CLOVER BUDS
- Gordon Clover Bud meeting: March 21 at Gordon Elementary at 3:45 pm.
- Hay Springs Clover Bud meeting: March 16 at Hay Springs Cafeteria at 4:15 pm.
- Rushville Clover Bud meeting: March 20 at Rushville Elementary at 3:30 pm.
Clover Bud members are youth between the ages of 5 and 7 as of January 1st, 2023. Upon participating in these workshops, youth will have Clover Bud projects to display at the 2023 Sheridan County Fair. To register your child for these FREE events please contact the Nebraska Extension Sheridan County office at (308) 327-2312.
VOLUNTEER SCREENING PROCESS
All volunteers (teens and adults) and staff who work directly with youth are required to complete the volunteer screening. Volunteers are screened in order to ensure a safe, positive, and nurturing environment for all youth involved with Nebraska 4-H programs and provide protection for the child, volunteer, educator, 4-H Council, Extension Board, and Nebraska Extension. Initial screening of volunteers will occur when they sign up to volunteer. Re-screening for volunteers will be done every five years by the district regardless of when the original screening was completed. Currently, the cost of the screening is $5.00. Sheridan County is up this year!
Repeat Screening Rotation
2023 – Panhandle District: Banner, Blaine, Box Butte, Cherry, Cheyenne, Dawes, Deuel, Garden, Grant, Hooker, Kimball, Morrill, Scotts Bluff, Sheridan, Sioux, Thomas
WHEN enrolling as a VOLUNTEER for the 2022-23 year, please select "Program Volunteer - Selected for Required Screening". All new volunteers in these specified counties must also select this volunteer type
If you have any questions or would like to start the process, email sheridan-county@unl.edu.
The Nebraska State 4-H Presentations Contest will partner with the State 4-H Public Speaking Contest to create a combined state-level communications event – this event will be called the Premier Communication Event and will be held on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus on Friday, June 23, 2023.This means that the youth who qualify for the Presentations Contest needs to be determined before June 1. https://4h.unl.edu/premier-communication-event
Dawes County 4-H will host our Speech and Presentations Contest on Sunday, April 16 at 2:00 pm in Chadron. Tentatively, the contest will be held at the Chadron High School Auditorium. Location is not confirmed. The school said they had nothing on the calendar, but Tessa is waiting for the official approval.
The Public Service Announcement theme for 2023 is: Discover Your Spark in Nebraska 4-H!
In 2022, Box Butte, Dawes, Sheridan, and Sioux combined contests to benefit the youth. We will combine again, but there will be NO zoom connection. We will have separate awards.
Registration forms are due to the Sheridan County Extension Office by Monday, April 10th!
- Nebraska Extension and Central States Center for Agricultural Safety and Health at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, College of Public Health, have announced plans for the annual “tractor safety” training courses scheduled at 5 sites across Nebraska in late May and early June. Students will complete the first day of the course either by attending a hands-on event in North Platte or Grand Island, or online through the eXtension Foundation Campus website. The hands-on events will take place on May 22 in North Platte and May 30 in Grand Island. After successfully completing the hands-on event or the online course, and testing, the required driving test will be offered at six locations across Nebraska May 23 through June 8, 2023.
- Teens 14 or 15 years of age who work on farms, or others who are interested in learning about safe farming practices, are encouraged to register for the certification course. Students under age 14 are not eligible for certification but the hands-on events are open to everyone in the community. Children under 14 years of age must be accompanied by an adult.
- Federal law prohibits children under 16 years of age from using certain equipment on a farm unless their parents or legal guardians own the farm. However, certification received through the course grants an exemption to the law allowing 14- and 15-year-olds to drive a tractor and to do field work with certain mechanized equipment.
- The cost of the course is $35 and includes educational materials, the online learning link (if applicable), and supplies. Payment will be made at the time of the driving exam. Only checks and cash can be accepted.
Youth who are interested in participating in a livestock animal project including rabbit, poultry, swine, beef, sheep, and goat; must complete the Youth for Quality Care of Animals training prior to June 1st. After families enroll online at v2.4honline.com, they can visit https://yqca.learngrow.io/Account/Login and log in with their 4-H Online account information. Youth have the option of completing the training in person or online. The online training costs $12 per person and the in-person training only costs $3. In-person training will be held:
- March 30th, 4:15 - 5:15 pm - Hay Springs Public School
- April 7th, 8:00 - 9:00 am - Sheridan County Extension Office
- May 21st, 1:00 - 12:00 pm - Sheridan County Fairgrounds
Youth will need to go online to register for the training prior to this date. For help, you can email help@yqca.org or contact Marie Nelson at mnelson82@unl.edu.
The Sheridan County 4-H Council is sponsoring a $500 scholarship to be awarded to a senior of Sheridan County who has been involved in 4-H. The application for this scholarship is due on April 15th via email to Marie Nelson at mnelson82@unl.edu or mailed to the Extension Office at PO Box 329 Rushville, NE 69360. Interested participants need to complete a simple two-page application answering questions about their 4-H experience. The scholarship application can be found at: https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/northernpanhandle/scholarship-opportunities-sheridan-county/. For more information, please contact the Extension Office at (308) 327-2312.
Shooting Sports Instructor Certification & Update in Chadron
4-H Shooting Sports will be hosting a Instructor Certification and Update in Chadron on April 22-23.
Volunteers will 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 Chadron Workshop - rifle, pistol, shotgun, and archery.
The time has come to provide an update for all Nebraska 4-H Shooting Sports Instructors who received their training in 2017 or before. These update sessions are for adult or apprentice 4-H volunteer instructors who have previously attended a 4-H instructor training workshop in 2017 or prior years. These are an update for existing instructors, NOT a training for new instructors. Discipline updates that will be offered include rifle, shotgun, archery, and pistol.
There is a minimum number of participants needed to offer these disciplines.
For more workshop information and registration link, go to the 4-H Shooting Sports web page. 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 HERE.
These people are YOUR voice! Please contact any of them if you have an idea for a new or existing event or activity, have concerns with the program, or just want to have input in the decision-making process.
David Russell, Wendy Andersen, Michelle Heck, Nicole Janssen, Jake Scott, Kami Scott, Marie Nelson, Melissa Mracek
4-H Council:
President - Ryan Paul
Vice President - Jake Elwood
Secretary - Jackie Simonson
Treasurer - EJ Frink
Members at large: Candace Nelson, Megan Grossman, Zach Kearns, Clint Vincent, Jace Stumpff, Brad Beguin
Youth Members: Austin Child, Colton Archibald, Wyatt Fedderson, Kyler Vincent
Extension Board:
President - Matt Albrecht
Vice President - Caleb Peters
Secretary/Treasurer - Jacob Tejral
Members at large: Trevor Ginkens, Paige Paul
Nebraska Extension - Sheridan County Office
Email: mnelson82@unl.edu
Website: https://extension.unl.edu/statewide/northernpanhandle/educational-programs/northern-panhandle-4-h/
Location: 800 S Loofborrow Street, PO Box 329 Rushville, NE 69360
Phone: 308-327-2312
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UNLSheridanCounty
Twitter: @SheridanCounty