By Mario Villarino, Texas AgriLife Extension Agent for Natural Resources and Agriculture, Hopkins County, [email protected]
Texas 4-H is an educational program for youth. The program uses activities to provide education under the principle of “learning by doing.” 4‑H is America’s largest youth development organization —empowering nearly six million young people with the skills to lead for a lifetime. In 4‑H, we believe in the power of young people. We see that every child has valuable strengths and real influence to improve the world around us.
4‑H is delivered by Cooperative Extension — a community of more than 100 public universities across the nation that provides experiences where young people learn by doing. For more than 100 years, 4‑H has welcomed young people of all beliefs and backgrounds, giving kids a voice to express who they are and how they make their lives and communities better.
Through life-changing 4‑H programs, nearly six million kids and teens have taken on critical societal issues, such as addressing community health inequities, engaging in civil discourse and advocating for equity and inclusion for all.
We Believe that all young people’s have potential, and in developing young people who are empowered, confident, hard-working, determined, responsible and compassionate — seeing a world beyond themselves so that they have the life-long skills to succeed in college and career, ensuring access and equity for all, the power of America’s leading public universities, the practice of positive youth development (PYD) by creating positive learning experiences, caring and trusted adult mentors who cultivate positive relationships with youth, creating safe, diverse and inclusive environments, and meeting young people wherever they are.
So, how might the experiences look? Generally, after enrollment, youth get involve developing a project supported by their family. Depending of the project, some might be in groups (leadership, council, competitive events) or individual. The Extension office working with local 4-H Council will then plan activities to enhance or reflect the learned progress by the 4-H members.
Club membership is very important because it establishes a relationship between the 4-H member, support family and the Extension programs. Texas has more than 550,000 youth who are involved in 4-H experiences each year and we are pleased that you have decided to join 4-H!
Here is some information about our enrollment process and how we need your partnership in getting your membership entered and approved: All membership records change to an inactive status in August. The Texas 4-H year officially starts on Sept. 1 but enrollment opens on Aug. 15. Enrollment procedures and payment method options vary in each county, so check with your local county office for more information by calling 903-885-3443 or visit https://texas4-h.tamu.edu.
