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Texas 4-H enrollment tops 1 million
Texas
Adam Hunter of Dallas, 17, is one in a million. So is 8-year-old Marquis Kingsmith of Austin; Lindsey Locklar of Midland, 15, and Suzan Parker of Burnet, 16.
Each of these young Texans and others like them across the state can count themselves as one in a million--1,059,829 to be exact.
That's how many young people, from age 8 to 18, have participated in 4-H programs across the state this year, said Dr. Martha Couch, Texas Cooperative Extension associate director for 4-H and youth.
And that's not all. In the Lone Star State, 4-H--Extension's youth development and leadership program--is reaching thousands of young people in urban areas too. In fact, enrollment in 4-H programs has increased in several of the state's largest urban areas, said Matt Tarpley of Fort Stockton, Extension program specialist in 4-H and youth. He should know--he's in charge of gathering and processing 4-H enrollment figures.
For example, this year almost 400,000 young people in the Houston area participated in 4-H programs--399,696, Tarpley said. That's an increase over last year's enrollment, which was 367,047.
In El Paso, enrollment almost doubled, from 17,644 in 2003 to 35,902 this year.
As interest in 4-H grows, so do its programs. From its earliest roots nearly 100 years ago, Texas 4-H has emphasized the importance of agriculture. But agriculture-based programs cover a broad field, Tarpley said. According to this year's enrollment numbers, "the strong participation is in leadership, character education such as Texas Building Character, and workforce preparation. These are not historically thought of as 4-H projects."
Here's some more 4-H projects that might not be thought of as agriculture-based:
--This year Hunter helped build a Habitat for Humanity home in Bryan and was one of four 4-H'ers who traveled to Greece on a trip sponsored by the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo International Committee.
--Locklar helped create a fabric block that was included on a statewide quilt and displayed at the Texas State Fair.
--Parker attended Health Tech Camp where she helped put together an online video presentation on cancer prevention.
--Hundreds of young people participated in 4-H science-based curriculum enrichment programs, such as growing gardens. According to Couch, these young 4-H program participants are more likely to show improvement in their science-based achievement scores over students who did not participate.
Kingsmith and hundreds of other kids from urban elementary schools attended the Food and Fiber Expo in Austin for their first taste of how agriculture really works.
"There's a huge educational effort across the state in ag literacy and interpretation," Tarpley said. That means 4-H and other agencies are providing opportunities for non-rural residents to learn more about "food and fiber and where it comes from.
"We're taking ag to the city," he said, "and teaching the kids how ag is important to their lives."
And more than a million of these kids have gotten the message this year, he said.
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