Horse Deadline Extended to May 1


A Message from our state 4-H Leader

Dear 4-H members, families, volunteers and supporters:

It is with a heavy heart that I share this news with you. Due to ongoing health concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision has been made to cancel all Ohio State University Extension in-person programming through July 6. This includes all 4-H club meetings, programs, activities, and events. Additionally, we’ve made the very difficult decision to cancel all 4-H camps thru August 31. Although in-person programming is cancelled, we will continue to offer virtual 4-H experiences.

We know this is an incredible disappointment and recognize how much everyone looks forward to our cherished 4-H summer events. As 4-H professionals committed to providing positive youth development programming, we share your sense of loss.

Given available information, we anticipate the next few weeks and months will continue to be critical times for stemming the spread of the COVID-19 virus. It is our duty to keep ourselves and those we serve safe through the education we provide and the modeling of safety-conscious behaviors. We do not want to get to the other side of this pandemic and wish that we had done more to keep our future generation of leaders safe and healthy.

While we are making decisions regarding the youth events we organize and manage (such as camps and 4-H project judging), we are deferring to local decision-makers and Governor DeWine’s administration on the events owned by others, such as county fairs. Our decision to cancel in-person 4-H activities and events through July 6 and summer camps, should not automatically imply that local county fairs are also canceled at this time. Please keep in mind that 4-H and our FFA colleagues support the education and development of youth, but the decision about whether fairs will occur is in the hands of others. This continues to be an evolving situation that will require some negotiation and monitoring depending on decisions. We will be ready should fairs move forward and to pivot if they are cancelled.

As we work through the impact of these decisions for 4-H activities and events in the weeks ahead, county OSU Extension 4-H professionals will share important updates and information with you as we develop and provide new online opportunities. We know the experiences will be different than we had hoped, yet we remain committed to working together to grow future generations of true leaders.

Yours in service to 4-H,

Kirk


A Message from our state 4-H Leader

As of March 27

Dear 4-H Families, Volunteers, and Supporters,

It’s hard to believe that just three weeks ago we were preparing to welcome 1200 volunteers and teens to the annual Ohio 4-H Youth Conference in Columbus. We know much has changed since that time for all of us, but what hasn’t changed is the commitment of Ohio’s 4-H professionals to the youth in their counties.

I want to update you with information about how the 4-H program is moving forward during this global pandemic. One week ago, county OSU Extension offices temporarily closed to help reduce opportunities for the virus to continue to spread. 4-H professionals and their OSU Extension colleagues worked quickly to transition their materials and resources to be able to continue working from their homes. In just a few short days, they connected with you via email, began offering virtual meetings and regularly updated web sites and social media with current information and resources. I could not be prouder of their willingness to handle this challenge and seek ways in which to keep 4-H programming alive and well.

For many of our families, virtual (or online) meetings seem to be working well, however I recognize it doesn’t work for everyone due to accessibility issues in parts of the state. We are continuing to explore options and will share solutions in the next few weeks. In the meantime, there are tip sheets for club leaders with options and ideas for holding virtual club meetings at go.osu.edu/4hadvisorinfo. Keep checking this site, because we will continue to add information to help you.

We know the spread of coronavirus also presents great uncertainty about upcoming 4-H events—Will camps happen this summer? Will we be able to exhibit our projects at fairs? What about project judging? And the answer is that right now, we just don’t know. At this point, all 4-H activities, club meetings, events and programs must be held virtually or cancelled until May 15. The situation is dynamic and changes daily, so we will continue to monitor conditions and reevaluate as needed. This ban may need to extend beyond May 15. During this time of unprecedented health concerns, we will work together to keep you updated and informed.

We understand concerns that some fairs may not be able to take place this year due to the global pandemic health emergency. Any decision to cancel a local fair, festival, parade or other large group gatherings will be made by those authorized to protect the health and well-being of all Ohioans. 4-H members and their families should consider a number of factors as they make their decisions to purchase 4-H market livestock projects. Risks and rewards must be taken into account. For example, we encourage families to consider their overall available budget, space to care for livestock, availability of alternative markets, availability of local processing, family freezer space, and needs of local food pantries.

OSU Extension and 4-H will continue working together to support our 4-H members, families, volunteers and local partners, including senior fair boards, classroom teachers, and magistrates, as we navigate this health emergency. As Governor DeWine shared earlier this week, we are “in this together Ohio.” Thank you for your continued patience and perseverance.

