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Shooting Sports Training
--Janet Schmidt
Two Shooting Sports Leader Training opportunities will be coming up in the near future! The first one is scheduled for Western Washington March 28-30, 2008, at the Camas-Washougal Wildlife League, in Camas, Washington. Disciplines will include Rifle and Archery. The next training will be April 26-27, 2008, in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Disciplines for the Idaho training include Archery, Hunting and Rifle. The registration for the Washington training will be posted to the Shooting Sports website by the end of the week. Washington and Idaho have similar training requirements so 4-H volunteers may cross state lines to fulfill their training requirement. Keep an eye on Tuesday News for future training opportunities.
Camp In at Pacific Science Center
--Janet Edwards
Is the sleep over at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle on your calendar for April 12? There is still time to register and be in on the adventures in science. See the details at http://4h.wsu.edu/conferences/campin/index.htm.
Sheep Industry Leaders to Share Knowledge at 4th Annual Northwest Lamboree
--Susan Kerr
The Northwest Lamboree is an annual event sponsored by WSU-Klickitat County Extension and the Washington Wool Growers' Auxiliary. It is an opportunity for sheep industry leaders and beginners to share information regarding sheep industry trends, showmanship, production, and history, as well as general information on raising and marketing sheep in the Northwest. Producers and leaders from around the country meet for two days to discuss and educate students and breeders about the evolving industry.
All aspects of sheep raising and production will be explored. This year's topics will include health management, farm flock production, fiber arts, nutrition, industry updates, historical displays, showmanship, selection, marketing, and engaging activities that will leave participants prepared for today's sheep industry. Also, some of the top wether sire breeders in the Northwest will have lambs available to purchase through private treaties.
No matter which aspect of the industry you are involved in, the Northwest Lamboree will have something for you. The program has been separated into four tracks to allow participants to focus on individual interests:
- Show Lamb Projects: designed to help 4-H and FFA members prepare for livestock shows, with workshops on showmanship, fitting, selection, nutrition and judging.
- Commercial Sheep Production: for current and new producers looking for better ways to manage and market their flocks.
- Fiber Art: experts in the region will share their knowledge of spinning, weaving, felting, marketing and sale of wool products.
- Cooking with Lamb: participants can take up to three different classes focusing on preparing healthy and delicious lamb meals.
The 4th Annual Northwest Lamboree is open to both youth and adults. Registration is due May 1 and includes four excellent meals and an educational take-home packet. To register for this event, go to www.klickitat.wsu.edu or call WSU-Klickitat County Extension at 509-773-5817. For more information, go to www.lamboree.blogspot.com.
Washington State Bullying Prevention Conference - Invitation & Registration
--Submitted by Pat BoyEs
The 3rd Annual Washington State Bullying Prevention Conference will be held on May 22 and 23, 2008 at the Everett Events Center , 2000 Hewitt Ave , Everett . The Hot Topic for May 22 is Cyberbullying. Hot Topics for May 23 include: brain development, gangs, GLBT, relational aggression and others.
Registration is limited. The deadline is May 9, 2008.
Equine Training School
--Bonnie Bright
You are invited to the 53rd Annual Yakima County 4-H Equine Training School at the State Fair Park in Yakima, WA on June 20-22, 2008.
Information and registration form
4-H night at the Tacoma Rainiers
--Nancy Baskett
Counties statewide mark your calendars now for June 27. 4-H members, leaders and their families have been invited by the Tacoma Rainiers Baseball team for a special evening of fun and a game. For $9.50 per person, you will receive a reserved seat, hot dog, chips and a soda, and a firework show after the game. If possible, please email me, nbaskett@wsu.edu, an estimate on how many tickets each club wants to buy so I can reserve a block of tickets. If we have a group of 500 or more we can have a representative throw out the first pitch to promote 4-H. I am looking forward to having a great evening of baseball and friends.
State 4-H Forum
--Submitted by Pat BoyEs
Mark your calendar now! Here is an offer too good to pass up! You're invited to the 2008 State 4-H Forum. This year's theme is “4-H: Rise Above the Ordinary.” The Forum, hosted by Snohomish County and the NW District, will be held October 17–19 at the Holiday Inn – Downtown Everett.
