1. Washington County 4-H Calendar
2. Nebraska Extension DHM Phase/Covid-19 Risk Dial Guidance
3. 4-H Breakout Enrollment Challenge - WINNER
4. New 4-H Year Begins! Enrollment is Open
5. 2021 Washington County Virtual 4-H Program Update
6. 2021 Washington County 4-H Public Speaking Contest
7. YQCA Certification
8. Spotlight On 4-H Newsletter
9. Virtual & At-Home Educational Resources
10. Governor's Agricultural Excellence Awards
11. 2021 4-H Volunteer Training Available
12. 2021 Outstanding 4-H Volunteer - Nominations Open
13. New Classes Offered at the Nebraska State Fair
14. New Dog Achievement Program
15. 4-H Youth in Action Award Applications
16. 2021 Innovative Youth Corn Challenge
17. UNL Livestock Judging Camp
18. 2021 District 4-H Horse Shows
19. 2021 4-H Summer Camps
20. Other Statewide Events and Resources

*NEW OR UPDATED INFORMATION IS BOLDED!

March 18................................................2021 Virtual 4-H Program Update

March 27................................................4-H Horse Stampede - East Campus-Lincoln

May 7......................................................District/State Horse Entry Deadline

June 15...................................................4-H Enrollment/Animal ID/YQCA Deadline

June 28 & 29...........................................PASE & Life Challenge Contests, East Campus-Lincoln

June 30...................................................State Public Speaking Contest, East Campus-Lincoln

July 8......................................................Pre-Entry Due for Washington County Fair

July 30 - August 4, 2021........................2021 Washington County Fair

Did you know that you can find the Washington County 4-H Calendar on our webpage? View just the month or download and print the whole program year!

Visit https://go.unl.edu/washingtoncounty4hcalendar to view. As dates/events continue to be added we will update the calendar. The webpage will show the most recent date that the program calendar was updated!

Nebraska Extension DHM Phase/Covid-19 Risk Dial Guidance

Follow Most Restrictive Guidance: State DHM or Local Health Department Covid-19 Risk Dial

CURRENTLY – ORANGE

4-H Clubs (events, activities, meetings)

Recommend meeting virtually; Facial coverings required for in person meetings; Follow additional local/county guidance.

Effective November 30, 2020

Thank you to all of those who completed your 4-H Enrollment in the month of February as well as participated in the 4-H Breakout Challenge. All those who completed had their name entered in a drawing to win some 4-H goodies! The winner of our 4-H Enrollment Challenge was Norah Cloudt! Reminder that 4-H Enrollment must be completed by June 15, 2021.

Nebraska 4-HOnline Enrollment Link: https://ne.4honline.com/Login.aspx?403D4050364539525371705375593D

Please note that the 4-H project history has been cleared and you must enter the project name and the number of years you have participated in it. You will find your history by going into your Family Account and choosing Member Reports.

You might also notice that the Virtual Robotics project shows up in the project history but has been removed this year as the curriculum is no longer available.

Our 4hOnline payment system is back up! Families are now able to proceed to the payment page and complete enrollment.

All are welcome to join us, 4-H Parents, Leaders and Volunteers are encouraged to attend. The 4-H Program Update will cover 2021 fair updates, new volunteer resources for you to utilize in your clubs and more! Register by March 11, 2021 at https://go.unl.edu/20214hupdate

2021 Washington County 4-H Public Speaking Contest

The 4-H Public Speaking Contest provides an opportunity for youth to improve their public speaking skills while building confidence. If you write a speech or deliver a public service announcement (or both!) it's sure to be an enjoyable learning experience!

View the rules, regulations and the registration forms on the website by going to: https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/washington/washington-county-4-h-public-speaking-contest/

Registration forms for Washington County 4-H Public Speaking Contest is due to the Nebraska Extension – Washington County Office Monday, April 12th by 5pm.

At this time the location of the Public Speaking Contest is to be determined. It is our hope to hold an in-person event. We will share as soon as a location has been secured.

Any questions or concerns can be directed to all 4-H Staff at washingtoncounty4h@unl.edu or e-mail Jaki and jaki.zahourek@unl.edu

YQCA (Youth for Quality Care of Animals) certification must be completed by June 15, 2021 for all youth who plan to exhibit a beef, dairy, goat, hog, sheep, poultry or rabbit animal in 4-H this year. You can visit www.yqca.org to complete your certification. You will need to use your 4-HOnline user name and password to start the process. IMPORTANT—you must have completed your 2021 4-H Enrollment to begin your YQCA process. Remember you will need to send a copy of your certificate to the office to verify you have completed your YQCA certification for 2021! The perfect winter activity is completing your YQCA early!

