A repeated expressed concern in Woodford County is the development of soft skills in the next generation of the workforce. Anecdotally employers express concern that interviewees regularly show up to interview for a job without the basic skills necessary to make a solid impression on their future employers. One such skill that Woodford County has prioritized for youth development is the ability to speak publicly. In response, Woodford County 4-H continues to host it's annual 4-H Communications contest in late January. Serving as a partnership between the Woodford County 4-H program and Woodford County 4-H Council, Versailles Kiwanis and the Midway Toastmasters, the contest and the workshop held prior offer youth a chance to develop the critical soft skill of public communcation. This year, 18 youth participated in the workshop held prior to the contest that featured instruction on how to craft and deliver a speech or demonstration. Upon completion of the workshop, 94% of the workshop attendees expressed a greater confidence in their ability to give a speech at the contest, 83% stated that they learned a lot about speech-writing at the workshop and 78% state they learned about public speaking and were less afraid of the contest because of their workshop presentation. Based on this feedback the workshop helped further develop the communication skills of Woodford County 4-H'ers and directly contributed to the high quality speeches and demonstrations given at the contest, many of which moved on to the Area Contest and a few who are participating in the State 4-H Communications Contest.