Please Welcome the 2008 Washington 4-H State Ambassadors
--Jan Klein
NW District:
Luka MacKay - Whatcom County (2 yr. position)
Benjamin Janicki - Skagit County (2 yr. position)
Lauren Sechrist - King County (1 yr. position)
Ramona Valdez - Whatcom County (1 yr. position)
Advisor - Jon Gabelein
SW District:
Kayla Swearingen - Thurston County (2 yr. position)
Megan Wright - Skamania County (2 yr. position)
Brandon Juan - Yakima County (1 yr. position at large)
Heather Blanchard - Kitsap County (1 yr. position at large)
Advisor - not filled presently
NE District:
Bethany Cobb - Lincoln County (06-08)
CJ Fritchman - Ferry County (06-08)
Amanda McCoury - Spokane County (2 yr. position)
Caleb Klein - Lincoln County (2 yr. position)
Advisor - Bonnie Cobb
SE District:
Jesscia Ubachs - Asotin County (06-08)
Brianne Javaux - Walla Walla County (06-08)
Brianna Tasker - Kittitas County (2 yr. position)
Rayla Carlson - Asotin County (2 yr. position)
Grant Maskal - Kittitas County (07-08 at large position)
Advisor - Lisa Ubachs
Statewide advisors:
Chuck Todd - Pierce County
Jan Klein - State 4-H Staff.
Purpose of State Ambassadors
- To enable youth to develop their full leadership potential.
- Contribute their enthusiasm, knowledge, and skills in the development of the 4-H program at all levels: county, state, and national.
Mission Statement
- The Washington State 4-H Ambassadors' goal is to promote 4-H in a positive manner through cooperation and communication, with leadership and planning to make ordinary people into EXTRAordinary people.
Goals
- Build leadership roles into youth and adult partnerships.
- Share our 4-H program beyond Washington State .
- Increase pre-teen and teen involvement.
- Be utilized as a resource.
For more information about this position or how to utilize the State Ambassador team please contact Jan Klein.
Stampeding to Boise
--Pat BoyEs
March 6-9, 2008 the Washington 4-H delegation joined 400 other 4-H volunteers from across the 13 western states, Canada and America Samoa in Boise , Idaho for a fantastic edition of the Western Regional 4-H Forum. I am very proud to report that Washington sent a delegation of 25. The speakers, classes and activities were all excellent. It was truly a marvelous learning experience for us all. Additionally, we honored Mary and Allen Walsh of Benton and Franklin counties as our leaders of the year. Better choice could not have been made; we are honored by Mary and Allen's outstanding service to young people. Congratulations!
Former State 4-H fair manager Milly Eagan Passes
--Pat BoyEs
I regret that I must share with you the very sad news that former State 4-H Fair Manager Milly Eagan passed away after a very short battle with leukemia. She was diagnosed with leukemia just a few weeks ago, followed by diagnoses of other cancers. Milly passed away about 3 a.m. on Saturday the 15th. She was surrounded by her loving family and died peacefully.
The family asked that we thank everyone for their comforting thoughts and prayers that were so important and needed to help Milly and their family get through the past few weeks.
The following information is for Milly's Funeral (Celebration of Life). The service will be at St. Olaf's in Poulsbo, WA Friday, March 28, 2008 at 11:00 a.m.
Please visit http://www.lewischapel.com/ to view Milly's obituary, information on hotels, restaurants, directions, anything else you might need. There are many hotel/motel choices, however the ones listed for Poulsbo are closest to St. Olaf's.
Lewis Chapel is inputting all the information pertaining to the services. Please give them at least a day to have it online and available to you. If its not there, just give it some time and try again. At least you can make arrangements for your Hotel Stay, etc.
In regards to donations, the family asks that donations be made to the following organizations in lieu of flowers.
Puget Sound Blood Center
Development Office
921 Terry Avenue
Seattle , WA 98104-1256
http://www.psbc.org/gifts/giving.htm
St. Vincent de Paul
Attn: Denise Agee
1137 Callow Ave. N
Bremerton , WA 98312
In Memory of Milly Eagan
Make checks payable to St. Vincent de Paul.
Grant's Available
--Submitted by Pat BoyEs
Grants available in the following areas: Arts, Child Welfare, Civic Engagement, Education, Health, Juvenile Justice, Life Skills, Media/Technology, Management, Mental Health, Race/Ethnicity, Recreation, Parenting, Safety, Substance Abuse, Well-Being, and Youth Development.
Higher Education Gap May Slow Economic Mobility
--Erik Eckholm
Upward Movement
A person born into a poor family who graduates from college has a 19 percent chance of entering the top fifth of earners in adulthood.
How people fared whose parents were in the bottom fifth of income.
Income of those who earned college degrees:
- Top fifth 19%
- Top-middle 22
- Middle 21
- Bottom-middle 22
- Bottom fifth 16
Income of those who did not earn college degrees:
- Top fifth 5%
- Top-middle 9
- Middle 18
- Bottom-middle 23
- Bottom fifth 45
Source: Economic Mobility Project, Pew Charitable Trusts
The New York Times
Economic mobility, the chance that children of the poor or middle class will climb up the income ladder, has not changed significantly over the last three decades, a study being released on Wednesday says.
