AgKnowledge-2021FINAL-Accessible.pdf — PaddleOCR-VL (Baidu)

Growing GOOD CITIZENS

Students have fun and learn through 4-H programs

The Kentucky State University Land Grant Program offers several residential and day camps, as well as mentorships and other programs, for youth.

Many of the programs are hosted by 4-H Youth Development, a team led by Dr. Travella Free that includes Louis Milligan, Brian Walker, Patrice Thompson, Ed Wilcox, Ken Thompson, Jhamicah Harbut, Gidgett Sweazy, Chandra DeRamus, Jeremy Sandifer and more.

The programs include residential camps like AgDiscovery and Summer Transportation Institute, as well as various day camps in the summer, after-school programs and more. Some of the many programs are listed below:

AgDiscovery, a two-week residential program targeting diverse students from underserved communities interested in careers in animal science and veterinary medicine Summer Transportation Institute, a residential program that provides awareness about transportation careers and encourages youth to consider transportation-related courses of study

Summer Transportation Institute, a residential program that provides awareness about transportation careers and encourages youth to consider transportation-related courses of study

4-H Youth Futures: College Within Reach, a comprehensive program exploring the process of a successful college or career preparation experience

Club KYSU, a virtual club in which youth participate in planned programs, self-guided activities, online workshops, or special interest groups

4-H Ignite Conference, an impact-focused, youth-centered yearly conference that is a one-stop shop for personal growth and empowerment

STEM Scholars Academy, a program that provides high school students opportunities to explore STEM fields and increase interest in attending college and studying STEM

4-H BRED for Excellence, a year-long program that involves diverse youth in engaging workshops in which they discover and explore their unique interests and talents

4-H Health Rocks, a program that applies 4-H's successful Positive Youth Development Model with life skill development and decision making to the challenge of reducing tobacco, alcohol, e-cigarette/vaping and drug use

Healthy Living with NutriShake, a six-week healthy eating program designed to help school-aged youth improve their diets by increasing their daily intake of fruits and vegetables

Watershed Education Program, a hands-on program that shows how land use affects water quality and how organisms in the waterways are indicators of water quality

4-H Tech Wizards, an after-school youth mentoring program for underserved youth that sparks interest in STEM fields

Rosenwald 4-H Center School Enrichment and Day Camps, numerous educational programs aimed at underserved youth with special interest clubs, after-school and summer programs

The programs allow the 4-H Youth Development team to fulfill their national mandate areas: STEM education and agriculture, such as AgDiscovery, which is a veterinary camp; health and well-being, such as nutritional classes; and civic education, which includes leadership and preparing students to be contributing members to society.

What sets Kentucky State programs apart from other Land Grant Programs’ youth activities is the focus on “underserved youth in underrepresented communities,” Free said. “Those are those kids that don’t traditionally participate in a program, so we make a considerable amount of effort to go into those neighborhoods and those communities and give them resources based in our national mandate areas.”

amount of effort to go into those neighborhoods and those communities and give them resources based in our national mandate areas."

The camps and programs are attended by students in Frankfort and across Kentucky, but residential programs also allow Kentucky State to reach out-of-state students. Throughout 13 years of hosting AgDiscovery, students from about 40 states and Puerto Rico have attended Kentucky State camps.

For more information about opportunities for youth, visit the 4-H Youth Development page at kysu.edu or contact Dr. Travella Free at travella.free@kysu.edu.