4-H enrollment window open October through Jan. 15

Monday, October 12, 2015

Once youth return from fall break, Extension staff are scheduled to visit most of the third grade classrooms in the county to share 4-H enrollment information.

4-H is available to youth in grades 3-12 and is the largest youth development program in the nation. It prepares young people to be leaders in their community and around the world through hands-on experiences alongside their peers and caring adults. The 4-H seal has the same protections of the presidential seal and is directly tied to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Putnam County has a program titled "Exploring 4-H" that is designed specifically for second graders to have an introductory experience. These youth will have school visits and information sent home later in December.

In many respects, it is time to say "Happy New Year" for the 4-H program and for that matter the entire Extension staff programing as we kickoff planning and events for the new program year. The 4-H enrollment process is virtually the same as last year while the procedure will be much simpler for those re-enrolling.

Last year saw numerous enrollment changes and a new data system required being populated with data. For those re-enrolling, data entered last year will be already be in the system and one will simply login to in.4honline.com (also linked in our county website), update any personal info, select projects, clubs, sign consent statements, pay program fee and done. The program fees of $15 for state and $10 for county, totaling $25 remains the same as well.

As families continue to use the 4honline system it will become more familiar and will be used for more 4-H processes. Overall the animal enrollment process went very well last year and the new system helped with communication for texting and email. Event and meeting registrations can be completed via 4-H online, for example.

It is important to realize that enrolling the child is a separate process from enrolling livestock/animals into 4-H. Between 2-4 p.m. Nov. 8 at the Putnam County Fairgrounds, the 4-H Launch will enable youth to meet 4-H volunteers, club members and learn about 4-H opportunities.

The following is a listing of processes for enrollment:

1. Enroll the child during the 4-H enrollment window.

2. If you have livestock, all steers must be enrolled by April 1 otherwise other animals are entered by May 15.

3. If one wants to drop or add projects, the deadline is May 15.

Visit 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.

Upcoming events

Oct. 18-21: Indiana Extension Homemakers Week

Oct. 22: Forest Management Twilight Tour, Hillsdale, 5 p.m., RSVP to 492-5330

Oct. 22: Putnam County second annual Career Fair, Putnam County Fairgrounds, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Oct 23: Healthy Hay and Grazing Workshop, Bloomfield, 8 a.m., RSVP to 812-659-2122

Nov. 1: Putnam 4-H Member Achievement and Volunteer Recognition program, 2 p.m., Fairgrounds

Nov. 8: The 4-H Launch (open house), 2-4 p.m., Fairgrounds

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