The authors of the study, by scholars at the Brookings Institution in Washington and sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts, warned that widening gaps in higher education between rich and poor, whites and minorities, could soon lead to a downturn in opportunities for the poorest families.
The researchers found that Hispanic and black Americans were falling behind whites and Asians in earning college degrees, making it harder for them to enter the middle class or higher.
A growing difference in education levels between income and racial groups, especially in college degrees, implies that mobility will be lower in the future than it is today, said Ron Haskins, a former Republican official and welfare expert who wrote the education section of the report.
There is some good news. The study highlights the powerful role that college can have in helping people change their station in life. Someone born into a family in the lowest fifth of earners who graduates from college has a 19 percent chance of joining the highest fifth of earners in adulthood and a 62 percent chance of joining the middle class or better.
In recent years, 11 percent of children from the poorest families have earned college degrees, compared with 53 percent of children from the top fifth.
The American dream of opportunity is alive, but frayed, said Isabel Sawhill, another author of the report, Getting Ahead or Losing Ground: Mobility in America . The report is at economicmobility.org
It s still alive for immigrants but badly tattered for African-Americans, said Ms. Sawhill, an economist and a budget official in the Clinton administration. It s more alive for people in the middle class than for people at the very bottom.
The report and planned studies constitute the most comprehensive effort to examine intergenerational mobility, said John E. Morton of the Pew Trusts, who is managing the project. It draws heavily on a federally supported survey by the University of Michigan that has followed thousands of families since the late 1960s.
A chapter of the report released last fall found startling evidence that a majority of black children born to middle-class parents grew up to have lower incomes and that nearly half of middle-class black children fell into the bottom fifth in adulthood, compared with 16 percent of middle-class white children.
The Pew-sponsored studies are continuing with the involvement of research organizations and scholars. Another report expected in the spring by the more conservative Heritage Foundation will focus on explanations for the trends described in the current report.
Stuart Butler, vice president for economic studies at the Heritage Foundation, said, It does seem in America now that for people at very bottom it s more difficult to move up than we might have thought or might have been true in the past.
Mr. Butler said experts were likely to disagree about the reasons and, hence, on policies to improve mobility. Conservative scholars are more apt to fault cultural norms and the breakdown of families while liberals put more emphasis on the changing structure of the economy and the need for government to provide safety nets and aid for poor families.
We may well have an economy that rewards certain traits that are typically passed on from parents to children, the importance of education, optimism, a propensity to work hard, entrepreneurship and so on, he said.
To the extent that the economy rewards those traits, he added, you d expect the incomes of children to track more with that of their parents.
The small fraction of poor children who earn college degrees are likely to rise well above their parents status, the study showed.
More than half the children born to upper-income parents, those in the top fifth, who finish college remain in that top group. Nearly one in four remains in the top fifth even without completing college.
Evidence from model programs shows that early childhood education can have lasting benefits, Mr. Haskins said, although the Head Start program is too uneven to produce widespread gains.
In addition, he said, studies show that many poor but bright children do not receive good advice about applying for college and scholarships, or do not receive help after starting college.
If we did more to help them complete college, Mr. Haskins said, there s no question it would improve mobility.
Copyright 2008 The New York Times Company
Population Shift Sends Universities Scrambling Applicant Pool Forecast To Shrink and Diversify
--Valerie Strauss , Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, March 10, 2008; A01
Colleges and universities are anxiously taking steps to address a projected drop in the number of high school graduates in much of the nation starting next year and a dramatic change in the racial and ethnic makeup of the student population, a phenomenon expected to transform the country's higher education landscape, educators and analysts said.
After years of being overwhelmed with applicants, higher education institutions will over the next decade recruit from a pool of public high school graduates that will experience:
- A projected national decline of roughly 10 percent or more in non-Hispanic white students, the population that traditionally is most likely to attend four-year colleges.
- A double-digit rise in the proportion of minority students -- especially Hispanics -- who traditionally are less likely to attend college and to obtain loans to fund education.
Despite those obstacles, minority enrollment at undergraduate schools is expected to rise steadily, from 30 percent in 2004 to about 37 percent in 2015, some analysts project.
"The majority will become the minority," said Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, president emeritus and professor of public service at George Washington University . "There will be more Hispanics, more African Americans, more Chinese, Indians, Pakistanis, Koreans. I anticipate that the most common last name in the freshman class will be Kim."
The demographic changes will be profound for individual students: Some will probably see their chances of getting into selective schools improve, and others will see opportunities to enroll at the most selective schools decline. And for colleges, the demographic changes will mean new ways of recruiting and educating students.
