Nelson Mandela once said, “the youth of today are the leaders of tomorrow.” While I believe this is absolutely true, I also think the youth of today are also leaders today. In the 4-H program, we give multiple opportunities for youth to start building their leadership skills from year one in 4-H. 4-H members can be a camp counselor, lead a station at Mini 4-H Day Camp, be a club officer and more.
In an effort to enhance their leadership skills and better prepare 4-H members to be club officers, the Junior Leaders hosted a 4-H Club Officer Training to 30 of its members at the March meeting. A representative from Purdue’s Collegiate 4-H was the guest presenter and went over the different club officer roles, the importance of effective communication, setting SMART goals and how to work together as a team. You may be curious to know what officers do in 4-H. Club officers help lead local meetings to their members and help in providing a positive experiences for their peers. Within the Junior Leader program, officers also plan all meetings and look for opportunities to give back to the community.
It is vital to provide youth opportunities to develop and enhance their leadership skills now to better prepare them for bigger leadership roles in the future. These young leaders are potential elected officials, business owners, employees, etc. 4-H is a safe place for youth to not only enhance their leadership skills but also so many other life skills as well. Interested in your child taking part in these leadership opportunities? Then enroll in 4-H today. To enroll, visit https://v2.4honline.com or visit the Montgomery County Extension office at 400 Parke Ave., Crawfordsville. The program fee for enrolling in 4-H is $15 per child and mini 4-H (grades K-2) is free. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact the Extension office at 765-364-6363.
Abby Morgan is the Montgomery County Extension Education, 4-H Youth Development Educator. The office is at 400 Parke Ave., Crawfordsville; 765-364-6363. She may be reached by email at asweet@purdue.edu.
