[CED/CD/EAT] 2021 March 4-H Volunteer Newsletter

[Arizona 4-H]

Arizona 4-H March 2021


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Message from the AZ4-H Program Leader

A year ago this month, we all experienced an abrupt change in our world with COVID-19’s spread around the globe and here at home. I can say, with certainty, that this has likely been one of the most challenging years you or I have had. I hold three things as paramount when making organizational decisions: ensuring a safe program environment for youth and families; ensuring young people receive a high-quality youth development experience that supports turning sparks into mastery; and, ensuring youth and families, no matter their background, can experience the transformational power of 4-H. In a normal year, these three guiding principles are synonymous with each other. During the pandemic, these guiding principles have at times become mutually exclusive. And the risk of contributing to the spread of COVID-19 in our communities, to our caring adults, to the families of our youth, and to our youth members has been at the fore.  This emphasis has, of course, meant unprecedented challenges.

I want to thank you for rising to those challenges, leading our families, and managing so much uncertainty. In the End-of-Year 4-H Volunteer Program Evaluation we learned that of respondent’s 52 percent of you have provided educational events to your 4-H youth. And those individuals have held numerous sessions (in the April Newsletter we will share the full results). Many more of you said that you encouraged youth to attend the virtual programming offered. Thank you for that effort. And we heard from our youth. When youth attended virtual events the large majority of youth member respondents had fun, felt connected to the 4-H program, and learned!

Of course, 4-H must be fun! What does fun mean? Fun means exciting, and engaging, and humor filled. Fun for a youth means that they are self-directed, involved, and building positive relationships.  Fun often can mean games or authentically contributing with peers and caring adults. Fun is rooted in safety, both emotional and physical. It is more important now than ever before, in this pandemic, that our youth, families, and our fellow volunteers have fun.  Even for those of us who are Zoom fatigued (let’s be honest, who isn’t?), we can still infuse social connection and fun into our club work and even our non-Zoom communication.  Here are some jokes for you to use during a Club meeting, your club’s group chat, or social media page. 

Q: Which crime fighter likes March the most?
A: Robin

Q: Why is March the most popular month to use a trampoline?
A: It’s spring-time.

Q: Which type of bow can’t be tied in March?
A: A rainbow.

Q: What falls during March but never gets hurt?
A: The rain.

Q: Can February March?
A: No, but April May.

Q: What March flowers grow on faces?
A: Tulips (2 lips).

Thank you and stay safe and healthy,

Jeremy Elliott-Engel

Associate Director & State 4-H Program Leader, 
University of Arizona Cooperative Extension

Arizona 4-H Pathways of Participation for Thriving

A youth joins a group because something that group is doing sparks their interest.  And the next questions the youth (and their caring adults) will ask is “What will I be doing if I join?  How will I know if I am successful at this?”  Arizona 4-H has lots of topics to spark the interest of youth, and they fit into the Great Eight categories:  Agriculture, Camp, Civic Engagement, Community Service, Cultural Understanding, Healthy Living, Leadership, S.T.E.M.  Youth will be doing work on their “spark” in community clubs and/or project groups.  They may only do one activity, but we hope they explore other topics while they are here.  And success?  That is measured by how much the youth enjoys and stays engaged in their chosen projects.  To explore this topic in more detail, go here. (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/cvn9qj) 

Kagan Barber, 4-H Healthy Living Ambassador, Nominated for national award

Kagan Barber, a senior at Seneca School for Success and Pima JTED, has been named a Career and Technical Education (CTE) candidate as part of the 2021 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program. Kagan's parents are Raymond Barber and Kami Blackhurst

Kagan has participated in the 4-H Healthy Living Ambassadors (HLA) program since 2018 and he attributes his incredible leadership skills to the experiences he had in that program. Kagan was selected to represent the state of Arizona at the National 4-H Healthy Living Summit in 2018, he led educational activities that promoted wellness to underserved community members through the Tucson Village Farm FARMacy program, and he led teambuilding activities for groups at the 4-H High Ropes Course. “The 4-H HLA program gave me a better understanding of the importance of taking care of ourselves, both physically and emotionally,” Kagan said of his 4-H experience. Kagan hopes that his recognition will provide him with the means to inspire others to pursue their passions in order to live fulfilling, productive, and healthy lives.  

The Career and Technical Education candidates were nominated by their Chief State School Officers based on their accomplishments in career and technical education fields.The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was established in 1964 by Executive Order of the President to recognize some of our nation’s most distinguished graduating seniors for their accomplishments in many areas: academic success, leadership, and service to school and community. It was expanded in 1979 to recognize students demonstrating exceptional scholarship and talent in the visual, creative, and performing arts. In 2015, the program was expanded once again to recognize students who demonstrate ability and accomplishment in career and technical fields. Annually, up to 161 U.S. Presidential Scholars are chosen from among that year’s senior class, representing excellence in education and the promise of greatness in America’s youth. If circumstances permit, all Scholars are invited to Washington, DC in June for the National Recognition Program, featuring various events and enrichment activities and culminating in the presentation of the Presidential Scholars Medallion during a White House-sponsored ceremony.

