General Session – Facilitated by Kia Harries, NAE4-HYDP Immediate Past President

Learn about each entities role in the 4-H Youth Development Program at the national level and their expectations of 4-H professionals.  Participants will learn how all national partners are working together to address the system’s highest priority, making the 4-H Youth Development Program equitable and removing barriers in order to grow the program in every community across the nation. 

The session will begin with Dr. Dorothy McCargo Freeman, Director, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, National 4-H Council, sharing strategies outlined by ECOP and expectations outlined by Extension Deans and Directors to make the 4-H Youth Development Program more accessible, equitable, and to create a more welcoming environment that will foster a sense of belonging among youth.

The following national partner leadership will briefly share their role and strategies specific to access, equity and belonging:

• Dr. Kirk Bloir Chair, Program Leaders Working Group
• Jennifer Sirangelo, President & CEO, National 4-H Council
• Dr. Lisa Bouillion Diaz, Co-Chair, Extension Council on Organizational Policy 4-H Leadership Committee
• Suzanne Boarts, President, National Association of Extension 4-H Youth   Development Professionals
• Dr. Carrie Castille, Director, National Institute of Food and Agriculture

Meet Your National Partner Leadership
Participants will have the opportunity to meet with two national partner leaders below.  While there will not be a formal presentation, this time will allow informal discussion so leaders can answer questions participants have about their general session presentation.

• PLWG - Dr. Kirk Bloir got his start in 4-H. His 4-H club advisors provided a nourishing developmental context which helped him thrive. Kirk is a three-time graduate of The Ohio State University, having earned his bachelor’s of family science, master’s of adolescent development, and doctorate of extension education. Over the course of his 25-year-career with Ohio State University Extension, he’s served as a county agent, program specialist, associate state 4-H leader, and is currently the state 4-H leader and assistant director. He, his wife, and son live in Columbus, Ohio.
• National 4-H Council - Jennifer Sirangelo is a believer in young people and their capacity to change the world.  She leads National 4-H Council in its mission to increase investment and participation in high-quality 4-H positive youth development programs.  

Jennifer joined Council in 2006 to grow support for America’s largest youth development organization in partnership with Cooperative Extension and USDA. As the non-profit partner to Extension, Council supports leadership development for nearly six million young people through diverse and inclusive programs in agriculture, science, health and civic engagement by way of alliances with America’s philanthropic sector.

Jennifer is a member of Fortune’s Most Powerful Women and the Forbes Nonprofit Council.  She also serves on the AgriCorps Board, is an Advisor to the Global 4-H Network Board and is a member of the Farm Foundation Round Table.

• ECOP 4-H Leadership Committee -  Dr. Lisa Diaz has been with University of Illinois Extension for fifteen years, first as the 4-H STEM Specialist and currently as the 4-H Program Leader. Prior to joining Extension, she worked on several school reform and community change projects across diverse rural, urban and tribal communities in MN, IL and PA. As a faculty member at University of Pennsylvania, Lisa taught and mentored preparing K-12 teachers, and was a member of the design team for the Microsoft School of the Future in Philadelphia. Her research contributes to understanding culturally-relevant program designs for youth development.
• NAE4-HYDP – Suzanne Boarts is the current President of NAE4-HYDP.  She is an Area 4-H Educator for Pennsylvania State University and has been an educator for the past 23 years.  Currently Suzanne is serving as the JCEP/Extension Leadership Conference Co-Chair.  During COVID, one of her most successful projects was working with Food, Family and Health Educators to offer the Virtual Pennsylvania and National 4-H Cooking Challenges.  Suzanne has two adult children, Bryan and Ingrid, who bring great joy to her life along with her husband of 29 years.
• NIFA - Dr. Carrie Castille is director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. 
  
  A Louisiana native, Dr. Castille has championed agriculture and rural issues for more than 20 years.
  
  Throughout her career, she has focused on agriculture, policy and education. She served as Natural Resource Leader and Assistant Professor at Louisiana State University and Associate Commissioner and Science Advisor to the Commissioner for the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.
  
  In 2017, Dr. Castille joined USDA as state director for Louisiana Rural Development and was later named the mid-south coordinator for USDA’s Farm Production and Conservation mission area serving Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee and Missouri.
  
  Prior to joining USDA, she was appointed by USDA Secretary Vilsack to the National Agriculture Research, Extension, Education, and Economics advisory board and was appointed to the National Council for Environmental Policy and Technology by EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy.
  
