Community Highlight: 4H- Part 3
Podcast Transcription:
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Maddy: Hello listeners! Welcome to this episode! I’m excited to share part three of my 4H series. If you listened to the first two parts, you heard amazing insight from PFCU employee and 4H participant, Casey Meyers as well as Shiawassee County’s Coordinator, Nikki Hersch. In this episode, I chatted with John Duvall, the Ionia County 4H Coordinator. John reiterates the value of this program and gives even more information that you haven’t heard yet. So it’s really great to hear about the program from his experience and his perspective. Enjoy my interview with John.
Thank you for joining me with this today. I know you’re busy.
John: I appreciate it.
Maddy: Yeah, of course!
John: Yeah, so my name’s John Duvall, I’m the Ionia County 4H Program Coordinator. So I’m coordinating volunteers and different programs and I’m the guy that you want to talk to if you’re interested in Ionia 4H.
Maddy: Perfect! So you are the Coordinator of Ionia and I’m assuming, are there 4H programs in other counties as well like across the state or is this nationwide as well?
John: Yeah, so this is like a nationwide deal but we do have like specifically a Michigan 4H program and it’s a part of MSU Extension so we are very close to Michigan State University and they support us with a lot of educational materials and programming and all that stuff so I’m an MSU Extension employee.
Maddy: Oh okay, I didn’t realize that that’s how that worked.
John: Yes, yes.
Maddy: I learned a lot about 4H just talking to a few people the last several months and my husband was a part of 4H, I never was but I do see the value in these programs for youth and all the opportunities that it has to give to kids and even to volunteers. For those that might not know what 4H is, how would you describe it?
John: Yeah so 4H is an informal, practical, learning by doing educational program for youth is probably the best way to describe it. The purpose of 4H is to help youth acquire knowledge, develop life skills and form attitudes that will enable them to become self-directing, productive members of society. Many people think 4H is just for kids who live on farms or for those interested in raising and selling animals but that’s not entirely true. Offering a diverse range of topics and interest areas, 4H is the largest youth development organization in Michigan. There are actually more than 200,000 young people who are a part of Michigan 4H each year from programs ranging from science and technology to clothing and textiles and much more, 4H provides fun educational opportunities that empower young people with the skills to lead for a lifetime and to become the foundation for future success. 4H is based on the experiential learning model. Youth in 4H participate in specific program areas through the learn-by-doing approach in addition to gaining valuable content knowledge, this model teaches 4H members critical life skills such as goal setting, self-discipline, conflict resolution and teamwork that directly contributes to the communities they live in. The growth of these life skills are just one of many positive youth development outcomes that occur from youth’s participation in 4H and result in a direct impact on not only themselves but other youth they interact with as well. I know that’s a mouthful but that’s how I would describe 4H.
Maddy: Yeah that’s pretty amazing. I know you mentioned in there that a lot people think that it’s just about if you live on a farm or the whole animal side of it but there’s so much more to it. It’s interesting to hear all of the other opportunities that are out there besides that.
John: Yeah so that’s definitely the traditional, like how 4H started but the opportunities are endless and there’s definitely a lot of momentum to get different types of programs going in 4H so it can be for everyone.
Maddy: Yeah. I’m just curious, if there was someone interested in maybe starting a new program that doesn’t exist yet, is that something that they could start up in 4H? Like a new club or a new program within there?
John: Yeah absolutely. I’m trying to think of an example. So before the pandemic, we were actually about to start a self-defense club so that would be something but it’s basically endless opportunities as long as it’s like an educational program, there’s a leader that’s knowledgeable on this topic and is able to lead a club or a program with it.
Maddy: And that would be, I mean those people that lead those, your whole program is volunteer based, right?
John: Yes, and then all of our volunteers go through a volunteer selection process. We won’t get into that on this but if you’re becoming a volunteer and you have an idea, let me know and I’ll give my contact information at the end.
Maddy: Very cool! So if someone is interested in joining, how can they do so? Are there age limits or any costs associated with the program?