"One challenge will be looking at the interface between high schools and college and the issue of college readiness, and the other will be the whole issue of the cost of college," said David Ward, president of the nonprofit American Council on Education .
The efforts come as the nonprofit Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education plans to release a report this month that will show a decline in high school graduation next year in most areas of the country, except the West, senior research analyst Brian Prescott said. That is at least a year earlier than in some past projections.
Schools likely to thrive through the changes will be those in popular areas, endowed well enough to continue upgrading facilities and programs, and public flagship universities that offer lower tuition than private colleges, admissions experts say. So will schools with strong workforce programs amid a surge of adult students, said Trinity Washington University President Patricia McGuire.
Schools in more remote areas, with fewer resources and no particular academic focus, could struggle, said Steven Roy Goodman, an educational consultant and admissions strategist. That is why the 700-student Northland College in Wisconsin uses its location on Lake Superior to promote it as "the environmental liberal arts college."
"To use the obvious ecological metaphor, we must specialize in our niche, because we can't compete with dramatically better-resourced generalists," Provost Rich Fairbanks said.
Many schools, accustomed to annual increases in the number of high school graduates, are retooling recruitment efforts to focus on states where that population will keep rising.
Although the outlook varies from state to state, the West is projected to have the highest percentage growth, with the Midwest and Northeast experiencing declines. The South is looking at mixed results, according to projections.
At a recent fair for college admissions officers in Pittsburgh , the topic on everyone's lips was increasing out-of-state recruitment, some participants said. Certain states are known to be fertile ground for students wanting to leave. Others are not.
Virginia , for example, is known for retaining most of its high school graduates. According to the latest information from the nonprofit National Center for Higher Education Management systems, Virginia in 2004 lost 11,503 high school graduates but brought in 15,748 from out of state for a net gain of 4,245.
Maryland has the opposite reputation. Data showed that in 2004 the state lost 15,685 high school graduates and imported 9,731 for a loss of 6,954.
There are no listed data for the District.
Such statistics aggravate C. Dan Mote, president of the University of Maryland at College Park . "The state has not promulgated the fact that it has a world-class university," he said, adding that Maryland officials must improve recruitment in and out of state.
Educators and administrators say that as the student population changes, they will face a range of complicated challenges that go to the heart of the academic mission of higher education institutions and the issue of affordability. Efforts have begun to introduce the notion of college preparation to middle school students and students who traditionally would not have sought out college, Ward said, but more needs to be done to improve K-12 school systems from which many of the students will come.
The cost of college also will require a new collaborative financial aid system that takes into account cultural differences toward borrowing and spending patterns, Ward said.
Non-Hispanic white families are the most likely to borrow money for college, but that is the population that will experience the biggest decline. Hispanic families traditionally have fewer resources to spend and are more averse to borrowing, Ward said.
At Bates College in Lewiston , Maine , President Elaine Tuttle Hansen said the school has started to boost its aid budget by a few percentage points to "keep ahead" of the trend. Out of an $83 million budget, she said, $18 million went this year for financial aid.
Officials in the State University of New York , the public higher education system with the more campuses than any other state's, 64, and more than 427,000 students, are focusing their recruitment on population growth areas, said Kitty McCarthy, assistant vice chairman for enrollment marketing.
Catholic University is in its third year of using specific mail and e-mail campaigns to attract new prospective students, and has started a mail campaign to selected parents, said Victor Nakas, associate vice president for public affairs. George Washington University has built regional admissions offices in Los Angeles , Atlanta , Chicago , Boston and northern New Jersey , and school officials are spending more time recruiting overseas, said Kathryn M. Napper, executive dean for undergraduate admissions.
American University officials are devising strategies to increase the school's exposure in population growth areas including Arizona , spokeswoman Maralee Csellar said.
Meanwhile, governors in five Northeastern states are advancing plans to target scholarships to keep in-state students at home, and some state legislatures are spending more -- or proposing an increase in funds -- for public institutions of higher education so they can stay attractive.
"This is all going to be huge for schools in a planning and financial sense," said Hansen, the Bates president. "But we also have to look upon it as an opportunity."
Just a Reminder!
When you have new Extension staff that will be working in some capacity with 4-H, please let Nancy in the State 4-H Office know. They will be added to mailing lists, added to the 4-H Talk list serve, sent a 4-H Welcome Packet, and be assigned a state 4-H staff person as a point of contact, as appropriate. 4-H News is sent via the 4-H Talk list serve each week. Archived copies of previous weeks “Tuesday 4-H News” are available on the 4-H web site: http://4h.wsu.edu/. Please send submissions by Friday of each week to Tiffany Boswell, State 4-H Office, tiffany_boswell@wsu.edu. Detailed event information and registrations forms can be found on the 4-H web site.