The Jefferson County 4-H program will be conducting a variety of educational activities, including competitions and day camps, that will offer county youths an opportunity to develop and hone life skills while learning, gaining confidence, making new friends, and having fun.
These activities are a continuing effort by the county 4-H program to provide hands-on activities for youths in the areas of leadership, health, science, agriculture, and civic engagement, Pia Woods, Jefferson County Extension staff chair and 4-H Agent, said in a news release.
Membership in 4-H is free and open to all Jefferson County youths ages 5-19-years old. Enrollment in the program can be completed at 4h.Zsuite.org. Youths must be an active 4-H member to qualify for competitions and conferences, but day camps and workshops are always open to both 4-H and non-members.
Coming activities include:
Ross Photography Contest. Entries are due by noon April 4. At the county level, each 4-H member may enter two color photographs (one must be in the living category, and one must be in the non-living category, if two are entered) and two black-and-white photographs (one must be in the living category and one must be in the non-living category, if two are entered). Four county winners are selected, one in each category. Photographs entered in the Ross Foundation 4-H Photography Contest must be of scenes or subjects in Arkansas. The pictures must have been taken during the current contest year. Photos must not be mounted or framed. Winning photos in each of the four categories at the county level receive $10. State winners in each of the four categories receive: $200 – 1st Place, $100 – 2nd Place, $50 – 3rd Place. Best of Exhibit wins an additional $100. Contact the extension office for complete contest guidelines.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
April 13 — 4-H Fashion Revue. Contestants will be judged on modeling as well as their ability to demonstrate knowledge of garment fiber, care, quality, price, etc. All contestants must pre-register in ZSuite by April 11. For assistance with garment selection and/or writing a commentary, contact the extension office via email or phone.
April 13 — 4-H Performing Arts Contest. Contestants will be judged in three categories: vocal performance, dance, or instrumental performance. Acts can be individual or group. If group performance, all group members must be in the same age bracket (5-8) (9-13) (14-19). All contestants must pre-register in ZSuite by April 11.
April 20 — 4-H Booth at the Master Gardener’s Home & Garden Show. This is an opportunity for 4-H members to gain community service hours and improve leadership and communication skills. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the White Hall Community Center.
4-H Poster Art Contest. The contest is open to all 4-H members ages 9-19. Posters can be horizontal or vertical and can be created using any of the following mediums: ink, crayon, acrylic, charcoal, colored pencil, collage or digital. Posters should only contain original creations. Participants should refrain from using any copyrighted material. Posters will be submitted digitally. Email the digital poster or photo of the poster and a document containing the 4-H member’s name, age, county, full address, and brief interpretation of artwork to pwoods@uada.edu by April 26. One poster per 4-H member will be accepted. Five junior winners (ages 9-13) and five senior winners (ages 14-19) will be selected and will receive a certificate, which will be presented at District 4-H O-Rama’s in June. Additional prizes will be awarded by the county 4-H foundation.
May 7 – 4-H County O-Rama Contests. 4-H O-Rama is a competition that provides an opportunity for 4-H members to give a speech or demonstration on subject matter learned in their 4-H project area. In addition, members may participate in a variety of outdoor competitive categories. Pre-registration via ZSuite is required by April 30.
May 16 – 4-H Barbecue Contests. Contact the extension office for complete contest rules. Chicken BBQ – Contestants will be cooking four bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. Turkey BBQ – Contestants will be cooking ground turkey (85-90% lean) patties. An information/practice session will be held on April 24 at 5 p.m. at the extension office. The barbecue contest will begin on May 16 with check-in and set-up at 5 p.m. Grills must be ready by 5:30 p.m.
June 1 – 4-H Cooking Contests. Categories include Farm Bureau Dairy Recipe and Farm Bureau Rice Recipe. Contests begin with prepared dish check-in and set-up at 9:30 a.m. Rules vary by contest. Please contact the extension office for complete contest rules. Pre-registration in ZSuite is required by May 24.
June 4 – 7th AR 4-H Teen Leader Conference. The Arkansas Teen Leader Conference is a three-day leadership conference for senior 4-H members. The conference focuses on a specific topic and helps to prepare teens for leadership roles in their local clubs and counties. Senior 4-H’ers (14-19 as of Jan. 1) who are active and in good standing may attend this event at the Vines 4-H Center in Ferndale. The cost is $150.
June 8 – Jefferson County Recreation Association Fishing Derby. The Jefferson County Recreation Association sponsors this event for youths and senior citizens. The derby will be held at the Jefferson County Recreation Center, located 10 miles west of Pine Bluff at McCoy Park on the south side of Highway 270 before the Grant/Jefferson county line. Contact the extension office for more information.
June 11-13 – 4-H Maker Camp. This workshop is focused on Expressive Arts & Entrepreneurship. 4-H members and Jefferson County youths ages 12 -19 are encouraged to participate. Participants will end each day with a completed project to take home or enter in the district fair.
June 20 – Delta District 4-H O-Rama Competition. 4-H’ers who qualified at the county level will compete against other 4-H members from counties within the Delta District. This event will be held on the campus of East Arkansas Community College in Forrest City.
June 25-27 — Arkansas Foods and Farms Day Camp. This three-day camp for youths ages 9-13 years old focuses on Arkansas agriculture and includes hands-on activities, field trips to area farms, and cooking classes.
July 22-26 — Arkansas 4-H State O-Rama Competition. This event is open to senior 4-H members who have qualified at district competition. It will be held on the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville campus and will include competitive activities, workshops, community service, and networking with campus departments.
To learn more about any of these activities or 4-H Youth Development programming in Jefferson County, contact Pia Woods, staff chair/county extension agent, 4-H Youth Development/Family & Consumer Science, or Timothy Wallace, extension agent, at (870) 534-1033 or via email at pwoods@uada.edu or twallace@uada.edu. You may also follow Jefferson County 4-H on social media at facebook.com/UAEXJeffersonCo.
Jefferson County 4-H is a program of the Extension Service, part of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
Pia Woods (middle) Jefferson County Cooperative Extension Service staff chair, and her county 4-H members participate in 4-H Day at the Capitol on Feb. 28, 2023. (Special to The Commercial/Mary Hightower/University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture)