North Dakota 4-H Program

Oversight and Policy Board

May 27, 2003

1.  Remove the request for Social Security Numbers on the 4-H Enrollment forms ACTION BY BOARD: Approved 

2.  Change minimum age of “regular” 4-H member to age 7 beginning with 2004-05 year. Board will review pros-cons of this action during the coming year. (How does this recommendation impact any national guidelines?) ACTION BY BOARD:  Approved  

3.  Change “age as of” on enrollment forms to read “8 years old before September 1^st.” ACTION BY BOARD: Approved 

4.  Propose that the ND State Fleet Vehicle Division provide safer alternatives to the 15 passenger van. This includes Suburbans with a third seat installed and 12 passenger vans if they provide a safer travel situation. ACTION BY BOARD: Approved  

5.  Change official 4-H dress code to “Solid color or white shirt with 4-H emblem prominently displayed on the front.” This will be effective for 2003-04 year. 4-H Horse Committee will be notified about recommendation because of ‘long-sleeved’ shirt rule. ACTION BY BOARD: Approved   

6.  Convene a Livestock/Ethics/Awards and Recognition task force or study group. Purpose would be to study the inter-relationship between awards (including cash awards in the form of premiums at sales) and ribbon placing and to recommend changes in these practices so they are more consistent with the Awards and Recognition Model and Character/Ethics principles that underpin the 4-H program. ACTION BY BOARD: No action taken.   

7.  Abuse of Native Cultures: Communication from National 4-H Council and West Virginia Use of Native American Theme in Camping Report. ACTION BY BOARD: Approved deleting “Moments for Reflecting” publication. Board suggested that staff receive communication about the programmatic implications of the National 4-H Council position statement and the West Virginia Camping Report Recommendations. Mike Hanson inquired whether this may be a Change Agent for Diversity discussion/action item.   

8.  Change the 4-H enrollment forms to remove the wording “not including Cloverbuds” in the number of years in 4-H section of the form. (This may impact years of enrollment pins and how they are earned at the county level). ACTION BY BOARD: Approved   

9.  Review process for youth protection policy regarding 1) youth who turn age 18 during the club year and whether additional screening for this group is necessary, 2) screening of county support staff and 3) screening of campus support staff and 4) a letter of acceptance of the volunteer will be issued to the volunteer previous to enrollment as a leader/volunteer. ACTION BY BOARD: Approved item 4, Brad will consult with Rick Johnson, NDSU legal counsel about items 1 and 3. Board supports item 2, the continued screening of all county support staff.   

10. Change rules about state contests to “youth that win second place at the state contest are eligible to participate in the state contest the following year.” ACTION BY BOARD: Approved   

11. Recommendations from Program Committees. ACTION BY BOARD: Accept recommendations made by committees and proceed with implementation (see notes from each committee at end of these minutes). 

12. Move location of the State Dairy Contest for 2003 to New Salem in August. ACTION BY BOARD: Approved   

13. Brad shared information about the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Some states are reviewing the Act and any implications is has on the 4-H youth program including the collecting of health information/statements, camping and overnight trips.   

14. Brad mentioned that the organizational structure and operating guidelines still need to be developed for this board.  

Other items:

Need another adult volunteer representative to the board (preferably from the west)

There was discussion about the next meeting and possibility of holding it as a face to face meeting during October Extension conference.

Club  Committee Makes Recommendations

The Club Management Committee convened recently and made several recommendations. They recommended we discontinue PA700 - Moments for Reflecting. We should not reprint but instead convert the majority of its contents to web-format only. They also recommended we revise PB725 - 4-H Club Development but that it be combined with some of the materials in the VT 1-4 publications. They recommended we combine PA200 - Guide for 4-H Helper - with other club organization resources and not print as a separate publication. PB727 and PB826 - Membership Cards for 4-H Member and Volunteer Leader - should continue to be printed and available.

Regarding materials for club officers, PA801 - Meetings the 4-H Way - should continue to be supported and work towards making that material more interactive. The Treasurer's Book needs to be revised and the revision should be in a format similar to a check register and checking accounting balancing process. There should also be an area to record savings account records.

Other discussion included the current use of the 4-H Program Book/goal setting/project planning materials. The group also identified a need for additional resource materials for Speaking and Demonstrating, Project Expo and Fashion Review and Parliamentary Procedure. Club Management committee consists of Brad Cogdill, Maxine Nordick, Nancy Bollingberg, Kristene Langer, Lavina Domagala, Valerie Johnson.

Food Committee Makes Recommendations 

For the next 4-H club year combine Let's Put it in the Jar & Let's Put it in the Freezer and call it Food Preservation. For Making Yeast Breads, Be a Better Baker, and Outdoor Eating they identified changes that need to be made and are working towards having them completed for the 2004-2005 club year. Food committee consists of Carrie Stark, Julie Garden-Robinson, Jane Edwards, Deb Hagen, Heather Hagen, Gail Slinde, Marcia Hellandsaas, Macine Lukach.

Clothing Curriculum Committee

The clothing curriculum committee will be meeting throughout the upcoming year to revise and/or replace many of the existing clothing curriculum pieces. For the 2003-2004 4-H year, the Macramé and Extras for Your Room pieces will be updated and made into web-based curriculum. There has been a request from 4-H Leaders to make much of the curriculum web-based, with links to educational sewing web sites for 4-H youth. We will be moving towards this mode of delivery. If any of you have web sites or new clothing resources you have been using please contact Rachelle Vettern. The committee has recommended the use of the Let's Sew! Beginners Sewing Guide by Nancy Zieman. Each county will receive a copy of this in the fall. We recommend this as a basic sewing guide for your beginning 4-H members in the clothing project. Committee consists of: Sue Wold, Cindy Swenson, Gayle Gette, Peggy Anderson, Merry Green and Rachelle Vettern.