Find the March Spotlight Newsletter at:

https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/washington/3%20March2021.pdf

Looking for educational resources you can use from home? We've got you covered! 😉

Nebraska 4-H is now offering a variety of virtual learning experiences, such as Living Room Learning and Boredom Buster Challenges. We've also collected some of our favorite activity guides that are perfect for hands-on learning at home.

Check out our virtual and at-home educational resources at https://4h.unl.edu/virtual-home-learning.

• Looking to advance your horsemanship knowledge and skills? Check out our Horsemanship Study Courses! Three levels are available and are open to all youth ages 8-18 interested in learning more about horses. Youth do not need to be 4-H members to enroll in the self-paced courses. Learn more at 4h.unl.edu/horse-study-courses.

• Whether it’s your favorite photo you’ve taken this fall or one you took to the county fair, we want to see it! Submit your favorite photo for a chance to be showcased. The 4-H photography showcase offers members a project exhibition opportunity beyond traditional print media. 4-H’ers are invited to submit their favorite photo they’ve taken for a chance to have it showcased online for thousands of 4-H fans to admire. Learn more and submit a photo at 4h.unl.edu/photography-showcase.

We are extending the deadline to apply for the Governor’s Agricultural Excellence Awards for 2021. Please encourage your clubs to consider applying for a grant to assist with completing a project that will have a lasting impact on your community or program. The application form is linked on the Nebraska 4-H Foundation website: https://www.ne4hfoundation.org/governers-ag-excellence-award/. We will accept applications through April 1st,, 2021.

Nebraska 4-H Foundation’s Governor’s Agricultural Excellence Awards sponsored by the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority (NIFA) is a prestigious award designed to recognize 4-H clubs for their efforts to serve their communities. This grant is intended to provide funding for 4-H Clubs to complete projects that will have a lasting impact on their communities. Projects should be intentional and impactful, growing club members as leaders and fulfilling a need in their community.

Recognition is in the form of a $500 check issued to the club’s treasury to be used as described in the award application form completed by the club.

Examples of fundable programs include mentorship programs, intergenerational programs, attending educational experiences, hosting workshops/educational events and service-learning opportunities.

In order to be considered for the award, applications must be completed by April 1, 2021. Please direct any questions to Lindsay Shearer (lshearer2@unl.edu) or by calling 402.472.9019.

It is with great excitement that Nebraska 4-H will be offering new livestock classes and divisions at the 2021 Nebraska State Fair! With the decision to shift 4-H and FFA livestock shows to the two different weekends, this provided the opportunity to offer new shows and programs for 4-H.

Here’s what is NEW!

4-H BEEF

In our beef area, we will now be offering:

• a feeder calf show,
• a junior breeding heifer class to all of our breeding classes, and
• 4-H members will now be eligible to show up to a total of five beef animals. A 4-H’er can exhibit up to two market beef, three breeding heifers and two feeder calves as long as the total number of entries does not exceed five beef animals.

4-H SWINE

In our swine area,

• We will be offering a breeding gilt show. This breeding gilt show will include 9 purebred classes as well as a crossbred class.
• In our market swine show, we will be creating a more diverse show by including 9 purebred classes.
• We will also be adding new “Farrowed and Owned Breeding and Market Swine” divisions. The Nebraska 4-H Farrowed and Owned Swine Cohort is an opportunity for youth interested in learning more about the swine industry and is designed to cultivate the next generation of leaders in the swine industry. The goal of the Nebraska 4-H Farrowed and Owned Swine Cohort is to enhance the educational value of the traditional 4-H swine projects by providing unique opportunities focusing on swine production as goal of the member’s project, along with accurate and complete record-keeping, industry knowledge, and engagement by the 4-H member.
• 4-H members will now be eligible to show up to a total of five swine projects. A 4-H member is limited to exhibiting three market hogs and two breeding gilts

4-H SHEEP

• 4-H members will now be eligible to show up to a total of five sheep maximum, if at least two are breeding ewes. In no case will a 4-H member exhibit more than three market lambs.

4-H GOAT

• 4-H members will now be eligible to show up to a total of five goats maximum, if at least two are breeding does. In no case will a 4-H member exhibit more than three market goats.

We are excited to present our NEW 4-H Dog Achievement Program for 4-H youth! This program is similar to the Diamond Clover program you all may know about.

