4-H & Youth Development

Tools for Healthy Living

“Tools for Healthy Living,” a curriculum about healthy homes and food safety, has been accepted as a national peer-reviewed curriculum by the National 4-H Council. The curriculum, designed for students in grades four through six who are in afterschool 4-H programs, was developed by UConn Extension as part of a 5-year Sustainable Community Project grant […]

National 4-H Conference

In April, four Connecticut 4-H members and chaperone Rineicha Otero of UConn Extension attended the National 4-H Conference in Washington D.C. Each of the 4-H members participated in a roundtable project. Their assignments were:  Molly Barnett – Adolescent Health – Presenting to the Department of Health and Human Services Lily Barton – Military Families – […]

Connecticut 4-H Citizenship Day 2015

By: Marc Cournoyer UConn Extension 4-H Program Coordinator   Approximately 100 4-H youth and adults converged on the state Capitol in Hartford on Wednesday, April 15th for the annual state 4-H Citizenship Day. Representing all corners of Connecticut, these individuals came together to meet with legislators, explore our state Capitol, learn a bit more about […]

Meet Our Summer Interns

Each year UConn students apply to and compete for paid internship opportunities with the UConn Cooperative Extension Service. Through its offices located throughout Connecticut, UConn Extension connects the power of UConn research to local issues by creating practical, science-based answers to complex problems. Extension provides scientific knowledge and expertise to the public in areas such […]

Garden Programs in Fairfield County

Originally published by Naturally@UConn on December 16, 2014 Written by: Kim Markesich Fairfield County gardening programs teach nutrition, integrated pest management and life skills The Fairfield County Extension Center Demonstration Garden The Fairfield County Extension Center hosts a variety of gardening programs, and the season just past was a successful and bountiful one. With the support of […]

What Every CT Resident Needs to Understand About UConn Extension

I wish UConn Extension was not the best-kept secret in the state. It’s time everybody knew what a tremendous resource Extension is. Congress established the Cooperative Extension System as a national network in 1914 to tie university research to real life. UConn Extension programs have evolved over time, and as our state has changed, so […]

4-H Recognition

Connecticut State Representative Dan Carter was our special guest at the Robotics and Technology recognition night. Two groups of children and youth from Danbury completed a 10-week pilot program. Participants built and programmed robots using laptops and artificial intelligence bricks. Before this program none of the participants was a 4-H member. At the end of […]

Cohen Contributes to Tolland County 4-H as State Corn Yield Contest Winner

Ellington, CT – Harris and Louise Cohen of Ellington have contributed $150 to the UConn Extension Tolland County 4-H program as a result of winning first place in the state of Connecticut 2013 National Corn Growers’ Association’s (NCGA) Corn Yield Contest. The contribution was provided by DuPont Pioneer on behalf of first-place winners. Sanford Cohen […]

4-H Mentor Memos

Fairfield and New Haven County 4-H Mentor Memos – A newsletter of helpful information for adults who mentor children 40 Developmental Assets researched by the Search Institute. Developmental Assetsare positive factors within young people, families, communities, schools, and other settings that research has found to be important in promoting the healthy development of young people. […]

UConn Extension Recognizes Award Winners

Each year the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources and the College’s Alumni Association host their annual Awards and Honors event. This event has a long history of recognizing outstanding and distinguished alumni, faculty, staff and supporters, including outstanding individuals of UConn Extension. Excellence in Outreach Award –The Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program […]

Windham County Skill-A-Thon

  By Marc Cournoyer, UConn Extension 4-H Program Coordinator  16 4-H members from around Windham County gathered together on Saturday, April 12th to explore STEM through a series of exciting and fun experiential activities.  They participated in three workshops that were facilitated by UConn staff and students. In the first workshop, 4-H program coordinator Maryann Fusco-Rollins taught participants how to […]

Collegiate 4-H Program

The Connecticut 4-H youth program prepares youth to meet the needs of a global economy, while learning new skills, meeting new friends and discovering new things about themselves and the world through UConn Extension’s research-driven programs. Whatever your interest, 4-H has a place for you. 4-H programs offer youth fun, hands-on learning activities that foster skills and character […]