Yours in service to 4-H,
Kirk Bloir
Assistant Director, OSU Extension 4-H Youth Development
State 4-H Leader


A MESSAGE FROM OUR STATE 4-H LEADER

As of March 18

Dear 4-H Families:

It has been a quite a couple of weeks with changes coming quickly. Thank you for your patience with your county 4-H staff, the state 4-H office, and OSU Extension. I know you have many questions:

  • When can we have club meetings?
  • Will there be summer camp?
  • Should we invest in projects?
  • What about fair?

The answer is at this point is that we just don’t know. It is all changing rapidly. But what we do know for sure is that we’re committed to doing our part to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19. We also know that when we choose to act together, we can have incredible positive impacts.
 

The actions we’ve taken so far are in alignment with necessary precautions recommended by the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Ohio Department of Health. These are in place to help keep us all from getting, or unintentionally spreading, this virus. This includes the temporary closing to the public of our county Extension offices. We’ll continue to be available via email and phone.

To help clarify, ALL 4-H events, programs, and activities scheduled between now and April 20 be held virtually, postponed, or cancelled.

We are also suspending 4-H project book distribution, effective immediately through 3/31/2020. This means there will be no project book distribution at the local or state level until after March 31. We will continue to monitor the situation and will re-evaluate project book distribution as we get closer to March 31 and share more information with you at that time.

For our livestock project members and families, Ohio 4-H and the Ohio Department of Agriculture discussed some changes for this year that will help mitigate the effects the this virus is having on holding in-person programming. For livestock quality assurance (QA) for the 2020 year only:

  • QA must still be completed before the opening day of exhibition, however the 45-day prior to the opening of the exhibition requirement will not be enforced.
  • Youth livestock exhibitors (8-18) may take the online YQCA certification.

In the coming days, we’ll post updates on our Facebook page, in the app, and on our website. We'll also include links to resources that you and your children can use. And we’ll do what we can to keep you updated as we learn new information.

Yours in 4-H,
Kirk Bloir


OHIO STATE AND 4-H'S RESPONSE TO COVID-19

As of March 13, 2020

To our 4-H Families:

It has been a quite a week with changes coming quickly. Thank you for your patience with our county 4-H staff, the state 4-H office, and OSU Extension. I know you have many questions:

  • When can we have club meetings?
  • Will there be summer camp?
  • Should we invest in projects?
  • What about fair?

The answer is at this point, we just don’t know. It is all changing rapidly. But what we do know for sure is that we’re committed to doing our part to help prevent the spread of the COVID-19. We also know that when we choose to act together, we can have incredible positive impacts.

The actions we’ve taken so far are in alignment with necessary precautions recommended by the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Ohio Department of Health. These are in place to help keep us all from getting or unintentionally spreading this virus.

To help clarify, we are asking that ALL 4-H events, programs, and activities scheduled between now and April 20 be held virtually, postponed, or cancelled.

For our livestock project members and families, Ohio 4-H and the Ohio Department of Agriculture discussed some changes for this year that will help mitigate the effects that COVID-19 is having on holding in-person programming. For livestock quality assurance (LQA) for the 2020 year only:

  • LQA must still be completed before the opening day of exhibition, however the 45-day prior to the opening of the exhibition requirement will not be enforced.
  • Youth livestock exhibitors (8-18) may take the online YQCA certification.
  • As of right now, Franklin County 4-H is still offering two LQA session on April 25, and May 26. These are of course subject to an new developments that may come in the future.

In the coming days, we’ll post updates on our Facebook page, in the app, and on our website. We’ll also include links to resources that you and your children can use during their time at home. And we’ll do what we can to keep you updated as we learn new information.

EXTENSION OFFICE HOURS

In order to comply with social distancing recommendations, the Franklin County Extension Office Is operating on an appointment only basis; however, all personnel are actively working. We ask that you please call or email to schedule an appointment if you need to come to the Extension Office.

Project Books: We understand that with school out, there may be more time to work on 4-H projects. If your club plans to pick up project books, Advisors need to email their book order to us ahead of time and schedule a time to pick them up. Please send all project book requests to Rachel at stoneburner.31@osu.edu.

We will stay in touch with everyone through multiple means of communication (email, website, and Facebook) as we do our best to move forward through this.

SCHEDULE CHANGES

This information is subject to change based on updates the 4-H program is receiving daily.

