Seeds for the Future: LU’s 4-H programs teach kids life skills
(This story was originally published in ‘E Roar Digital Magazine | Volume 2 Issue 1)
by Ellie Melero
Yellow squash, zucchini, bell peppers and parmesan cheese. These are ingredients used to make a simple but nutritious squash skillet like the ones 4-H students made in the Junior Master Gardeners program at Langston University.
Junior Master Gardeners, or JMG, is an international program and curriculum that teaches kids about growing their own food to support healthy lifestyles. Kids learn about everything from the best times of year to plant seeds for different fruits and vegetables to the proper knife skills needed to prepare the veggies for cooking.
The curriculum is filled with hands-on activities and opportunities to try new foods, making it popular among the members of the Roaring Adventures 4-H Club in Langston, Oklahoma.
“I think that’s what was so important about 4-H is that that’s what they promote,” said Donnesha Williams, the 4-H educator in charge of the Roaring Adventures Club. “It’s positive youth development through hands-on learning, through hands-on engagements.”
4-H, the largest youth development program in the United States, is operated by Cooperative Extension at public land grant institutions across the country, including at Langston University. The Sherman Lewis School of Agriculture and Applied Sciences operates three 4-H clubs in Oklahoma, providing opportunities for kids from elementary through high school to engage with their communities and learn life skills.
LU’s largest 4-H club is Roaring Adventures, which has 25 members ranging from ages 5 to 14. Many of its members are part of Coyle Public Schools, which operate virtually on Friday mornings, so the club meets every Friday afternoon at the Horticulture Education and Research Center (HERC) on LU’s Langston campus. There the kids participate in a variety of fun and educational activities, like JMG.
Because Roaring Adventures is based in Langston, Oklahoma, Williams takes advantage of as many of the university’s resources for her programming as she can. In addition to working with the HERC for JMG, she works with other departments to host activities like drone demonstrations and a Goat, Sheep and Haire Day. Another valuable resource for Williams are the LU students.
About 20 LU students from various organizations and majors volunteer to help Williams with the Roaring Adventures Club each semester. After completing their volunteer certification training, the college students help the 4-H-ers with activities ranging from making ice cream in mason jars to preparing for the annual fishing derby in the fall.
“We lean on (our college students) so much, and luckily, they love it,” Williams said. “They’re very hands-on. They adore the kids and the kids adore them.”
Down the highway, Amir Rashidi is in charge of the Eastern Pasture Community Club in Spencer, Oklahoma. The club has 15 members, mostly around 12 to 13 years old, and like the kids in Roaring Adventures, they participate in community events and do lots of hands-on educational activities.
Because it’s located much further from the Langston campus, the Eastern Pasture Club doesn’t have access to some of the resources Roaring Adventures does, like the HERC. So Rashidi works with local community partners like the Minnis Lakeview Recreation Center to put on programming for the kids, such as their recent canning workshop. A piece of programming Rashidi is especially passionate about is his horses.
A rodeo participant since childhood, Rashidi likes to incorporate his horses into lessons and activities for the Eastern Pasture Club. He puts on demonstrations where he teaches the kids about proper grooming and care for the horses, such as how to clean their hooves and what to feed them. He said it felt natural to include the horses in his club’s programming because of 4-H’s agricultural ties, and the kids love getting to see and pet the animals.
“Some kids, they’re not blessed with the opportunity to have interactions with horses,” Rashidi said. “So, I’m just trying to give these children more of this positive interaction just because they might not ever come in contact with a horse again. I’m trying to give them an experience so that they can have a positive outlook that one day they can possibly be a young cowboy or cowgirl.”
Roaring Adventures and Eastern Pasture are always welcoming new members to their clubs, and Williams encouraged any students or parents interested in 4-H to reach out for more information. In the future, LU Extension hopes to open more clubs around Oklahoma to continue to bring these opportunities to more children.
