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July 29, 2005
Volume 1, Issue 7
Welcome to the 4-H Afterschool Journal, the national online newsletter for 4-H Afterschool!
4-H Afterschool News:
4-H Afterschool Grantee Jerseys Presented
4-H Afterschool Opens Doors Award Application Available
Introducing the New 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide
Know an Exceptional 4-H Youth? Tell Us!
Resources and Opportunities:
NFL Wristbands Benefit JCPenney Afterschool Fund
GLOW Crazy with 4-H Afterschool Wristband
4-H AFTERSCHOOL NEWS
4-H Afterschool Grantee Jerseys Presented
A big thank you goes out to the ten grantee teams who autographed 4-H Afterschool jerseys at the National 4-H Afterschool Grantee Conference in June. The jerseys were presented to Cathann Kress, director, CSREES National 4-H Headquarters and Don Floyd, president and CEO, National 4-H Council, and are now hanging proudly in both offices.
Cathann Kress and Don Floyd show off a signed 4-H Afterschool jersey.
4-H Afterschool Opens Doors Award Application Available
We are proud to announce that 4-H Afterschool is offering an award recognizing 4-H volunteers who are involved in 4-H Afterschool programming in their communities. Awards of $500 each will be awarded to 25 volunteer-led 4-H Afterschool projects. The funds will be given to outstanding 4-H volunteers--youth and adults--who are providing one or more of the following activities within their communities:
1) Training after-school program staff;
2) Increasing the use of 4-H curricula in after-school programs;
3) Helping organize 4-H Clubs in after-school programs;
4) Providing 4-H activities to youth in after-school programs; and/or
5) Working with JCPenney Afterschool Fund partners (Boys & Girls Clubs of America, YMCA, Junior Achievement, and/or Afterschool Alliance) or other groups (schools, faith-based, community-based groups) to offer 4-H curricula and/or training to youth and staff in after-school programs.
This awards program is open to all 4-H youth and adult volunteers currently involved with a local 4-H Afterschool program. The funds must be used to support 4-H Afterschool work in local communities. A local 4-H professional staff member must sign the award application verifying that the applicant is a 4-H volunteer.
For more information and to obtain an application, contact Ron Drum, national coordinator, 4-H Afterschool at rdrum@fourhcouncil.edu or 301-961-2814.
Introducing the New 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide
Teens as Volunteer Leaders; Recruiting and Training Teens to Work with Younger Youth in After-School Programs is designed to be used by Extension/4-H professionals to deliver teen-led curriculum in after-school programs. It helps teens and adult volunteers develop knowledge and skills to deliver workforce preparation curricula to middle school youth. Written by Sharon K. Junge, Extension Director, Placer and Nevada Counties, California, the guide includes an overview of program delivery, recruitment processes and training outlines. Junge, a 4-H Afterschool leader, based the guide on the very successful Y.E.S. training materials developed in California.
The guide, made possible in part by funding from the JCPenney Afterschool Fund and NFL Charities, was introduced at the June 2005 4-H Afterschool Grantee Training Conference. Junge and volunteer leader June Stewart from California taught a session that provided the teams of youth and adult trainers with knowledge and skills to recruit additional teens and adult teams to deliver the program in their states.
You are invited to use the guide to recruit teens to help you expand your 4-H Afterschool program. It can be downloaded at no cost from the 4-H Afterschool Web site at http://www.4hafterschool.org/resources.aspx.
If you are interested in purchasing hard copies of the guide, please send your request to Ron Drum at rdrum@fourhcouncil.edu. Although hard copies are not currently available, if sufficient interest is expressed, the national 4-H Afterschool staff will explore options for providing hard copies of the guide for sale to the 4-H system.
The newest 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide details how to deliver teen-led curriculum in afterschool programs.
Know an Exceptional 4-H Youth? Tell Us!
We all know why 4-H is special, but we need your help to tell everyone out there who doesn't yet know! We're looking for stories about exceptional youth who are making a difference through 4-H. Outstanding leaders, unique activities and other stories that we can develop to tell the story of 4-H Afterschool across the country. For example, there’s a 4-H teen in Kentucky who raises money to outfit police dogs with bulletproof vests and a 4-H youth who makes blankets to send back to the orphanage in Russia she was adopted from.
Do you know of a story that’s interesting, inspiring or unique? You don’t have to write it, just call us and talk—we’ll do the rest. Repeat, you don’t have to write it!
