CENTRAL SANDHILLS AREA 4-H NEWS
January 2022 Newsletter
Contact Information
Mailing Address: PO Box 148 - Thedford, NE 69166
Email: mandersen16@unl.edu
Website: https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/centralsandhills/
Location: 503 Main Street, Thedford, NE, USA
Phone: (308)645-2267
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centralsandhillsarea/
JANUARY EDITION
Membership For 2021-2022 Is Now Open!
In November 4honline transitioned from 1.0 to 2.0. You can click on the link to enroll in the new system https://v2.4honline.com/. If you have any questions, please reach out to Shaniya at s.albertus@unl.edu or by calling the office at 308-645-2267.
Please note, this year the Nebraska State 4-H Office will impose a statewide enrollment deadline date that will assist counties in having a consistent timeline for processing membership enrollments. Once that date is announced from the State 4-H Office, it will be released from the Extension Office.
What does this mean? ENROLL EARLY and don't miss the statewide deadline to be a Nebraska 4-H member! :-)
All leaders and volunteers also need to be enrolled on 4honline. There is no fee to enroll.
Attention: Adult members and volunteers
All 4-H volunteers and staff are required to complete the Nebraska 4-H volunteer screening process. Volunteer screening is done in order to assure a safe, positive, and nurturing environment for all youth involved with the Nebraska 4-H programs and provide protection for the child, the volunteer, the educator, the 4-H Council, the Extension Board, and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension.
Initial screening of volunteers and staff will occur when they sign up to volunteer or are employed as an Extension professional. Re-screening for volunteers will be done every five years by district regardless of when the original screening was completed. Volunteers are responsible for covering the screening fee at the time the screening is completed. Currently, the cost of the screening is $5.00. Please see click on the link below for more details.
January 4-H Featured Project- Leathercrafting
Happy New Year! When I think of these cold and chilly January days, I am reminded of the hours I spent on new hobbies the weeks after Christmas while waiting for school to begin again. Learning a new craft or skill is a terrific way to set the tone for an awesome year. This month’s featured 4-H project is Leathercrafting!
Leathercrafting is a great project for all ages. Leather is one of our oldest natural resources; it has helped shape civilizations for over 34 centuries! By working with this medium, 4-Hers are taking part in a rich heritage of creativity and resourcefulness. This project focusses on the fundamentals of preparing leather and creating pieces that are used in our everyday life. Youth will learn where leather comes from and how its uses have changed over centuries. Youth will also learn a skill they can use to create a lifelong hobby or even a career. There are leather workers all over the world and many opportunities that come from knowing this skill.
This project is different in terms of how it fits into State Fair. We have county level classes you can show in at your local fair, or if you want to take it further, we can help you place your item into clothing classes at the state level. Classes C221007- Beginning Fashion Accessory and C221008- Advanced Fashion Accessory would be good for projects such as leather earrings, shows, belts, bracelets, necklaces and so on. 4-Hers could also turn this skill into an entrepreneurship project where they learn how to market and sell the items they create!
If your 4-Her is interested in working on a leathercrafting project and you want more information, please contact the 4-H Assistant Shaniya at s.albertus@unl.edu or call the office at 308-645-2267.
Online Short courses available
Check out these two short courses on Horse Health and Horse Nutrition from Extension Horses. They are available from December 15 to May 15. You can start at any time, and each course has 6 lessons from University and industry experts from around the country. At $50 per course, that is less than $10 per lesson. Click here to enroll.https://catalog.extension.org/?category=6&keyword=Hippology+Shortcourse&cond=advand&searchcategory=
Second Year of the Nebraska 4-H Livestock Achievement Program
This additional opportunity for enrolled livestock project youth, is designed to promote all educational aspects of 4-H livestock projects including selection, production, leadership, and exhibition by recognizing youth striving to improve in their livestock project knowledge and leadership.
The program recognizes Members of Excellence across all 4-H livestock project areas, including: beef, sheep, meat goat, swine, dairy cattle, dairy goat, rabbit, and poultry.
The program consists of two levels that require 4-H members to plan and report a broad range of age-appropriate and project-related accomplishments. For each level, the Livestock Achievement Program provides a list of accomplishments from which 4-H members choose their goals. Each accomplishment is worth a specific number of points. Intermediates, ages 10-13, must complete 100 points worth of activities to receive the distinction of Intermediate Member of Excellence. Seniors, ages 14-18, must complete 150 points worth of activities to receive the distinction of Senior Member of Excellence. The Plan and Reports, linked on the webpage, show examples of the project related accomplishments they can choose, or they can identify their own with approval of their local educator.
Applications/Sign up are due June 15th through the application form link on the website. Plan and Reports, as well as Project Records will be due August 10 via the completion form on the website. Youth completing the achievement program and receiving member of excellence recognition in the various species will be recognized during the Parade of Champions, 4-H weekend at the Nebraska State Fair.
For more information or to apply, go to: Livestock Achievement Program | Nebraska 4-H (unl.edu)
Ashley Benes ashley.benes@unl.edu
Brett Kreifels brett.kreifels@unl.edu
Cole Meador cmeador2@unl.edu
- We know it’s a bit early to start celebrating, but Nebraska 4-H Month is coming up in February! Mark your calendars and make plans to celebrate with us: 4-H Spirit Day on Feb. 2nd, 4-H Volunteer Appreciation Day on Feb. 9th, 4-H Service Learning Weekend on Feb. 12-13th, 4-H Sponsor & Donor Appreciation Day on Feb. 16th, and 4-H Professionals Appreciation Day on Feb. 23rd.
