UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State Cooperative Extension's 4-H youth-development program has received a 2006 Art of Leadership 4-H Volunteer Action Grant from the National 4-H Council and Monsanto Company. The $2,000 award will support the action plan that a delegation from Pennsylvania 4-H developed during the 2006 Art of Leadership 4-H Volunteer Academy held earlier this year in Chevy Chase, Md.

With support from the Monsanto Company and the UPS Foundation, the Art of Leadership 4-H Volunteer Academy brought together 37 leaders in the 4-H system to think about 4-H youth development and develop innovative solutions to promote volunteerism and bring strength and vision to the organization for the future. The teams, each made up of a 4-H professional and a 4-H volunteer, made a commitment to collectively begin the work of attracting, developing and retaining volunteers to work with the next generation of 4-H youth.

Christy Bartley, 4-H youth development program leader, and Carol Nunn, 4-H volunteer from Union County, represented Pennsylvania as one of 18 teams at the academy.

The action plan focuses on expanding dialogue around the future of volunteerism in 4-H; attracting, developing and retaining volunteers statewide and at the local level; and increasing knowledge of youth development, organizational leadership and personal development.

As part of its action plan, Pennsylvania 4-H has formed a larger team of professionals and volunteers to develop a 4-H Master Volunteer program that will encourage volunteers to work as partners with Penn State Cooperative Extension to enhance programming offered to youth.

"We have many volunteers who want to work with 4-H and Penn State Cooperative Extension beyond the regular 4-H club meetings," says Bartley. "The 4-H Master Volunteer program will prepare these individuals for increased responsibilities."

"The future of 4-H lies in the hands of volunteers to work at the club level and beyond," adds Nunn. "Volunteers will be well trained to work with these precious commodities -- our children."

4-H is a community of more than 6.5 million young people across America learning leadership, citizenship and life skills. 4-H youth engage in hands-on learning experiences with support from 540,000 volunteers across the country.

In Pennsylvania, more than 10,000 volunteers help 4-H reach more than 174,000 rural and urban youth between the ages of eight and 19 through school-enrichment projects, after-school programs, day camps, community-service projects and organized clubs. To learn more about Pennsylvania 4-H, visit the program's Web site at http://pa4h.cas.psu.edu.

###

EDITORS: For more information, contact Amee Patel, marketing communications coordinator for the National 4-H council (301-961-2926, apatel@fourhcouncil.edu), or Christy Bartley, Penn State Cooperative Extension program leader for 4-H youth development (814-863-3828, cek4@psu.edu).

Chuck Gill Writer/Editor Phone: 814-863-2713 E-mail: cdg5@psu.edu