Agriculture, food, and natural resource (AFNR) systems need leaders to catalyze positive change. Thus, Extension professionals have consistently developed innovative and impactful leadership programming. In the current study, the alumni of one such program in Michigan were surveyed to evaluate the sustained impact of the program. Program alumni…

The Choose Health Action Teens (CHAT) program of Cornell Cooperative Extension engages teens to teach a nutrition curriculum to younger youth, with the goal of enhancing the leadership skills and health behaviors of the teen teachers. Due to COVID-19, an in-person CHAT program in New York City was converted to virtual and implemented online during…

The Family Leadership Training Institute (FLTI) is a program that can respond to data documenting the health of the nation. Participants engage in individual civic projects that align with social determinants of health and seek to ameliorate health inequities. They also discover and/or increase their civic engagement skills to more effectively…

This article provides an overview of the development and components of LEAD95, University of Tennessee (UT) Extension's comprehensive leadership program for county-level leaders. The program was designed in accordance with results from a Delphi study, which identified critical skills and resources new county directors need to be successful. The…

The 4-H Volunteer Continuing Education Academy was developed to provide 4-H club leaders a continuing education opportunity, to assist them in developing and enhancing the skills and knowledge necessary for their volunteer role, and to provide a means for 4-H livestock and horse club leaders to recertify. All participants reported satisfaction…

The judging of a market animal at a fair is the highlight of a youth-owned livestock project. Livestock judges are hired to evaluate youth projects at fairs. They are critical ambassadors for agriculture and influence countless youths and adults. Judges must be knowledgeable about current animal evaluation methods that support youth development.…

Rescuing large animals from emergency situations can be fraught with dangers not only to the animals but also to the rescuers. People involved at the scene of such an emergency are most likely to include first responders, horse owners, and veterinarians. These groups need to be aware of how they can best work together to effect a safe and…

How Extension fosters social change and innovation can be improved through the use of theory-based educational models. Educational models can serve as foundations for the conceptual designs of educational interventions. I describe, using examples from my own work, one such model: the awareness, solidarity, and action model. This three-part model…

The high number of U.S. youth exhibiting at-risk behavior points to a lack of life skills development. We determined the effects of participating in one state's 4-H sheep skillathon on youths' life skills development and the youths' reasons for participating. The target population was 2014 Tennessee 4-H Sheep Skillathon participants (N = 153), and…

The purpose of the project was to evaluate the use of an interactive workshop designed to teach novel practical welfare techniques to beef cattle caretakers and decision makers. Following training, respondents reported being more likely to use or recommend use of local anesthesia for dehorning and castration and were more inclined to use meloxicam…

E-Basics is an online training in program evaluation concepts and skills designed for youth development professionals, especially those working in nonformal science education. Ten hours of online training in seven modules is designed to prepare participants for mentoring and applied practice, mastery, and/or team leadership in program evaluation.…

One-to-one business coaching over 6 months was provided to nine clients in Hawaii to help them acquire business transition skills. The STARS model was used to determine the individual business situation and to explore suitable leadership strategies to move forward. Systematically, each client developed a business model, business strategies, a…

The Kenosha County Youth in Governance program was created to build leadership skills and civic engagement opportunities for high school-aged students by placing two youth representatives on each of the Kenosha County Board of Supervisors standing committees. In reviewing data from 3 years of youth participants, the program was effective in…

As experience camp directors, we've seen the challenges faced by young camp counselors and inexperienced staff. Evaluations from staff at many camps motivated us to help our people be more effective with their campers. In response we created a comprehensive camp staff training. Lessons showed staff what we wanted them to do and say as they…

This article summarizes the results of an evaluation of the impacts of a community development program to develop leadership skills in its adult volunteers. The evaluation featured 20 questions about leadership skills learned as a result of volunteer experiences. Data analysis strategies beyond a simple means ranking resulted in evidence…