Send us your photos celebrating 4-H month in February and you will be entered into a drawing to win a prize! Photos may be individual or club photos, show your 4-H pride!
2022 Special Garden Project
Youth should enroll for the Special Garden Project through 4-H Online. Once enrolled through 4-H Online, youth are then to call their local office to let them know they enrolled for the project. By enrolling through 4-H Online, youth will have access to the OneDrive folder with the educational materials including the growing newsletter & evaluation. Please let us know before February 1 if you would like to participate in this project.
4-H Scholarships Available
The Nebraska 4-H Foundation offers 4-H members the opportunity to apply for scholarships. The Nebraska 4-H Foundation awards up to $22,000 worth of scholarships each year to 4-H’ers from across the state.
To apply for scholarships, 4-H’ers must submit the Nebraska 4-H Achievement Application for state-level review by January 15th. Youth must follow the application instructions available on the Nebraska 4-H Achievement Application webpage. If applying for multiple scholarships, only one Achievement Application should be submitted. An applicant must select the scholarship to which he/she feels qualified.
4-H youth may want to visit with the Extension Office in their county and the financial aid office at the college of their choice. There may be other grants, scholarships, or low-interest loans for which they may be eligible.
For more information click on the link below:
Livestock Information Series
The Nebraska 4-H Livestock Information Series is a resource for 4-H members, leaders, and parents to gain knowledge in various livestock-related topic areas. Each session, a new topic is covered with experts joining to share their experience and expertise. Extended learning opportunities and supporting documents are also available for each topic. Click the link for more information. https://4h.unl.edu/livestock-info-series.
Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Leader Certification Workshop Offered in Lincoln
Volunteers have the opportunity to become certified as an adult (21 years and older) or apprentice (14-20 years old) leader. Four project areas will be offered at the Lincoln Workshop - rifle, pistol, coordinator, and archery. The Coordinator certification being offered in Nebraska
4-H Shooting Sports is for individuals who work with certified shooting sports leaders, 4-H club leaders for shooting sports projects, 4-H volunteers managing shooting sports events and competitions.
Coordinators will explore and learn more about the different disciplines in 4-H Shooting Sports, how to support the different types of coaches, structuring a budget, designing a fund-raising plan, building an overall plan focused on Positive Youth Development, practice handling conflict, discover how to manage and recruit volunteers, best practices for managing events and competitions, teaching more than just “shooting” with science and healthy lifestyles, and working within your county’s 4-H structure.
There is a minimum number of participants needed to offer these disciplines at the workshop. Workshop participants will learn under expert instruction from members of the Nebraska State
4-H Shooting Sports Training Team.
The registration fee is $110.00 per person for initial certification and those individuals adding an additional discipline except for Apprentice Instructors. The registration fee for Apprentice Instructors (14 to 20 years of age) is $90 for this workshop. This fee includes meals, supplies and program materials. Participants must make their own lodging arrangements. Registration on Saturday runs from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m.
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Participants are requested to bring their own mask and hand sanitizer. Face coverings are required to be worn inside the Outdoor Education Center. If you feel sick at all, please stay home.
Please share this information with volunteers in your county. For more workshop information and registration link, go to the 4-H Shooting Sports web page, https://4h.unl.edu/shooting-sports. Or contact your local Nebraska Extension Office or Steve Pritchard at (402)395-2158 or (308)536-2691. Registration is available only online at the link provided in the brochure or they can register directly by clicking https://go.unl.edu/ingu.
Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Leader Update Session in Lincoln
The time has come to provide an update for all Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Instructors who received their training in 2014 or before. Over the years there have been numerous curriculum changes, updates and additions, with some major curriculum adjustments in the last few years.
These Update Sessions are for adult or apprentice 4-H volunteer instructors who have previously attended a 4-H instructor training workshop in 2014 or prior years. These are an update for existing instructors, NOT a training for new instructors. You MUST be a currently enrolled Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports volunteer leader in your county.
Discipline updates that will be offered during the evening include rifle, pistol, and archery. Instructors can only choose one of the offered disciplines.
There is a minimum number of participants needed to offer these disciplines at the session. Participants will learn under expert instruction from members of the Nebraska State 4-H Shooting Sports Training Team.
A paid registration fee by January 26th guarantees participant a spot at the session providing that the discipline session is not full. Early bird registration by January 26th is $25 for the session. Late registration fee, after January 26th, is $40. Fee includes program materials for the Update session. It does not include lodging or meal.
Please share this information with volunteers in your county. More Update Sessions will be scheduled for this year. For more workshop information and registration link, go to the 4-H Shooting Sports web page, https://4h.unl.edu/shooting-sports. Or contact your local Nebraska Extension Office or Steve Pritchard at (402)395-2158 or (308)536-2691. Registration is available only online at the link provided in the brochure or they can register directly by clicking https://go.unl.edu/ns32
Shooting Sports
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Nebraska Extension in the Central Sandhills
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Nebraska Extension in the Sandhills
PLEASE SHARE WITH US YOUR NEWS so it can be included in our newsletters! Forward any 4-H news, events, or activities to Marcy at mandersen16@unl.edu