Features
4-H UPDATE – GOVERNOR INSLEE’S VACCINATION PROCLAMATION
Announcement Revised September 7, 2021
Governor Jay Inslee issued a health and safety proclamation on August 20, 2021, in response to a continued state of emergency that exists in all counties due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The health and safety proclamation, as ordered by the Governor, includes employees, contractors and volunteers engaged in activities with state agencies and in educational settings. Therefore, WSU (including WSU Extension and the 4-H program) is required to comply with Governor Inslee’s recent vaccination proclamation directives.
With regard to volunteers, below are a series of references, deadlines and explanations that provide further details.
- The Proclamation (21-14.1) can be found HERE.
- Deadline: All current WSU Volunteers are required to be fully vaccinated or exempted by October 18th. Volunteers who are not fully vaccinated or who do not have an approved exemption on file by October 18 will be put on inactive status. They will not be able to engage in any volunteer activities with WSU Extension until proof of full vaccination can be observed or until an exemption request has been reviewed.
- Proof of vaccination: Contact your local 4-H office for information on how to share proof of your vaccination status..
- Exemption process: The state-level exemption process (for religious or medical reasons) can be found at https://extension.wsu.edu/volunteer-exemption/https://extension.wsu.edu/volunteer-exemption/
More information on WSU’s Vaccination Policy is available on the web at https://extension.wsu.edu/vaccination-policy/.
Questions regarding WSU’s Vaccination Policy can be directed via e-mail to extension.vaccinepolicy@wsu.edu
COVID-19 HEALTH AND SAFETY PROTOCOLS
All other protocols for health and safety remain in effect and should be followed.
The Washington State 4-H Youth Development Program policy is referencing requirements set forth by the Washington State Department of Health’s K-12 COVID-19 Requirements for Summer 2021 and the 2021-2022 School Year document. WHILE INDOORS, EVERYONE IS REQUIRED TO WEAR MASKS, REGARDLESS OF VACCINATION STATUS. This policy is required to protect the safety of all and to model the behavior for youth, who are still required to wear masks.
If an activity is conducted outdoors, it is now required that masks be worn in any outdoor setting involving 500 or more people. People should continue to practice physical distancing of at least six feet whenever possible.
Your county may have more protective protocols in place. County protocols supersede the information presented here. Please contact your local County Extension 4-H Office with any questions.
The Washington State Department of Health released a recap of recent COVID-19 news and updates on September 7, 2021. It is available by clicking HERE.
Colville Reservation 4-H Extension Glows in NIFA’s Native American Heritage Month Spotlight
The Colville Reservation Extension in Nespelem, Washington is one of two Federally Recognized Tribes Extension Program (FRTEP) in the state and is dedicated to ensuring the youth residents of the reservation have the necessary resources to prepare them for their future.
As the longest running FRTEP, the Colville Reservation 4-H provides diverse programs for members to gain and develop new skills, while expanding their knowledge in new subjects. Educational topics range from advancing science and technology, to enhancing health and well-being, and improving natural resources. Members can also enroll in traditional 4-H clubs where they develop life skills through their hands-on participation projects.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE!
WSU CAHNRS Corner for Tuesday, November 30
New Online Resource for Future CAHNRS Cougs!
Elizabeth Perez, Director, Recruitment and Retention, CAHNRS
Hello, Washington 4-H Community!
Washington State University’s College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS) now has a Future CAHNRS Cougs online resource to help you learn more about our majors, scholarships, resources, how to plan a visit to campus, apply for admission, and more.
Check it out here!
Know Your Government 2022
Come Knit With the Virtual 4-H Knitting Club on the First Saturday of the Month!
Knit along with us! We share encouragement, knowledge, stories, opportunities and fun while
we knit. We celebrate knitting successes. Don’t knit alone, bring your knitting and join us!
Open to all youth who are learning knitting skills.
You are invited to a Zoom meeting.
When:
December 4, 2021 04:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
January 1, 2022 04:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
February 5, 2022 04:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
March 5, 2022 04:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Register in advance for this meeting:
https://wsu.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJAoc–vqTIpGN3_qSyd446DRQv7qbC3GKDR
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Questions? Contact Toni Gwin
Office: 360 875 9331
Email: tgwin@wsu.edu
Congratulations to the Washington State 4-H Delegation, Participants at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup!
The Washington 4-H horse program once again did an outstanding job at the Eastern National 4-H Horse Roundup (ENRU) held November 6th and 7th at the North American International Livestock Exposition (NAILE) in Louisville, Kentucky. This national 4-H equine event provides youth from all over the United States the opportunity to compete in horse bowl; Hippology; horse judging; public speaking; individual presentations; and team presentations.
The purpose and mission of this national event is to encourage teamwork, self-confidence, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, along with communication and time management skills – all within the 4-H mission mandates of science, technology, mathematics, healthy living, and citizenship.
Washington was represented by the following teams: Horse Bowl; Hippology; Horse Judging; and Communications.
The Horse Bowl and Hippology teams were selected at our state contest held in the spring, with Snohomish County being the top Horse Bowl team and also having the top Hippology team. The Horse Judging team is selected at the state horse judging contest held at the state fair with the top four placing individuals. And the communications team is also selected during state fair and consists of individual presentation; team presentation; and public speaking.
The following members represented the Washington delegation:
Horse Bowl: Addison Kapur, Hannah Kruchek, Emma Harding, Tristan Krohn
Hippology: Savannah Schmidt, Elaina Kunz, Makenna Porter, Dylan Qureshi
Horse Judging: Marissa Keltz, Vivian Rice, Charlotte Pestinger, Ashlyn Aven (qualified but was unable to attend Nationals)
Communications: Mackenzie Ziegler, Katie Pestinger, Addie Hering and Carissa Bruneau
All of the coaches/support adults are very capable and involved 4-H volunteers from the respective counties. In addition, each member or team is supported for travel either by their respective county horse project committees, county 4-H councils, donors or personal family finances.
The success of the Washington delegation is really the result of the 4-H horse volunteers’ dedication to prepare our Washington 4-H youth for this opportunity.
Following are the final results:
Hippology
Dylan Qureshi – High Individual Judging Phase: 5th place
Washington State – High Team Judging Phase, 2nd place
Washington State – Overall High Team, 11th place
Horse Bowl
Hannah Kruchek – High Individual – 8th place
Addison Kapur – High Individual, 9th place
Washington State – High Team Overall, 5th place
Horse Judging
High Individual Halter:
Vivian Rice, Snohomish County – 3rd place
Marissa Keltz, Spokane County – 9th place
Washington State – High Team Overall Conformation/Halter, 5th place
Washington State – High Team Overall – 10th place (very well done – considering the horse judging team only had three members)
Communications Team
Katie Pestinger, Thurston County – Public Speaking High Individual – 5th place
Addie Hering and Carissa Bruneau, Pierce County – Team Presentation-High Team – 2nd place
Washington State – High Team Overall – 3rd place
Complete results can be found at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_yPJyxEMSedgivX-H_CvXuS9HqRv1gIY/view
Finally, kudos to Kim Baker, 4-H Program Coordinator, for organizing the trip and also coordinating the state Hippology contest; to Pat Pehling, 4-H volunteer-Snohomish County for coordinating the state Horse Judging and state Horse Bowl contest.
And also a big thank you to RA Mazzola, 4-H volunteer in Snohomish County for his passion and effort to organize tours in Louisville and surrounding areas, both before and after the contest for all of the 4-H members and their families. It is a great opportunity for the Washington delegation to see parts of Kentucky, one of the strongest states for the horse industry.
The Washington 4-H horse program does amazingly well at the Eastern 4-H Horse Roundup as a volunteer-driven effort. If you would like more information on how you and/or your county can qualify for the Washington State and Eastern National Roundup, please contact Kim Baker at kim.baker@wsu.edu
A sincere thank you to all!
Jennifer Leach, Associate Professor
Cowlitz County 4-H Youth and Family and 4-H State Equine Specialist (.25 FTE).
States’ 4-H International Exchange Program Update: Argentina!
Sadie Williams, Washington State 4-H International Exchange State Coordinator
I want to share more information on our summer Outbound States’ 4-H International Exchange Program with you. We are excited about our new partnership with Argentina this year, and would love to grow the program! Argentina 4-H is doing some amazing things for youth engagement. Delegates can take part in a group travel experience on June 29th, 2022. Youth can participate in making recycled instruments and playing them in a 4-H orchestra, learn Spanish, have fun playing soccer and enjoy group excursions that really immerse them in the culture of Argentina. Such a wonderful and diverse opportunity for U.S. youth traveling as a group. Youth must be between ages 15-18 to participate and the deadline for applications is January 1st.