  Dr. Castille was a delegate to the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities’ Council on Agriculture Research, Extension, and Teaching (CARET), a member of the National Food Animal Veterinary Institute Board of Directors and is a past chair of the Southern U.S. Trade Association Operations Committee. She also is a Fellow of the Food Systems Leadership Institute.

Toolkit Sessions

Participants can experience two sessions as they learn about resources available that can be used at the club, county or state level to help attain the 4-H Youth Development Program’s national system wide diversity, equity and inclusion goals. 
Workshops include:

Using the VRKC to Strengthen 4-H Volunteer Leadership
Presenters:

• Jennifer Lobley, Extension Professor, Volunteer Development, University of Maine
• Ashley Burns, PhD, Assistant Director/Interim Program Team Director, Clemson University
• Jamie Morris, Extension Specialist, Volunteer Systems & Development, University of Maryland
• Brenda Pruett, Extension Agent, West Virginia University
  
  The Volunteer Research and Knowledge Competency (VRKC) model is a foundational resource for 4-H volunteer development. The VRKC identifies skills and knowledge that volunteers need in order to best serve the 4-H program based on research conducted with 4-H volunteers, agents and specialists. Focused on six domains of specific skills and knowledge essential to 4-H volunteers (Culp, III, K., McKee, R., & Nestor, P., 2008), the resources available through https://4-h.org/home/ for this model are being revised and revamped by the Program Leaders Working Group: 4-H Volunteerism Committee.  Join us to learn more about the model, the work that is currently underway, and engage in conversations about how you can utilize the VRKC taxonomy with 4-H volunteers in your 4-H program.

Helping Youth Thrive Using Essential Elements of 4-H Youth Development
Presenters:

• Lori Bledsoe, 4-H Program Development Coordinator, University of Georgia
• Rachel Noble, Extension Specialist, University of Kentucky
  
  The 4-H essential elements were derived from traditional and applied research looking at characteristics of effective programs enhancing youth development.  The elements are necessary in any and all program settings in order for youth to have a quality experience and for positive developmental outcomes.  This workshop will be an opportunity to experience the 4-H Essential Elements curriculum and will consist of hands-on activities comprising the curriculum.  The curriculum has 8 hour-long modules that highlight each element along with an overview and wrap-up module. Checklists to assist staff in evaluating their programs are also a part of the curriculum.  Participants will leave the pre-conference prepared to train staff and volunteers. Each state is encouraged to send at least one representative.  The digital version of the curriculum The Essential Elements of 4-H Youth Programs:  Key Ingredients to Success will be made available to each participant after participation.

Leading the Way to Access, Equity and Belonging through National 4-H Opportunities
Freeman Thompson, Director of Educational Opportunities, and National 4-H Council team

True Leaders In Equity Program: The Role of the Design Team
Presenters:

• Xiomara N. Diaz-Vargas 4-H State Specialist New Audience Initiatives, Purdue University
• Jennifer A. Skuza, PhD, Associate Dean and State 4-H Director, University of Minnesota
  
  The design team’s ultimate goal is to develop a sustainable TLE program model that results in youth as equity change agents. This effort is intended to increase collective impact and coordination of equity efforts led by youth in their states, territories, and First Nations. Attend this session to learn how to prioritize this effort in your program.

Access, Equity, and Belonging
Presenters:

• Katherine Soule, Assistant Vice Provost of UC Cooperative Extension, Director of UC Cooperative Extension & Youth, Families & Communities Advisor in San Luis Obispo & Santa Barbara Counties, University of California
• Nia Imani Fields, Assistant Director and Maryland 4-H Program Leader, University of Maryland
• Fe Moncloa, 4-H Youth Development Advisor, University of California
• Melissa Scheer, Field Specialist in Youth Development, University of Missouri
  
  The 4-H Program Leaders Working Group, Access, Equity and Belonging Committee (AEBC) will provide a rubric for assessing program’s capacity to support the implementation of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives for 4-H state and local program. Additionally, participants will be introduced to evidence-based fact sheets to inform access, equity, and belonging in their programs.

National 4-H Equity Plan
Presenters:

• Dorothy McCargo Freeman, National 4-H Council Director, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Aimee Viniard-Weideman, Extension Specialist, Community and Economic Development, Iowa State University Extension & Outreach
  
  Presenters will discuss the vision and importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion within 4-H youth development and highlight the 7 strategic directions identified through the strategic planning process; and engage participants in a dialogue of being change agents to help move the 4-H Equity Plan forward through the 4 Implementation committees.

National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel
Learn from our nation’s history as participants explore the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Hotel, site of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s assassination, through a self-guided instructional learning experience. Light refreshments will be served.