While green is the traditional color associated with the Oklahoma 4-H Youth Development program, clubs in all 77 counties will be seeing orange as they take part in the State of Orange project slated for April 13.

State of Orange is a statewide, collaborative effort of Oklahoma State University to engage in a day of meaningful service, said Cathleen Taylor, state leadership and civic engagement specialist with the State 4-H office.

“Civic engagement and service learning are the cornerstones of the 4-H program. The time and effort club members put out each year is immeasurable,” Taylor said. “They’ve given millions of hours to their communities all across the state. This opportunity fits right into our programming.”

The 4-H Share-The-Fun Program incorporates objectives that allow 4-H participants to have fun developing teamwork, leadership, and skills of working together cooperatively on a club project. The guidelines are as follows:

District Share-The-Fun Contest Categories: 

Four categories have been developed that are specific to different types of performing arts. This will allow judges to compare like acts to each other instead of a wide variety of acts based on the number of youth participating. Each entry may involve any number of youth in the team.  

Below are the descriptions for the four new categories:

1.   Dance -- No speaking to form a skit or story line. The act requires choreography and can be demonstrated through twirling, pom pom squad routines, or dance styles such as jazz, tap, ballet country & western, ballroom, etc.. Acts may use taped music on CD or your own device. 

2.   Instrumental – Instrumental presentation may be musical instruments accompanied by background tape or an instrumental performance only. No accompanist will be allowed. Participants may not sing or incorporate a skit, poetry, prose, or choreography with their act. 

3.   Theater – This category involves a skit that showcases an aspect of 4-H or a youth issue and how to address it. The act may incorporate music, vocal selections and/or dance but these aspects cannot be more than 50% of the performance time. Theater presentations can be humorous, creative and make fun of but not degrade Extension employees or the 4-H program.

4.   Vocal -- Vocal presentation may be done a cappella or with an accompaniment CD or your own device. No accompanist will be allowed for this category. All members in the act must be singing. No lip sync will be allowed. Contestants may not present skits, poetry or other speaking during the act. They may, however, move around the stage and incorporate choreography with their presentation for the purpose of enhancing their showmanship.

Email Mindy or Cody to let them know what category you are entering!

Program Overview: The Outdoor Adventure Program is designed to immerse our youth in natural settings, fostering healthy habits and providing valuable outdoor education. Recognizing the diverse skill levels within our community, this program accommodates differences by allowing participants to progressively build stamina through a series of tiered challenges. All youth are encouraged to participate, and see if this program is right for them. 

Program Structure: Each tier comprises a set of challenges that vary in difficulty, encouraging participants to push their limits and develop outdoor skills. To add an element of achievement and motivation, a reward is granted upon the successful completion of each tier. This gear is carefully chosen to equip participants for more demanding outdoor experiences.

Timeline and Challenges: To ensure a sense of accomplishment and maintain engagement, all challenges within a tier must be completed within the timeframe of a single 4-H year. In other words, all challenges for your current tier level must be achieved by July 31, 2024. Failure to do so will require participants to restart at the same tier level for the subsequent program year. To track the progression of the challenges, we are going to set up a group chat using the band app for participants to upload their progress. To verify hiking miles, 4-H’ers will need to have two things: a screenshot of an app used to track hiking miles (i.e. Strava, Alltrails, Hiking Project, etc), and at least one photo from their hike. 

Getting Started: We encourage you to share this exciting opportunity with your 4-H members and gauge their interest in joining the Outdoor Adventure Program. Leaders, your support and encouragement will play a pivotal role in making this program a success. Our next county hike is going to take place on February 10^th, at 9am. We will meet at the Charon’s Garden Trail head in the Wichita Wildlife Refuge and embark from there. The trail is rated as moderately difficult, and is 4.7 miles in total. Plan to bring some good footwear, water, and some trail snacks. Here is the AllTrails link to the site for more information and GPS location. If you’re interested in attending please fill out this form, and share this information and registration link with anyone who might be interested in attending with us. Again, all ages are welcome to come, but all children must be accompanied by an adult.

RSVP: All current 4-H members are welcomed and encouraged to sign up for this program. While we hope they continue on there is no penalty for dropping out of the program. So there is absolutely no harm in them signing up even if they are unsure if it’s really for them. To sign up, use the following form:

The SE District 4-H Public Speaking Contest is conducted for the purpose of promoting a greater interest in public speaking and to allow all 4-H members the opportunity to develop and polish their public speaking skills.

The following rules and guidelines have been developed for the SE District 4-H Public Speaking Contest. All participants are subject to the following general rules and regulations.

Payment ($5 per child) and Entries are due FEBRUARY 15th, 2024 no later than 4:30 pm.

• Enrollment is a yearly requirement to participate in all 4-H activities and competitions.

• The cost is $20 per child.

• If your child plans to participate in any event or contest, they must have an "Active" status on ZSuite.

• Volunteers are also required to enroll yearly.

• Enrollment runs from August 1st- June 30th.

Oklahoma State University, as an equal opportunity employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding non-discrimination and affirmative action. Oklahoma State University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all individuals and does not discriminate based on race, religion, age, sex, color, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, or veteran status with regard to employment, educational programs and activities, and/or admissions. For more information, visit https://eeo.okstate.edu.