A short conversation will go a long way towards promoting 4-H across the country. It helps increase awareness of the good 4-H does for our youth, and ensures continued funding for our programs. So please take a minute, think about all the great things 4-H youth and programs do, and TELL US! E-mail us at wow@fourhcouncil.edu or call Gretchen at 301-961-2829.
RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES
NFL Wristbands Benefit JCPenney Afterschool Fund
Are you ready for some FOOTBALL? What better way to show your spirit than to sport your favorite NFL team's official wrist bands during the upcoming season? JCPenney is the exclusive retailer of the official NFL wrist bands that are sure to be the hit of the summer. Each set sells for $2.99 and includes two wrist bands in the team's home and away colors. All net profits from the sale of the wrist bands and NFL royalties go to the JCPenney Afterschool Fund, which provides support to after-school programs such as 4-H Afterschool.
JCPenney also has a special opportunity for kids between the ages of 6-13. This summer the Take A Player To School Sweepstakes presented by the NFL and JCPenney Afterschool will give 33 lucky kids the chance to take an NFL player to school! The sweepstakes kicks off in JCPenney Stores across the nation on July 24 and will run through September 22. To enter the Take A Player To School Sweepstakes, visit any JCPenney Store or log onto www.NFLyouthfootball.com for a complete set of rules.
GLOW Crazy with 4-H Afterschool Wristband
GLOW crazy with a 4-H Afterschool wristband and show your support of after-school programs! The GLOW-IN-THE-DARK 4-H Afterschool wristbands are now available in youth and adult sizes. Check it out here.
Other available 4-H Afterschool items include:
- A white ceramic mug with emblem
- Navy blue polo shirt with emblem on left chest
- T-shirts with emblem across chest
- Green 4-H Afterschool tote bags
- 4-H Afterschool lanyard
- Coming soon: a 4-H Afterschool pen!
The glow-in-the-dark 4-H Afterschool wristband is ideal as a promotional item for 4-H Lights On! Afterschool event. The lights never go out on education when 4-H is involved!
All of these items are available through the National 4-H Supply Service and will be in the 2006 4-H Source Book this August.
Posted by apatel at 10:09 AM | Comments (0)
July 15, 2005
Volume 1, Issue 6
Welcome to the 4-H Afterschool Journal, the national online newsletter for 4-H Afterschool!
We welcome any story ideas -- share your successes, methods and exciting news by e-mailing us here.
4-H Afterschool News:
Report from the Road: Eddie Locklear Attends the NAA Affiliate Summit
From the Desk of Ron Drum: 4-H Entomology Field Trip Causes a Buzz
Introducing the New 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide
Know an Exceptional 4-H Youth? Tell Us!
Resources and Opportunities:
GLOW Crazy with 4-H Afterschool Wristband
4-H AFTERSCHOOL NEWS
Report from the Road: Eddie Locklear Attends the NAA Affiliate Summit
-- By Dr. Eddie Locklear, national director of 4-H Afterschool
This week, I had an opportunity to attend the NAA (National AfterSchool Association) Affiliate Summit held at National Louis University near Chicago, Ill. The mission of NAA – formerly known as the National School-Age Care Association (NSACA) – is to be the leading voice of the after-school profession, dedicated to the development, education and care of children and youth during their out-of-school hours. This membership organization works with states to organize State Affiliates, who in turn recruit members and provide professional development opportunities to after-school staff. Currently, there are 36 NAA State Affiliates.
4-H professionals are involved with the work of many of the State Affiliates. One of the leaders of the Texas NAA Affiliate was excited to share that Cheryl Newberry, Extension Program Specialist with Texas 4-H, has been working hard with the Texas State Affiliate. I learned how valuable Cheryl’s contributions and leadership are to the success of the Texas State Affiliate. A special thank you goes to Cheryl for helping 4-H playing a major role in the work of the NAA in Texas.
I did not get a chance to talk to all of the Affiliate leaders, but if I did, I am sure I would have heard many success stories about the NAA and 4-H Afterschool partnership. These are made possible by the many dedicated 4-H professionals at the county and state levels. Thanks to each of you for your contributions.
If you would like to learn more about NAA, visit their web site at: http://www.naaweb.org. If you are not currently involved with the NAA, I hope you will take a little time to explore the many options available for getting involved with NAA. 4-H has many resources to offer to after-school staff. Working with NAA is another opportunity that will allow us to share these with after-school programs across the country.
From the Desk of Ron Drum: 4-H Entomology Field Trip Causes a Buzz
-- By Ron Drum, national coordinator of 4-H Afterschool
I received the nicest note yesterday. It read, “I wanted to thank you for yesterday because it made a world of difference for the kids to know, “That’s a damsel fly, that’s a tiger swallowtail,” etc. Victor does fine in school but doesn’t seem to “thrive” on regular classroom learning, so to see him excited and involved was really priceless.”
