends!”  She learned through hands on workshops and leadership talks.  

Fatima and Anaya are of Asian descent and have been educated here in our county.  Both attended 4-H Teen Conference at the University of Kentucky.  While there, the youth participated in the leadership activities as well as the World Religion and Medical Tracks.  Fatima joined the 4-H Teen Council and was elected to be one of the song leaders for the 4-H Teen Council.

With 4-H, we are developing leaders that our people can buy into and helping to make the best better!