Wausau - 4-H Highlanders

Wausau CYFAR, 4-H Highlanders is an afterschool 4-H leadership club formed with a group of youth from John Muir Middle School . The youth have learned about the 4-H program and it's opporunities.  They have become leaders within their own group and for the elementary age youth that have been participating in the summer 4-H clubs in this neighborhood.   They have learned project skills in a wide variety of areas and have reported success in sharing this information with family members and friends.  As leaders, they first practice the project skill and then team up with an older teen or adult leader to teach others, giving them an authentic leadership and mentoring experience. 

The youth took part in evaluating the program using the University of Wisconsin PAAT (Program Area Assessment Tool), and reported that they had received learning opportunities that they would not have had without access to the program.  They reported expanding their leadership skills and appreciated helping to direct the program by determining the course of the project work collaboratively with adults. 

The youth from the 2002/2003 school year carried on into the summer by participating as trainers for the elementary aged youth, and also participated in developing a program for UW-Extension and Wisconsin Public television called "Coming Together: Race in Wisconsin", a teaching packet to encourage discussion by teens about issues related to diversity and living within diverse populations.  The youth pilot tested the materials and gave feedback toward the development of the final product.  The 2003/2004 school year group expanded to include twenty four middle school youth who met weekly throughout the school year. 

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