About Extension

   4-H Youth Development      

4-H is a community of young people who are learning leadership, citizenship, and life skills.  It is a non-formal educational, yough development program offered to individuals age 5 and in Kindergarten to 19.  Youth are involved in hands-on, experiential learning that allows learning by doing.  The program focuses on active involvement and quality experiences which stimulate lifelong learning of values and skills.  Following are some of the highlights from the 4-H Youth Development program.

• In 2006 the Butler County 4-H Youth Development program involved 1,356 youth in 88 clubs with 300 volunteers.
• 1,318 students, in 15 elementary schools, participated in the 4-H Chick Embryology program. 
• Thanks to our many generous donors, hundreds of 4-H youth received awards such as state trips, scholarships, trophies, banners, ribbons, chairs and belt buckles totaling over $40,000.
• 80 students participated in the Urban Youth Garden Program learning about the growing and maintenance of flower and vegetable plants.  Flowers were used for community beautification projects and extra vegetables were donated to the food pantry.
• 4-H Camp at Camp Graham was attended by over 77 campers.  25 teens served as counselors and spent 24 hours training and practicing leadership and citizenship skills. 
• 15 volunteers gave leadership to 32 Sewing Camp participants.  The camp was held for three days at the Extension office and the campers learned the basics of using a sewing machine and other simple sewing skills.  Crafts and a community service project are also part of Sewing Camp.
• 4-H Horse Camp, held at the Butler County Fairgrounds, was attend by 80 members.  The camp consists of two sessions of 3 days each.
• 900 4-H members and parents participated in one of three Junior Fair Livestock Quality Assurance programs.
• Over 150 youth participated in Small Animal and Goat clinics.  They learned about caring for their animals and about showmanship.  175 food and nutriion 4-H members and parent participated in three educational programs: Nutrition Clinic, Food for Cents, and a food and nutrition day camp.  These events taught participants about the food guide pyramid, cooking and measuring skills, and healthy eating habits.
• The 43 member Junior Fair Board practiced leadership skills while planning and conducting junior fair events involving over 1,400 youth during the Butler County Fair.
• Over 710 first time traffic offenders and their parent/guardian attended the court mandated 4-H CARTEENS program.  This group conducts weekly educational programs on seat belt safety, OVI, inattentive driving, and driving in different weather conditions.
• Over 900 people attended the 5th annual Family Safety Roundup featuring 30 educational displays promoting safety.  668 third graders participated in the coloring contest.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

Extension programs strive to deliver research-based information which aid our clientele in maximizing profitability while minimizing management practice impacts on the environment.  Following are some of the highlights from the Agriculture and Natural Resources program.

• Ohio State University Extension provided technical assistance and farmer education to the Butler County Environmental Services biosolids land application program.  The result was an application of 1150 dry tons and a savings to the BCES of $160,000 in tipping fees.
• Corn productions evaluations, with 40 producers, indicated participants place an average value of $120 on the information.  71% stated they would implement at least one idea presented.
• A new crop of 13 Master Gardeners graduated and joined the ranks of the other 57 active Master Gardener members.  This group has volunteered over 1940 hours for 25 community projects.  They also help with the compilation of information for the horticulture newsletter and volunteer time to answer horticulture phone questions.
• A series of 5 home horticulture classes were conducted on topics including lawn care, insects, landscaping, and other garden topics. 
• The Small Farm College provided 64 participants from 47 farms with basic information to begin their farming enterprise.  67% said they have developed or changed their plan as a result of the seminar.
• Four livestock seminars with an emphasis on economic outlook, animal identification, hay and hayledge production, and conservation EQIP practices were attended by over 365 dairy and beef producers.
• 67 pesticide applicators attended class on the safe application of pesticides with 60 being recertified to apply restricted use chemicals.
• Ohio State University Extension, in cooperation with OARDC and numerous local beekeeper associations, coordinates the Southwestern Ohio Beekeeper School.  Over 300 individuals from foru different states attended the school to learn more about beekeeping.

Family and Consumer Sciences

The Extension Family and Consumer Sciences program continues its tradition of outreach by providing research-based informaiton on life skills, paersonal money management, food safety, nutrition, healthy lifestyles and caring for home and family possessions.  Following are some of the highlights from the Family and Consumer Sciences program.

• Over 60 participants have participated in the Dining with Diabetes class.  This program is for individuals with diabetes and their families and utilizes healthy cooking demonstrations, taste testing of the recipes, and general diabetes education.
• Seven restaurant managers participated in and passed the certification exam through Serve Safe training.  This is the industry standard for food safety.
• OSU Extension, Butler County has been instrumental in developing choice food pantries in the county and throughout the state.   The choice pantries differ from traditional pantries in that participants choose their food rather than have a box or bag handed to them.  Eight food pantries in Butler County are now using this model.
• The Student Wellness Activity Team (S.W.A.T.) is a peer education program where teens teach younger youth about physical activity and nutrition.  There are currently 22 peer educators trained to teach fitness and nutrition.
• The Expanded Food and Nutrition Program (EFNEP) for youth presented their Food, Facts and Fun program in 322 classroom sessions.  This program targets 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders with fun, hands-on activities about nutrition and food safety and incorporates information found on the Ohio State Proficiency test.  The EFNEP program provides Master Nutrition Volunteer training which enables volunteers to implement the Jump Into Food and Fitness curriculum.
• The Development of Living Skills Program provides in-home educational services to clientele referred by Butler County Children Services.  In 2006, this incuded 179 parents and 223 children in over 1325 hours of instruction.
• The Dermascan program evaluates people for sun damage on their face and refers participants with suspicious scans to a physician for follow up evaluations.
• The Family Nutrition Program is a nutrition program with the gola of helping food stamp program participants and eligible non-participants acquire knowledge, skills, attitudes and changed behavior necessary for maximizing resources to achieve nutritionally sound diets.  The program also helps participants adopt healthy eating and active lifestyles that are consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans and the Food Guide Pyramid.

Community Development

Enhancing the well-being of communities with community leaderhsip education, community economic development, environmental issues and education and local government services.  Following are some of the highlights from the Community Development program.

• OSU Extension, Butler County and Catholic Social Services co-chaired the Celebrating Families recognition breakfast Child Abuse Prevention Month and Outstanding Advocates for Children and Families in Butler County.
• Butler County Safe Communities participated 97 community meetings and events where educational safety programs were displayed, distributed and taught.  A partnership has been formed with TV Hamiltonfor weekly broadcasts of safety related videos.
• A countywide workshop on Snackwise, a nutriton education program using vending machines, was held in collaboration with the Butler County Healthy Living Coalition. 
• Over 35 families participated in the 9-week Health Nuts program which combines health education with environmental education.  The program is held at Butler County Metro Parks.