  • Club Meetings - All club meetings must be canceled or held virtually until April 20.
    - Advisors that would like help holding a virtual meeting should contact Beth boomershine.10@osu.edu or Rachel stoneburner.31@osu.edu to make arrangements.
  • Ohio 4-H Conference, March 14 - CANCELLED
  • Camp Registration, Opening March 15 - DELAYED (It should open soon though!)
  • Camp Counselor Meeting, March 16 - VIRTUAL MEETING (Details will be sent to counselors)
  • Franklin County 4-H Council Meeting, March 18 - CANCELLED
  • Franklin County Teen Leaders Council, March 24 - CANCELLED
  • New Volunteer Orientation, March 25 - VIRTUAL (Details coming soon.)
  • Fashion Board, March 29 - POSSIBLY POSTPONED (TBD)
  • Camp Counselor Meeting, April 2 - VIRTUAL (Details coming soon.)
  • Walk & Serve, April 4 - POSTPONED to September 26, 2020 (More info coming soon)
  • Clover 5K, April 4 - POSTPONED to September 26, 2020 (More info coming soon)
  • Horse Committee, April 6 - POSSIBLY VIRTUAL
  • Backyard Poultry Production Vet Science Clinic, April 8 - CANCELLED
  • Horse Safety & Ethics, April 14 - TO BE DETERMINED
  • Franklin County 4-H Advisor Fair Update, April 15 - POSSIBLY VIRTUAL

ENROLLMENT DEADLINE EXTENDED

With the cancellation of all 4-H club meetings until at least April 20, we realize that gathering enrollment information may be challenging for some clubs. For this reason, we are extending the deadline until April 15. Online enrollment will be active until April 15. Advisors can mail their club paperwork to the Extension Office or scan and email it to stoneburner.31@osu.edu by the deadline. If the April 15 deadline is a hardship for you, please contact us so we can help your club make a plan.

IMPORTANT! - Horse possession and lease deadlines are still April 1, but the paperwork does not have to be in until April 15.


As of March 11, 2020

As you may be aware, The Ohio State University has announced the suspension of face-to-face instruction of lectures and other similar classroom settings, and the move to virtual instruction effective immediately and through at least Monday, March 30. Also, events deemed nonessential between now and April 20 are subject to review, to evaluate whether they should continue in person. Based on these guidelines, we have outlined below a list of 4-H events/meetings that have been cancelled or postponed.

One of the best ways to prevent the spread of viral illnesses is to minimize the circumstances in which individuals might interact and transmit the diseases.

The safety of our community is our top priority. We realize that OSU's COVID-19 policy guidelines will cause disruption, but the risk of not acting outweighs the inconvenience of these temporary measures. We will share updates as more information becomes available.
 

FRANKLIN COUNTY 4-H SCHEDULE CHANGES

This information is subject to change based on updates the 4-H program is receiving daily.

  • Club Meetings - All club meetings are CANCELLED from March 12 to March 30.
    (Club meetings from March 31 to April 20 are pending future updates.)
    - Advisors are welcome to hold meetings virtually if they have the means and have important matters to discuss.
     
  • Ohio 4-H Conference, March 14 - CANCELLED
     
  • Camp Counselor Meeting, March 16 - VIRTUAL MEETING (Details will be sent to counselors)
     
  • Franklin County 4-H Council Meeting, March 18 - CANCELLED
     
  • Franklin County Teen Leaders Council, March 24 - CANCELLED
     
  • New Volunteer Orientation, March 25 - VIRTUAL (Details coming soon.)
     
  • Fashion Board, March 29 - POSSIBLY POSTPONED (TBD)
     
  • Camp Counselor Meeting, April 2 - TO BE DETERMINED
     
  • Walk & Serve, April 4 - POSTPONED (More info coming soon)
     
  • Clover 5K, April 4 - POSTPONED (More info coming soon)
     
  • Horse Committee, April 6 - POSSIBLY VIRTUAL
     
  • Backyard Poultry Production Vet Science Clinic, April 8 - CANCELLED
     
  • Horse Safety & Ethics, April 14 - TO BE DETERMINED
     
  • Franklin County 4-H Advisor Fair Update, April 15 - POSSIBLY VIRTUAL
     

4-H ENROLLMENT DEADLINE EXTENDED

With the cancellation of all 4-H club meetings until at least March 31, we realize that gathering enrollment information may be challenging for some clubs. For this reason, we are extending the deadline until April 15. Online enrollment will be active until April 15. Advisors can mail their club paperwork to the Extension Office or scan and email it to stoneburner.31@osu.edu by the deadline. If the April 15 deadline is a hardship for you, please contact us so we can help your club make a plan.

IMPORTANT! - Horse possession and lease deadlines are still April 1, but the paperwork does not have to be in until April 15.
 

THANK YOU FOR UNDERSTANDING

We know that these disruptions in our daily lives are difficult to understand and process but please know that the health and welfare of our 4-H members and their families is important to us. We all need to play a part in protecting each other. We will share further updates with you as they become available.