4-H Awarded $9.8 Million to Support National Mentoring Program

CHEVY CHASE, Md., Oct. 20, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Department of Justice's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) has awarded a $9.8 million grant to National 4-H Council in support of the 4-H National Mentoring Program. The grant comes as a part of the OJJDP's national effort to strengthen, expand and implement youth mentoring activities nationwide to improve the lives of millions of young Americans. This is the fifth round of funding that 4-H has received under OJJDP's National Mentoring Program, including $7.2 million in 2013 and $5 million in 2012.

This generous grant will provide funding to facilitate 4-H mentoring programs in nearly every state in the nation with each program focused on addressing areas of increased risk for youth delinquency. Across the country, 4-H Cooperative Extension staff, including county agents and youth development specialists, who lead state 4-H programs will select from three proven effective 4-H youth mentoring programs to implement in their local communities:

• 4-H Mentoring: Youth & Families with Promise, created by Utah State University, is a prevention program designed to enhance the developmental assets of at-risk youth, ages 10‐14. A three-pronged mentoring approach includes strengthening academic performance, interpersonal skills, family bonds and community support. Seventy-one percent of youth demonstrated improved social engagement and 92 percent of mentors have been retained in the program.
• 4-H Tech Wizards, created by Oregon State University, is an afterschool, small‐group mentoring program for vulnerable and marginalized youth who tend to be underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The program uses youth interested in science and emerging technologies to help engage them in learning and to encourage them to apply their learning to their STEM academic instruction and future life paths. Seventy-two percent of youth reported an increase in their perception of social support and 82 percent of mentors have been retained in the program.
• 4-H Life, created by the University of Missouri, is a mentoring program that addresses the needs of children of incarcerated parents. Components include attempts to create strong parent-child bonds, improve the quality of prison-based family visits and increase youth decision-making and communication skills. Eighty-six percent of youth reported more positive family relationships and 95 percent of mentors have been retained in the program.

These programs were created through the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Children, Youth and Families at Risk Program which sparks innovation in community-based educational programs for children, youth, parents and families.

In addition to the 4-H youth mentoring programs, 4-H youth development professionals from Historically Black Colleges and Universities who facilitate 4-H programs will engage young men of color through a new mentoring initiative, My Brother's Keeper. Launched earlier this year by President Barack Obama, the program funded through OJJDP will address achievement gaps faced by boys and young men of color and ensure that all young people are given the opportunity to reach their full potential.

According to The Mentoring Effect: Young People's Perspective on the Outcomes and Availability of Mentoring, 76 percent of at-risk young adults who had a mentor aspire to enroll in and graduate from college versus half of at-risk young adults who had not had a mentor.¹

"Although recent data reveals an 80 percent national high school graduation rate, disparities still exist as dropout rates remain high among underrepresented populations," said Jennifer Sirangelo, president & CEO, National 4-H Council. "This significant grant will allow 4-H program staff the opportunity to replicate proven 4-H mentoring programs that are producing positive outcomes in underrepresented communities across the country including reduced school drop-out rates and strengthened family relationships."

As of 2013, the 4-H National Mentoring Program has served over 31,000 youth, resulting in significant outcomes in areas such as family relationships, perceptions of social support, and social competence.

¹ Civic Enterprises/Hart Research Associates, 2014

About 4-H
4-H, the nation's largest youth development and empowerment organization, cultivates confident kids who tackle the issues that matter most in their communities right now. In the United States, 4-H programs empower six million young people through the 109 land-grant universities and Cooperative Extension in more than 3,000 local offices serving every county and parish in the country. Outside the United States, independent, country-led 4-H organizations empower one million young people in more than 50 countries. National 4-H Council is the private sector, non-profit partner of the Cooperative Extension System and 4-H National Headquarters located at the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) within the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Learn more about 4-H at www.4-H.org, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/4-H and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/4H.

Contact: Kimberly M. West, National 4-H Council, 301-951-3078, [email protected]

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SOURCE National 4-H Council