UGA Cooperative Extension

DeKalb County Extension Office:
4-H Youth Development

Our Future

DeKalb's future leaders learn life skills through hands-on learning experiences. As the second largest program in Georgia, more than 10,000 urban and suburban 9 -19 year 4-H Cloverleaf olds participate in 4-H Clubs, Youth Leadership DeKalb and other youth development programs.

4-H provides youth with the opportunity to participate in a wide range of activities such as summer camps, judging events, community service, project achievement competitions. We are the youth component of the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension.

Along with providing positive youth development, 4-H teaches responsibility, caring, communication skills, and self-confidence. There are over 50 DeKalb County Schools and community clubs that offer 4-H Clubs.

The Positive Development of Youth

The 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development is a longitudinal study that began in 2002, and continues today, surveying more than 6,400 adolescents from diverse backgrounds across 34 U.S. states. The study is made possible by the contributions of our nation’s land-grant universities and National 4-H Council.

This in-depth study has discovered that, when compared to other youth, young people involved in 4-H:

Have higher educational achievement and motivation for future education
Are more civically active and make more civic contributions to their communities

To learn more about this in-depth study, read summary findings of Positive Youth Development (PYD) Study here.

Dr. Richard Lerner and the team at the Institute for Applied Research in Youth Development at Tufts University have been working with faculty at land-grant
universities to conduct The 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development. Read more about their research in the 2009 Summary of Findings for Wave 6 (also known as the Tufts Study) of the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development.

For more information on the youth development through 4-H, please refer to the National 4-H Research web page.

Revolution of Responsibility

What is the Revolution of Responsibility? It’s a movement for positive change in every community in America. 4-H youth are a living breathing, culture-changing revolution for doing the right thing, breaking through obstacles and pushing our country forward by making a measurable difference right where they live. That takes uncommon commitment. To learn more, go to the National 4-H Revolution of Responsibility web page.