The note refers to my recent expedition with the Wheaton, Md.-based Lucky Clovers 4-H Club on their 4-H Entomology field trip. Six first year 4-H Entomologists and their parents and siblings spent the afternoon running around a local pond, wildly swinging nets at very fast flying insects. Every once in a while, someone would scream, “I caught one! I CAUGHT A DRAGONFLY!” It was great fun – and a fantastic way to spend the afternoon.
This program serves as a great example of the kinds of activities that young people can be involved in during the summer months – a crucial time when they are not in school and their parents cannot be there to take care of them. Planned program activities such as the 4-H Entomology field trip give youth something constructive to do beyond sitting in front of the TV and give parents a few less hours of worry.
My young friends were catching insects. Perhaps I helped a young person catch some excitement about learning and gave a mom a few less wrinkles in the process.
It was truly a great way to spend an afternoon. Hopefully you are all catching a similar excitment in your own parts of the country. Tell us about it at 4-hafterschool@fourhcouncil.edu.
Introducing the New 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide
Teens as Volunteer Leaders; Recruiting and Training Teens to Work with Younger Youth in After-School Programs is designed to be used by Extension/4-H professionals to deliver teen-led curriculum in after-school programs. It helps teens and adult volunteers develop knowledge and skills to deliver workforce preparation curricula to middle school youth. Written by Sharon K. Junge, Extension Director, Placer and Nevada Counties, California, the guide includes an overview of program delivery, recruitment processes and training outlines. Junge, a 4-H Afterschool leader, based the guide on the very successful Y.E.S. training materials developed in California.
The guide, made possible in part by funding from the JCPenney Afterschool Fund and NFL Charities, was introduced at the June 2005 4-H Afterschool Grantee Training Conference. Junge and volunteer leader June Stewart from California taught a session that provided the teams of youth and adult trainers with knowledge and skills to recruit additional teens and adult teams to deliver the program in their states.
You are invited to use the guide to recruit teens to help you expand your 4-H Afterschool program. It can be downloaded at no cost from the 4-H Afterschool Web site at http://www.4hafterschool.org/resources.asp.
If you are interested in purchasing hard copies of the guide, please send your request to Ron Drum at rdrum@fourhcouncil.edu. Although hard copies are not currently available, if sufficient interest is expressed, the national 4-H Afterschool staff will explore options for providing hard copies of the guide for sale to the 4-H system.
The newest 4-H Afterschool Resource Guide details how to deliver teen-led curriculum in afterschool programs.
Know an Exceptional 4-H Youth? Tell Us!
We all know why 4-H is special, but we need your help to tell everyone out there who doesn't yet know! We're looking for stories about exceptional youth who are making a difference through 4-H. Outstanding leaders, unique activities and other stories that we can develop to tell the story of 4-H Afterschool across the country. For example, there’s a 4-H teen in Kentucky who raises money to outfit police dogs with bulletproof vests and a 4-H youth who makes blankets to send back to the orphanage in Russia she was adopted from.
Do you know of a story that’s interesting, inspiring or unique? You don’t have to write it, just call us and talk—we’ll do the rest. Repeat, you don’t have to write it!
A short conversation will go a long way towards promoting 4-H across the country. It helps increase awareness of the good 4-H does for our youth, and ensures continued funding for our programs. So please take a minute, think about all the great things 4-H youth and programs do, and TELL US! E-mail us at wow@fourhcouncil.edu or call Gretchen at 301-961-2829.
RESOURCES AND OPPORTUNITIES
GLOW Crazy with 4-H Afterschool Wristband
GLOW crazy with a 4-H Afterschool wristband and show your support of after-school programs! The GLOW-IN-THE-DARK 4-H Afterschool wristbands are now available in youth and adult sizes. Check it out here.
Other available 4-H Afterschool items include:
- A white ceramic mug with emblem
- Navy blue polo shirt with emblem on left chest
- T-shirts with emblem across chest
- Green 4-H Afterschool tote bags
- 4-H Afterschool lanyard
- Coming soon: a 4-H Afterschool pen!
The glow-in-the-dark 4-H Afterschool wristband is ideal as a promotional item for 4-H Lights On! Afterschool event. The lights never go out on education when 4-H is involved!
All of these items are available through the National 4-H Supply Service and will be in the 2006 4-H Source Book this August.
Posted by apatel at 10:46 AM | Comments (0)