Opinion

What is the role of 4-H in winning scholarships?

Monday, May 24, 2010

A few weeks ago, local media announced the names of the two 2010 Putnam County Lilly Scholars. Once again, one of these individuals was a 4-H member.

Interestingly, a majority of Lilly Scholar winners in recent years have been 4-H members. Since 2004, there have been 815 Lilly Scholarships awarded through the Putnam County Community Foundation to Putnam County youth. Of these, 11 have been affiliated with the Putnam County 4-H program, and many of these individuals were 10-year members of the program.

Lilly Scholars who were also in the Putnam 4-H program include, Kate Martin and Neal Knapp (2004), Drew Christy and Hannah Aker (2006), Chelsey Mann and Zachary Grammel (2007), Ashlyn Archer and James Fidler (2008), Tabitha Arnold and Tyler Heavin (2009), and Dakota Parent (2010).

Recently, it was a privilege to discuss with Dakota her future plans and how 4-H helped to shape her life skill development. The top noted life skills she developed as a result of being in the Putnam 4-H program was responsibility and self discipline to work hard in every aspect.

She feels strongly that the development of these two life skills were key to her success in school and ultimately receiving this prestigious Lilly Scholarship. She also feels 4-H sharpened her people skills and communication skills.

Dakota's 4-H program commitment and involvement will span ten years after she completes this summer. Her projects included sheep (10 years) and swine (9 years). She also was a beef project member for several years and took scrapbook and electric projects during her 4-H career.

Future plans for Dakota include attending Purdue University in the College of Engineering. Her field within the college is not decided but will likely be either agricultural engineering or civil engineering. Her career choice would be a position in the engineering field that would be outdoors and hands-on.

Such a choice is not a surprise given her experiences in 4-H that were primarily hands-on and most were also outside. 4-H has been one of her most favorite experiences in life to date. She hopes to have a family someday where she can return to the next generation of youth as an adult the same as adult volunteers have given her opportunity.

Finally, on other scholarship notes, it was an honor to attend Greencastle High School's awards night on Friday evening and present scholarships to Emily Dean (Indiana 4-H Foundation Junior Leader Scholarship) (Scholarship Award of Excellence Purdue Agronomy), Nicholas Lancaster (Scholarship Award of Excellence Purdue Animal Science) and Ashley Holmes (Purdue Trustees Merit Scholarship). Both Emily and Ashley are also members of the Putnam 4-H program. Congratulations and best wishes to all youth graduating from high school in the coming days!

Visit our website at www.extension.purdue.edu/putnam or you can contact the local Purdue Extension Office by calling 653-8411 for more information regarding this week's column topic or to RSVP for upcoming events. It is always best to call first to assure items are ready when you arrive and to RSVP for programs. While many publications are free, some do have a fee. All times listed are Eastern Time.

Upcoming events

June 1: State Fair Beef, Sheep, Swine, & Dairy Forms Due

June 2: Photography Workshop, Robe Ann Park, 6:30 p.m.

June 3: Exploring 4-H Orientation, Fairgounds, 7 p.m.

June 3: Extension Homemakers Tour to Wick's Pie Factory

June 5-8: 4-H Camp, Shakamak State Park

June 8: 4-H Cat Workshop, 6:30 p.m.

June 9-11: Home and Family Conference at Purdue

June 12: Putnam County Master Gardeners' Garden Tour

June 15: Greencastle Farmers Market opens

June 15: 4-H Cat Workshop, 6:30 p.m.

June 17-19: 2010 State Conference for Purdue Master Gardeners

July 1: State Fair Cat, Dog, Horse & Pony, Goat, Poultry, and Rabbit forms due