Focus on Youth
News for OCES staff working with youth.
August, 2008
4-H is a community of young people across America learning leadership, citizenship and life skills.
Dear 4-H Educators, Members, Volunteers and Parents,
The final preparations
for Roundup are taking place, and we are looking forward to a fun
few days on the OSU Campus. This year Roundup will be a
little unique. We will be meeting later in the summer than
usual, but not as late as once was the tradition. It
seems that in the early years the meetings were help in mid
August, perhaps due to summer field work or other reasons.
This year we will have a big party the first evening as we kick off our Centennial
of Oklahoma 4-H. There will be swimming, games, and a dance the
first evening. We will not have the opening assembly until the second
morning, when our new OSU president will welcome the group to campus.
Another change this year will be the absence of an election process. The
district officers were all elected last October and have been serving
with their peers to this point. Last fall a slate of new state
representatives were elected and have been working with the current
state officers in developing a new state leadership structure. The
youth have suggested that we continue to work on a new leadership structure
during the coming year with a blend of the current state team and new
members who will be added in October. By next Roundup they will hopefully
be ready to fully implement a new leadership structure. I have
been committed to allowing the youth and alumni officers to work on
the new structure, and we have tried to minimize the adult involvement.
One component of their new plan is to have some Collegiate 4-H members
and adults serve as partners with them on a leadership team. So,
at this point we are beginning to receive nominations and recommendation
of adults who can help support, advise and partner with the youth who
are on the leadership team. In the coming months we will have
an application form available for submitting adults nominees to join
with the youth in this process.
Last week there was a great turnout for the annual Animal Science Field Days.
Thanks to all who assisted as group leaders, brought kids, and served as
chaperones. This
continues to be a major event for many Oklahoma youth.
This summer has also seen a very successful parent and volunteers’ conference
on campus, along with several specialty camps and events. Thanks
for supporting these major activities with your time and attendance.
Sincerely,
Charles Cox
Assistant Director, 4-H Youth Development
Interactive Displays at OKC Fair
At the Oklahoma City Fair, there are opportunities for groups to do interactive displays in the 4-H exhibit area on the weekends. The guidelines and application form is attached. If you need additional information, please let me know (405) 744-8891. The deadline for being considered is September 1, 2008.
Volunteers Needed for Kids Craft Area at OKC Fair
The Theatre and City Arts Center is coordinating a kid’s craft area on weekends this year in the Hobbies, Arts and Crafts Building at the OKC State Fair. They need two to three volunteers for each time slot to assist children in making paper bag puppets and/or wire circus people. If you have 4-H members who are interested in volunteering and have experience in overseeing and assisting children doing crafts, please complete the attached form. Four-H members must be 12 years of age and able to work a 2- to 3-hour time slot. The dates available are September 13, 14, 20 and 21. The time slots available are 11-1, 1-3 and 3-6. Tickets will be available for those who are selected to work. If you have questions, please let me know (405) 744-8891.
Balancing Family Life and Community Service
This article is an excerpt from the KLCC (Kellogg Leadership for Community Change) Newsletter:
For many American families, finding enough time each week to fulfill work, school, extracurricular and family responsibilities is a challenge. Throw in a few community or volunteer activities and the schedule can be brutal. Still, according to the 2006 study “Volunteer Growth in America: a review of trends since 1974,” by the Corporation for National and Community Service, the rate of volunteering among adults, 27 percent, is higher than it has been in the past 30 years. The rate of volunteering among older teenagers is 28.4 percent, more than double what it was in 1989. Some families are finding that combining family time with community service is a manageable way to nurture family relationships while also practicing important family values. For many families involved in KLCC, this mix of family and community service offers invaluable opportunities to practice collective leadership, while providing enriching alternatives to “vegging out” in front of the television and video games.
In an effort to learn more about family volunteering, the editors of the KLCC Bridge consulted a study by the Center for Urban Policy and the Environment titled: Family Volunteering: An exploratory study of the impact on families. The Center is part of the School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. The following are excerpts from that study.
Motivations to Volunteer
When asked why they volunteer together, adults cited being a good role
model and transmitting their values, having fun, spending quality time
together, and religious reasons. In contrast, while the children identified
religious reasons, fun, quality time together, and giving back to the
community, none of the children identified transmission of values or
being a good role model as a reason to volunteer together.