John: Yeah, so to become a 4H member, let’s start with what age you must be to join. 4H age is your age on January 1st of the year so the minimum 4H age is five years old so if you’re five years old on January 1st, you can become a 4H member. Five to seven year old 4H-ers of Clover Buds so they’re not quite ready to compete in many of the project areas. A lot of it is at the end of the 4H year, you’re going to participate in fair so whether that’s showing animals or cake decorating, the projects that you’ve been working on all year, you get to showcase. So five to seven years old, you don’t get judged but you get to participate and then once you hit the age of eight, you can actually compete against other 4H members. In terms of money, it no longer costs money to become a 4H member. Before the pandemic, we had a $20 participation fee. We were able to find different sources to get rid of that so it’s no longer a potential barrier for people so it’s a great time to join. And becoming a 4H member, the best way to do that would be contact me, I will send you a club directory with all the clubs we have listed on that and then further there is what the clubs are offering and then contact information to the leader and then importantly, the location where the club primarily meets so you can see what’s close to you in the county. You then reach out to that club leader if you think something looks good, confirm that club is right for you. You want to make sure the meeting times are good, that they have enough support with whatever project you want to do, all that type of stuff. And then once you find a club and you’re committed to that club, you’re just going to sign up through what we call 4H Online, it’s just 4honline.com and you create a profile and add the club to your profile, submit your enrollment and then once I approve your enrollment, you are a 4H member.
Maddy: Oh, I didn’t know that that’s how it all worked. That’s interesting. It sounds like a very smooth, simple process for people which I think is what, I think that’s what people look for too is they don’t want to have trouble signing up for those things.
John: Right and I will mention I will send you directions to sign up on 4H Online because not everyone is computer savvy and I am always happy to help people walk through that or you know, set up an appointment with me in the office and you can sit down with me and I’ll get you signed up.
Maddy: Awesome and I know you mentioned since you’re the Coordinator for Ionia County, if someone is listening and they’re not in that county, is there somewhere that they can go to find contact information or can they reach out to you and you’ll direct them?
John: Yeah so I would suggest in your county there’s going to be an extension office so just search whatever county you are in, extension office, MSU Extension Office and then give that extension office a call. If there’s like a club or program in a different county, you can participate in other counties as well, as long as you’re willing to get yourself there.
Maddy: Oh okay, that’s good to know.
John: We do have some kids who are like from the county north of us or some that participate in both.
Maddy: Okay, is there anything else you’d like to share?
John: Well I will say that Michigan 4H, like I said, is a part of MSU Extension and the activities that you participate in are all backed by and based on child and youth development research through hands on learning and wide variety of program areas, there’s a lot to be gained- valuable knowledge, enhanced expertise, and really uncover aspirations, trying to figure out what you want to do as a kid, this can really help and there’s really good benefits. Research shows kids who participate in 4H obtain better grades, and are more likely to go college and give back to their communities. Not to mention there are many statewide events available as well as scholarship opportunities for those events and also you can apply for local scholarships, at least in Ionia County. Seniors can apply for a scholarship to college and we do have some money for that. Lastly, I will mention since the pandemic, we adjusted a little bit and we created a bunch of virtual programs. We are back to in-person but we decided to still keep some of these virtual programs going so these are free for 4H members ranging from topics such as 4H financial fitness, there’s a virtual cultural experience programs, even a Dungeons and Dragons virtual club if you are into that game. So a wide variety of online opportunities. We have an Ionia County 4H Facebook page where you can view and sign up for these virtual events and then I would like to give out my contact information. My email is duvallj2@msu.edu or just call our office at 616-527-5357 and tell them that you’re interested in 4H.
Maddy: Awesome, I hope this sparked someone’s interest to join or at least take that next step to learn a little bit more or reach out to you. That was a lot of awesome information, I know I learned a lot I didn’t know and I’ve talked to a couple people about 4H already and it’s good to get someone else’s perspective and information.
John: I’m glad that I could do that and thank you so much for having me on. I really appreciate it.
Maddy: Yeah, thank you for your time, I appreciate it too!
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