Please have any interested parties reach out to me directly for the application or they can visit States’ 4-H International Exchange Programs (states4hexchange.org) You can also follow and share our WA state Exchange FB page here: Washington 4-H International Exchange | Facebook
If you would like further information on other partnering countries, please reach out to me as I am happy to provide information.
Sadie Williams
4-H Pierce County Coordinator
Washington State 4-H International Exchange State Coordinator
Washington State University |Pierce County Extension
Office hrs. 9-4 PM Mon-Thurs
sadie.williams@wsu.edu
From National 4-H Council….
NATIVE AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH: A VOICE OF ANIMAL NATION
As a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe and a South Dakota 4-H’er, Tashina Red Hawk makes a difference for the animals and families living in her community every day. With the leadership skills and fearlessness gained through 4-H, she makes affordable pet and animal care accessible for those living on the Reservation. This Native American Heritage Month, learn more about the 4-H Youth in Action recipient and her passion for being the “voice of animal nation.”
READ MORE
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN FOR HEALTHY LIVING AND AGRI-SCIENCE SUMMITS
The National Youth Summit Series are immersive, three-day experiences where you dive into the issues, expand your career horizons and grow as a leader while working with and learning from other teens and experts with shared passions. The 2022 Healthy Living and Agri-Science Youth Summits are now open for registration and will take place in-person in the Washington, D.C. area.
REGISTER NOW
CELEBRATING 4-H COMPUTER SCIENCE EDUCATION
Join us in celebrating 4-H Computer Science during CS Education Week on Wednesday, December 8 at 1:00 PM EST. During this special webinar, you’ll learn best practices as we share what worked well in reaching over 1.4 million youth with CS education through the 4-H CS Pathway. Join to explore the new resource, Click2ComputerScience.org, learn how to develop training and skills to engage youth in CS learning and build confidence and competence for staff to teach CS. It would not be a celebration without gifts, register now to join!
REGISTER NOW
CELEBRATE THE SEASON WITH 4-H
Explore new hands-on activities to spark curiosity for the kids in your family, and learn how you can pay it forward to more kids waiting to unlock their potential.
GET STARTED
4-H Creates a Positive Future for Washington Youth
By Vicki McCracken, Nancy Deringer and Mike Gaffney
Special to the Spokane Spokesman-Review; November 7, 2021
Washington State University 4-H has a long and impactful history in Washington.
Formed originally to provide high-quality, research-based, positive youth development, 4-H has never strayed from that mission. The number and types of opportunities for engagement and access to positive youth development programming have expanded significantly over the years. That expansion took place to reflect changes in technology and scientific developments, and to provide a greater variety of opportunities for youth, wherever they might live.
4-H is the largest youth development program in the world. Created nationally in 1914, 4-H is delivered through a federally recognized partnership between U.S. land-grant universities, Cooperative Extension, National 4-H Council, states, counties, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The multilevel value of 4-H is well-recognized statewide among the organization’s members, volunteers, leaders, alumni and all who’ve had contact with and connection to the program.
In Washington, the WSU Extension 4-H Youth Development Program delivers a wide array of educational, research-based programs focused on small and large animal care, agriculture, engineering and technology, leadership, public speaking, creative arts, photography, horsemanship, livestock production, shooting sports, music, sewing, robotics and consumer sciences for youth in rural, urban and suburban communities.
4-H is intentionally accessible for all youth. Under our federal sponsor’s auspices, and faithful to our land-grant mission, 4-H is a nondiscriminatory program that is a home for youth from all walks of life wanting to be connected and involved.
We make impacts at the individual and the county levels, because we’re supported by faculty and staff who bring the knowledge base and administrative support of WSU to our program. WSU Extension 4-H uses a large force of dedicated volunteers to bring research-based knowledge to youth and adults.