The commission on Presidential Scholars, a group of up to 32 eminent citizens appointed by the President, will select the finalists, and the U.S. Department of Education will announce the 161 Scholars in May. Of these, up to 20 will be selected as U.S. Presidential Scholars in Career and Technical Education.

For more information about the U.S. Presidential Scholars program, parents and students can call the Presidential Scholars Office at 507.931.8345, or send an e-mail to PSP at scholarship.org.

Submit Your Arizona 4-H Foundation College Scholarship Application! 

Application forms and instructions are available here. (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/sno9qj)

The deadline is April 16, 2021.

All college aged 4-H youth and recent alumni are eligible for Arizona 4-H Youth Foundation scholarships. Every year youth miss out on scholarships because they do not apply. Please encourage the youth in your club that are college age or have ecently aged out to apply. Your local Extension Office may have additonal information about deadlines specific to your county. For questions on the scholarship program, please contact the AZ 4-H Foundation Scholarship Chair, AZ4-HYF Scholarship Applications (mailto:norquest at email.arizona.edu?subject=AZ4-HYF%20Scholarship%20Applications).

 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/8fp9qj)

4-H Ag At Home

Have you checked out Arizona 4-H Ag at Home?  Topics are wide-ranging and there are both activities you can lead in your project meeting and virtual seminars to attend.  Events still to come are Turkey on March 18, Goats on March 25, and Cavies on April 8.

Check out Arizona 4-H Ag(riculture) at Home (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/o8p9qj). If you have questions contact Arizona 4-H Ag at Home (mailto:betsygreene at arizona.edu?subject=Arizona%204-H%20Ag%20at%20Home), Equine Specialist.  

Nominate Volunteers and Staff 

2021 award submissions are now open for the Hall of Fame Award, Volunteer Excellence Award, and the Staff Excellence Award! Do you know a superb 4-H volunteer, staff member, or family who always performs above and beyond while modeling professionalism, respect, kindness, and a passion for what they do? Nominate them for an award! You can fill out nomination forms and access more information at this (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/40q9qj) link (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/ktr9qj). Submissions are due by April 9th, 2021.

 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/0ls9qj)

4-H Ambassador Applications Open 

The Arizona 4-H Ambassador program is taking applications for the next team of State Ambassadors. Current members who are rising Juniors or Seniors in high school and have a passion for Arizona 4-H are highly encouraged to apply. State Ambassadors become a representative of Arizona 4-H in all that they say and do. This role possesses high visibility and responsibility for the selected ambassadors. Every ambassador, regardless of their specific position, needs to be able to articulate what 4-H is, how it came about, and where it aspires to take the next generation of leaders.  Important dates: 

March 15 - applications open (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/get9qj)

April 30:  Applications due

May 7:  Invitations out for interviews

May 10:  Interview orientation and parent info session

May 12-13 Virtual interviews

May 17: announcement of 2021-2022 Arizona 4-H Ambassador Team 

International Exchange Program Applications Open 

The 4-H office is excited to announce the return of the International Exchange Program through States' 4-H this year. The Summer Inbound program brings youth to the US each summer to stay with a host family for four weeks. This is a wonderful opportunity to open your home to a Japanese youth delegate and expand their horizons through cultural immersion. The hosting period for the Summer Inbound program is July 24th- August 18th, 2021. If you are interested in becoming a host family this year, please contact state coordinator Lucero Barraza at lbarraza3 at arizona.edu (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/w6t9qj) . 

 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/czu9qj)

Project Books in ZBooks

Online project records can now be filled out by youth in ZingBooks! The questions and pages are the exact same as the usual paper copies that are typically used, but youth now have the opportunity to save their project recordbooks in one location. Youth can write in their project goals, activities, accomplishments, inventory, etc… just as they would in their usual project recordbooks. But now, club leaders can see the progress their club members are making with their project recordbooks. They can also sign off on their final record books and save a .pdf copy of the finished recordbook.

Log into Zingbooks here (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/srv9qj) to explore this option. 

Calling Ag Advocates: Eight Spots Still Available 

Arizona 4-H is one of seven states selected to implement the 2021 4-H Ag Innovators Experience (AIE). We still need eight passionate agricultural advocates. This train-the-trainer program will prepare 4-H teens to conduct workshops and train other youths on the interconnectedness of our food system.

Do you have youth interested in learning about the importance of a healthy sustainable food supply to feed a growing world? And are those youth ready to share what they have learned with other youth as a leader through community service and civic engagement effort? Then this project is right for them! Go to the 4-H Ag Innovators Experience 2021 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/8jw9qj) event page to register and for more information. Contact Dr. Ag Innovators Experience (mailto:lopezg3 at email.arizona.edu?subject=Ag%20Innovators%20Experience), 4-H STEM Specialist with questions. 

 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/ocx9qj)

Summer Agricultural Institute and Virtual Academy

Registration opens April 5, 2021 (https://t.e2ma.net/click/4grk0c/s3cj3mp/44x9qj) for the Hybrid Summer Agricultural Institute and Virtual Academy.

SAI is a five-day, traveling tour designed to teach K-12+ teachers and community educators about food and fiber production and help them incorporate that knowledge in the classroom curriculum. SAI combines hands-on learning about agriculture with practical curriculum development. 





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