Benefits of Family Volunteering
When asked about benefits of volunteering together, many of the same
concepts came up, but adults also identified a general benefit of volunteering:
the children focusing on someone other than themselves. The children
also identified a general benefit of volunteering: it makes you feel
good, the feeling of giving, it cheers other people up, and it’s good to help others. The only drawback that was
raised from volunteering together as a family by adults was the time and scheduling
issue. Children raised drawbacks related to being with the family, such as, they
were not as independent when volunteering with family, they would rather be with
friends than family, and they may not want to spend more time with their siblings
if they had just had a fight.
To continue reading go to http://ola.wkkf.org/klcc/klccnewsletter/2008/June/page3.htm to
refer to the three other results summarized from the study.
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Effects on Family Relationships
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Effects on Future Plans/Goals
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Possible Drawbacks of Family Volunteering
Receiving Charitable Contributions: What Should the Acknowledgement Say?
The IRS recently updated Publication 1771 And Publication 557, both of which provide guidance on how to acknowledge charitable contributions. In these publications you’ll find:
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a checklist of what to include in acknowledgements (Pub. 1771)
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helpful reminders about the new substantiation rules
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guidance for acknowledging charitable gifts via payroll deductions (Pub. 1771)
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disclosure requirements when gifts larger than $250 resulted in value to the donor (Pub. 557)
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guidance for acknowledging unusual gifts, such as vehicles and intellectual property (Pub. 557)
IRS increases optional standard business mileage rates; volunteer
vehicle use not affected — Due to increased fuel prices,
the IRS raised the optional standard business mileage rate by eight
cents to 58.5 cents per mile. This is an optional
rate for taxpayers (including nonprofits) to use to calculate the deductible
costs of operating an automobile. The new rates will be in effect through
the end of 2008. The IRS did not adjust the rate for volunteer vehicle
use, which remains at 14 cents per mile.
Source: http://nonprofitrisk.org/library/enews/2008/enews070208.htm
Oklahoma
4-H Needs Your Help with Oklahoma 4-H History Book
As Oklahoma 4-H celebrates 100 years, 4-H’ers and 4-H staff will be collecting history and information in preparation to write stories for the Oklahoma 4-H Centennial History book. However, I need your help in identifying sources for stories. To nominate someone to be interviewed and used as a source for a story, please call Jessica Stewart at the State 4-H office at 405-744-7960 or e-mail at Jessica.stewart@okstate.edu. We need at least 12 story sources by August 18 to begin this project.
Participate in Septemberfest – Sept. 6, 2008.
Septemberfest is coming! Oklahoma 4-H will once again participate in Septemberfest, held Sept. 6, 2008, at the Governor’s Mansion. Septemberfest is an excellent opportunity to provide interactive games and activities to teach youth and potential 4-H’ers what 4-H is all about. Planning is underway, and this year’s theme is the Oklahoma 4-H Centennial. Please try to add a Centennial spin to your activities. For more information or potential ideas for activities, please call Jessica Stewart at the State 4-H office at 405-744-7960 or e-mail her at jessica.stewart@okstate.edu. A registration form is available here. Please register on or before August 17.
Special Oklahoma 4-H Centennial Classes at the 2008 and 2009 State Fairs
Dig out those pictures and 4-H items that you’ve collected over the years. It’s time to showcase them at the Oklahoma City and Tulsa State Fairs! A 4-H Centennial division was created with the purpose of learning about and documenting your 4-H heritage. Classes include antiques and collectables, photography, family living, animal science poster or display, mechanical sciences, plant science, and for 2009, an archive of Centennial Road Trip club reports. Also included is a special 4-H Alumni Division, which includes classes for our former 4-H’ers collections such as buttons, medals, patches and jewelry; original 4-H project work; scrapbooks; historic photography; and 4-H alumni record books. See attached file for more information on classes and entering your projects. If you have questions, please call Jessica Stewart at 405-744-7960 or e-mail her at jessica.stewart@okstate.edu.
Centennial Project Curriculum Available
New 4-H curriculum is being developed to assist in educating 4-H members on preparing Centennial fair entries and preserving memorabilia. The following curriculum is currently available:
- 4H•HLTH•402: Collectables
- 4H•HLTH•404: Preserving Photographs, Books and Paper Documents
- 4H•HLTH•406: Preserving Memorabilia
- 4H•HLTH•407: Recording Our Story, Part 1: Interviewing
For more information, please call Jessica Stewart at 405-744-7960 or e-mail her at jessica.stewart@okstate.edu.