In each of Washington’s 39 counties and two tribal communities, the local WSU Extension office coordinates 4-H programming along with a spectrum of other activities and programs, which collectively bring as much as a 3-to-1 return on the investment of county funds contributed to support our offices. Other support comes from WSU state funds, from Federal Smith-Lever (USDA) funding, from grants, and from donations from our many alumni and supporters.
4-H’s many positive effects include individual benefits and positive societal impacts as well. As verified by national studies, 4-H youth are twice as likely to participate in STEM activities and make healthier choices, and are four times more likely to be involved and give back to their communities. Girls in 4-H are three times as likely to take part in science programs, compared to girls in other out-of-school activities. 4- H participants are more likely to become productive members of society and are less likely to interact with the criminal justice system.
4-H has a remarkable list of successful alumni including more than 80 members of Congress, four first ladies and six astronauts. Four current Washington members of the U.S. House of Representatives, including Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse, are 4-H alumni.
4-H members learn how to set goals, manage time, keep records, and run a meeting. They learn about scientific processes to further their understanding and make better decisions on how to use technology, how to care for an animal, and to care for their own minds, bodies, and communities. When a 15-yearold girl successfully raises and sells a pig, or a 10-year-old boy experiences a team win in a national robotics competition, they realize that they can succeed.
Since 2018, 4-H members in Central Washington have led digital skills training for adults in their community through the 4-H Tech Changemakers project. Their project boosted intergenerational connection while helping teach valuable digital tools that adults need to pay bills, visit a school portal, or find needed services. Participating teens realize that they can make a difference.
Similarly, 4-H teens in Spokane County and other areas of the state this year helped their peers learn about the opioid crisis in partnership with WSU’s Center for Rural Opioid Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery (CROP+TR). Youth interviewed experts and first responders, and shared their research with the wider community.
“I’m going to keep doing my part by helping people learn to be more compassionate and give that helping hand,” one participant shared.
We’re proud of Washington State 4-H, and of the sheer volume of positive impact it has on youth and communities across the state. If you are interested in learning more about 4-H, contact your local county Extension office to be put in touch with a program coordinator or county director.
Vicki McCracken is associate dean and director of WSU Extension. Nancy Deringer is director and state program leader for 4-H Positive Youth Development. Mike Gaffney is assistant director of WSU Extension.
Copyright © 2021 Spokesman-Review 11/07/2021.
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State 4-H Ambassadors Announce 4-H Youth of the Month for November!
The Washington State 4-H Ambassadors recognize the 4-H Youth of the Month honoree for November, Madeline Squibb from Skagit County! The Ambassadors are proud to highlight various youth monthly throughout the year!
Washington State Fair Foundation Scholarship Applications Open November 1!
The Washington State Fair Foundation is pleased to present scholarship opportunities to local students for continuing education. 4-H member students may be eligible for some of these opportunities.
BLUE RIBBON SCHOLARSHIP APPLICATIONS FOR 2022 WILL BE OPEN NOVEMBER. 1, 2021 THROUGH JANUARY 21, 2022.
Go to https://www.thefair.com/foundation/scholarships/ and click any of the scholarships listed to see specific qualifications, or apply directly at: https://thefairfoundation.awardspring.com.
Students only need to submit one application for all scholarships offered online. The application system will automatically apply students for the scholarships they qualify for.
For any Scholarship questions, please email kima@thefair.com.
Teen Advocates Needed for Suicide Prevention Task Force!
Are you a teen interested in becoming an advocate for suicide prevention? Join our WSU 4-H teen task force!
See the flyer linked below for details. All 4-H youth aged 13-18 are welcome to apply. If you are interested in applying to the task force, you can do so here (https://wsu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bCratMSux2hfmxE)
Suicide Prevention Taskforce Flyer Link
COVID-19 RESOURCES
A Reminder: COVID-19 Resources Available from WSU Extension
WASHINGTON STATE RESOURCE GUIDE
FOR PARENTS AND CAREGIVERS:
Caring for Your Family During COVID-19
The Washington State Department of Children, Youth and Families has created a
resource for parents during COVID-19. The WASHINGTON STATE RESOURCE GUIDE FOR PARENTS AND CAREGIVERS: Caring for Your Family During COVID-19 was developed to help parents and their families navigate the pandemic and the days to follow. The publication is available at
https://www.dcyf.wa.gov/sites/default/files/pubs/FS_0039.pdf