UC's 4-H programs grow from farms to urban neighborhoods

By Harry Mok

Go to almost any county fair, and youngsters from 4-H will be there, exhibiting their cows, pigs, sheep and other livestock. You might not expect to see them at an airport.

"I've basically raised every animal you could raise," said Anna Vargas, 20, a youth program leader who recently exhibited farm animals at San Francisco International Airport.

While her experiences with 4-H may be common, the location isn't. Vargas reared all her livestock on 4-H urban farms in San Mateo County, just south of San Francisco, including one on a plot of land next to a commuter rail station in San Bruno.

4-H's core mission is to offer learn-by-doing experiences for young people. More and more those experiences are taking place in cities, schools or science labs. A recently launched off-the-farm 4-H program is its Science, Engineering and Technology Initiative, begun last year to help address a shortage of scientists and engineers in the United States.

4-H is a national program run through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service. It partners with 106 land-grant universities, including the University of California, to create youth development programs in every state. In California, the UC Cooperative Extension administers 4-H programs.

4-H participants in rural areas may be familiar with animals and the outdoors, but seeing a calf born or finding out that a cow will be slaughtered for food can be a "rude awakening" for kids from the city, said Mary Meyer, a 4-H youth development representative in San Mateo and San Francisco counties.

Urban kids need some exposure to this so they understand the balance between people, land and wildlife, Meyer said: "It's a way to help people understand the full circle of life."

Vargas, who joined 4-H when she was 9, was energetic and confident as she extolled its virtues recently at the San Francisco International Airport's employee appreciation picnic. The San Mateo-San Francisco 4-H chapter was among the community groups invited to exhibit at the event.

"This will get us some attention," Vargas said as she grabbed a chicken, and put it on her shoulder.

"I'm definitely not your typical 4-H'er," said Vargas, who sports a nose ring and three rings in each of her ear lobes. "I dropped out of high school … 4-H kept me out of even more trouble."

Vargas, now a student at Skyline College, wants to be a veterinary technician. She credits 4-H with teaching her to not fear new challenges and instilling a positive outlook on life.

"It teaches you responsibility," said Mitchell Anderegg of going to the San Bruno farm to feed animals twice a day. "It teaches you the value of a dollar. You have to work on a budget."

Anderegg, 16, said his 4-H experiences helped him get a volunteer position at the San Francisco Zoo.

"It's not all about livestock," Vargas said. "It's actually about teaching kids to become confident about themselves and to become leaders."

Another urban initiative of 4-H San Mateo-San Francisco is training the staff of partner organizations and elementary schools to educate San Francisco children in gardening and nutrition programs to combat childhood obesity. The effort is part of 4-H Afterschool, a nationwide program with a goal of increasing education outlets for kids outside of school hours.

"We're trying to help them make the right decision about what is healthy," said Frances Wong, 4-H urban youth program representative. "It's important to eat healthy, and hopefully they will bring that message back home to their families."

Through its new science initiatives, the 4-H goal is to help train a million scientists nationwide. More than 66,000 California youth have participated in Science, Engineering and Technology Initiative projects designed to give them hands-on instruction in areas such as water conservation, bee keeping, rocketry and Web design. Oct. 7 is 4-H National Youth Science Day when chapters throughout the United States will perform experiments with biofuels.

"Whether it's healthy living, citizenship or science, if that's our mission, it's all done in an atmosphere of positive youth development," said Steven Worker, a California 4-H SET coordinator.

Harry Mok is a principal editor in the UC Office of the President's Integrated Communications group.