4-H Dog Achievement Program

The program consists of levels that require a young person to plan and report a broad range of age-appropriate accomplishments. For each level, the Dog Achievement program provides a list of accomplishments from which 4-H youth choose their goals. The accomplishments increase in quantity and difficulty for each level. At the beginning of the 4-H year, participants plan what to accomplish and at the end of the 4-H year, they report on their completed accomplishments. Successful completion of a level's Plan & Report form results in a 4-H youth earning that level of the Dog Achievement program.

• Youth in Action awards are due March 29th! The National 4-H Youth in Action awards program recognizes four confident young leaders with diverse backgrounds and unique perspectives in four core pillar areas: agriculture, civic engagement, healthy living, and STEM. Pillar winners receive a $5,000 scholarship, an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington D.C. for National 4-H Council’s Legacy Awards, networking opportunities, and recognition as an official 4-H youth spokesperson. Apply now at 4-h.org/parents/4-h-youth-in-action-awards.

The Nebraska Innovative Youth Corn Challenge is approaching its tenth-year engaging youth in crop science-based education. The Innovative Youth Corn Challenge (IYCC) was created as a partnership between the Nebraska Corn Board and Nebraska Extension. Since the Innovative Youth Corn Challenge program’s inception in 2012, 74 teams have participated in the program with 37 teams successfully harvesting and analyzing their plot data. A total of 147 youth have participated.

This program continues to evolve and has exciting changes planned for the 2021 growing season with IYCC 2.0. A citizen scientist component will encourage youth to connect with researchers on a real problem facing corn growers and assist in collecting data or designing a tool to solve a real-world problem.

The IYCC 2.0 will also feature an agricultural literacy piece which will help others understand corn production practices and highlight teams’ efforts. This will allow youth to promote their own work through creative works such as a video or other multimedia tool. Nebraska Extension will execute this evolving, innovative and in-depth program in 2021, which will be the tenth year creating agricultural, science-informed graduates in the agricultural industry.

Prizes for participation in this project include 1st place - $1,000, 2nd place - $500, 3rd place -$250, “Extra Mile” Award $200, CORN Communications Award $200 and $50 for completion of the project. In addition, each team receives a crop scouting kit valued at over $200, plot sign and the opportunity to engage with UNL agronomic professionals through “ask an agronomist” sessions.

For more information about this program and to register, go to https://cropwatch.unl.edu/youth/cornchallenge. Registration is due March 15th. Contact Brandy VanDeWalle at brandy.vandewalle@unl.edu or (402) 759-3712 for details about this program.

The State 4-H Horse Program would like to notify counties and their 4-H families to book their hotel reservations soon if they plan to attend/participate at the 2021 Fonner Park 4-H State Horse Expo. This year the Horse Expo (July 10th - 14th) is scheduled on the same dates as the National Jr. Angus Show. Since both events are happening at the same time, we HIGHLY recommend families are notified about the limited hotel availability during the state horse show. We would like to give families plenty of warning so they are not struggling to book hotels closer to our event.

We have blocked off a limited number of rooms with the Fairfield Inn hotel for 4-H families. Please see below for more information.

Attached below is the link to share with your families to make their reservations online. They are also more than welcome to call hotel directly at 308-381-8980.

Book your group rate for the State 4-H Horse show at:

https://www.marriott.com/event-reservations/reservation-link.mi?id=1614794803110&key=GRP&app=resvlink

You will find the information for your online reservation link below. If you have questions or need help with the link, please do not hesitate to ask. We appreciate your business and look forward to a successful event.

Event Summary:

State 4H Horse Show

Start Date: Sunday, July 11, 2021

End Date: Thursday, July 15, 2021

Last Day to Book: Friday, March 19, 2021

Hotel(s) offering your special group rate:

• Fairfield Inn & Suites Grand Island for $120 USD per night

We have exciting news! Registration for Summer Camp 2021 is now OPEN! Check out our exciting 4 and 5 day overnight camp offerings at the NEBRASKA STATE 4-H CAMP in Halsey! Charter bus transportation option offered select weeks from Lincoln (UNL East Campus) and Grand Island (Raising Nebraska)! Register by Jan. 31st to receive 10% off per session! Use code: EARLYBIRD21

See full camp descriptions and register online: https://4h.unl.edu/camps-centers/summer-camp/schedule

• Cat Club - https://4h.unl.edu/companion-animal/cat-club
  

• Dog Showmanship Video Series - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?reload=9&list=PL579hRei5D7xwKTqpe8kJw0GnfKK4x8l4
• Virtual Dog Club - https://4h.unl.edu/virtual-dog-club
• Companion Rabbit Science Online Course - https://4h.unl.edu/companion-rabbit-science

• Companion Animal Workshop - https://4h.unl.edu/companion-animal-judges-workshop