UConn Extension 4-H Partners with UConn Engineering Ambassadors

By Marc Cournoyer, UConn Extension 4-H Program Coordinator Two undergraduate students from the UConn Engineering Ambassadors stopped by the Extension Center in Brooklyn, CT on February 22nd to assist members of the Windham County 4-H Saturday Science club in exploring some of the science required to colonize Mars.  Participants had an opportunity to create their […]

4-H FANs IM Success Stories

Connecticut Fitness and Nutrition Clubs In Motion (CT FANs IM), is a 4-H Afterschool program designed to reduce obesity rates in children ages 9 to 14, through sustainable interventions surrounding food and fitness. The program is a collaboration between the UConn Extension, and the Department of Kinesiology. CT FANs IM, was modeled after the original 4-H […]

Barnum 4-H School Garden

This was originally posted by Organic Gardening 365.  Question: What do you get when you cross the savvy leadership training skills of 4-H with a Bridgeport, CT school that wants to teach kids responsibility through gardening? Answer: The Barnum School 4-H Garden. The Barnum School 4-H Garden is a display of hard work and great […]

4-H Saturday Science

Denise Coffey of the Reminder News covered the first 4-H Saturday Science Program at Windham County Extension: “The Windham County Extension Center in Brooklyn hosted the first 4-H Science Saturday on Nov. 16. Program Coordinator Marc Cournoyer led a group of youngsters through “Maps and Apps,” an exercise in map-reading and map-making. With nods to […]

4-H Mentor Memos

Fairfield County 4-H offers the following recommendations to adults who mentor youth. What are ways we can capture that spark that leads to a successful future? Mentoring adults need to take this information and capture a way to spark the teens we lead, to engage them in something they enjoy and want to learn about. […]

Rineicha Otero in Colombia – Day 6 & 7

Thursday, 8/22/2013 Today I got to visit la Universidad de San Buenaventura Cali, where Ginna received her degree.  I could see Ginna’s pride while she gave me the tour, along with a colleague. The campus was environmentally friendly; it was surrounded by beautiful natural landscapes. I had the opportunity to present to a group of 30 […]

Tolland County 4-H STEM Mini Field Trips

The Tolland County 4-H Program, which is part of UConn Extension hosted three fun and educational adventures close to home that focused on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Junk Drawer Robotics allowed youth to become an engineer with things from around the house! We constructed: tooth brush eco-bots, marshmallow launching trebuchets, and a mechanical arm. Youth […]

Rineicha Otero – UConn Extension Fellow in Colombia

Saturday 8/17/2013 I finally arrived in beautiful Colombia! After much-anticipation, the visit has come and the expectation of reconnecting to the different cultures around the world has increased even more. As soon as the airplane touched the ground in Bogota the crowed cheered with excitement to be back in their homeland. I remembered the times […]

Windham County 4-H Summer Science Mini-Camps

By Marc Cournoyer UConn Extension’s Windham County 4-H program continues to provide young people with an opportunity to explore the world of STEM education through hands-on minicamp programs taking place at various locations throughout Windham County. In 2013 we are focusing on three distinct programs; Junk Drawer Robotics, STEM Gardens and video production with special […]

Survival 101: The Science of Survival

On June 1st, The Middlesex county 4-H Advisory Committee presented Survival 101 – The Science of Survival. This high energy and action packed workshop day included 10 different survival workshops focusing on the science and technology behind survival skills. The workshops included: Shelter Engineering, Fire Building, Survival Communication, Wild Game and Fishing, Wilderness and Survival […]

4-H Work Readiness Program

Tolland County Extension partnered with EastConn on a 4-H Work Readiness program for three weeks in the summer of 2012. Two groups with fifteen students each met five days per week.  The focus of the program was on garden and grounds maintenance.  Students also learned to fill out applications, interview for a job, and create […]

4-H Education Center at Auerfarm

The 124-acre 4-H Education Center at Auerfarm is located in the northwest section of Bloomfield, Connecticut.  Hartford entrepreneur and retailer Beatrice Auerbach deeded the farm to the CT 4-H Development Fund in 1976. Founded in the early years of the twentieth century, Auerfarm had been honored many times as a model site that included 60 […]