¡Adelante Juventud 4-H! is a new adventure and may not look like your traditional 4-H club. The core focus of this group serving the city of Arcadia and surrounding communities is to bring people together and build community. The group knows the importance of belonging and have set their goals to reflect that.

• To build a sense of community in Latinx youth in the area
• To provide life skills and academic support for youth
• To learn more about Latinx culture
• To connect with other 4-H communities in the area

Youth are encouraged to work together and are given opportunities to meet other youth in the area. They’re doing this by focusing on engaging Latinx youth in community based programs. The group reaches out to families through personal connections and trusted organizations like churches and the school district. The group holds monthly programs including art activities, animal open houses and traditional food classes. These programs help build cultural pride and allow different members of the community to share their skills with others.

Adult volunteers help provide guidance to youth and encourage them to get involved. Youth hold officer roles and help organize and run meetings. They also develop and run activities for each meeting and lead other youth in the group. With the support of Extension staff, youth and adults make decisions together. “The relationships that are built by coming together for community activities demonstrate just how critical the idea of belonging is to 4-H clubs and that it can take many different forms based on the people involved,” says Trempealeau County Youth and Families Educator Adam Trunzo.

Sixty youth in grades 6-8 in Waukesha County have a new way to build the Essential Element of independence. An Extension-sponsored afterschool and summer program, called Emerging Leaders helps to build the motivation, understanding, skills, and attitudes that lead to success in middle school, high school, and beyond. The goals and the hard work to get there come from the youth; the support systems come from the program and the community mentors and role models who participate.

In addition to receiving academic support, youth participate in a variety of adventurous activities. Science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) activities spark their interest in new careers while building life skills through hands-on challenges. Youth build leadership skills while they give back to the community through service projects. Campus tours and career shadowing help youth create a vision and a plan for the post-secondary and career options that help them achieve their personal goals.

Youth in the Menominee area have been learning more about the art and culture of regalia making. The Menominee 4-H Regalia Making project has taken place the last three summers. About 13 youth and eight adult leaders participate. The Menominee Indian Tribal community is one of several reservations in the state of Wisconsin. They are unique in aspects of natural resources and deep rooted cultural connectedness. This community represents one of the 4-H clubs in the state of Wisconsin that is located on a reservation and run primarily by Native American youth and adults.

The goal of the project is to provide resources and instruction to make regalia. This includes cultural teaching from elders and community regalia makers who help with technique and design. An instructor guides youth through making their regalia from start to finish. But together, youth and adults work to create the regalia pieces.

The art of making regalia is a perfect example of mastery. Youth master sewing, craftsmanship, measuring, fabric selection and pattern cutting. Learning to sew is a great life skill that youth can use in other projects. While making regalia, youth also discover techniques like beading, painting and designing. Over the course of the project, youth and their families participate in interviewing local regalia makers, cultural events, hands-on learning and online research to document what they’ve completed in their project guidebook.

This project allows youth to explore cultural history and traditions. Each participant has individuality when it comes to their tribal affiliation, name and regalia style they choose. “Most participants are beginners, but some come with an understanding of how to make regalia all while learning together,” says Sofie Teller, Extension Educator, Extension Menominee County/Nation.

At the end of the project, youth help plan a regalia revue. Families and elders speak at the review and wish the youth well and encourage them to continue to improve their sewing and regalia making skills.

Each year all 4-H clubs and 4-H afterschool groups in Buffalo County participate in the service-learning project, which engages most of the nearly 500 youth and 100 certified volunteers. The goals of the service-learning project across years are:

• Work together within 4-H clubs and across Buffalo County
• Develop new 4-H project skills
• Perform community service to meet a local community need
• Strengthen leadership skills and youth-adult partnerships
• Show empathy (compassion) for others

Each year there is a new emphasis and audience. There is also an additional learning goal focused on that direct emphasis. For example, when clubs worked to support backpack meals, 4-H members and volunteers participated in a poverty simulation and developed a better understanding of those who are food insecure in rural Buffalo County. Many clubs invited Latinx youth and adults to their club activities to help them include culturally appropriate foods and recipes in Spanish.

When clubs and groups built Free Little Libraries, they reviewed demographic maps and worked to place libraries in places with little or no access to free books. This also included learning about the literacy levels and needs of those who would be most likely to use the library. We provided resources in Spanish, texts for those working on their General Education Diploma (GED) or materials for youth with incarcerated family members. When the service-learning project’s audience was drug-endangered children, youth and adults learned about adverse childhood experiences. Then they worked to break down barriers that may prevent 4-H clubs from effectively supporting individuals who may have experienced trauma.

We chose the service-learning project emphasis and associated activities based on current issues and needs in Buffalo County.  A group of youth and adults representing the Buffalo County 4-H Leaders Association work in committee to carry out the Plan, Action, Reflection, and Evaluation (PARE) service-learning model. Youth are involved in selecting the project, coaching younger members completing the project, communicating about what they’ve learned, and reflecting on the success of the project.

Visit the website to learn more about the Buffalo County 4-H Countywide Service-Learning Project.