Support Increased Economic Opportunities and Improved Quality of Life
in Rural America
Arizona 4-H Teen Road Trip
Impact Nugget
An annual “road trip” activity sponsored by Arizona 4-H
and modeled after the popular MTV series includes teens aged 13-18 who
go on the road throughout a chosen region of Arizona, with activities
that promote trust-building, exploration, personal responsibility, interpersonal
skills and problem solving; the program is so popular that in 2004,
80 percent of the participants had already taken part in previous trips.
Issue
Retention and recruitment of teen members in 4-H is a problem nationwide.
When asked what would help recruit new teens and keep current members
in 4-H, the Maricopa County 4-H Teen Association suggested a road trip
like the one on MTV. The rationale was that with multiple parents in
the workforce, many families cannot afford the cost or time to take
family vacations. Youth have become accustomed to being able to attend
affordable 4-H events where they have made friends, learned valuable
skills and had fun.
What has been done?
Arizona 4-H Road Trip is an invitational opportunity for teens aged
13-18, sponsored by the Maricopa County 4-H teen program and UA Cooperative
Extension. Begun in 2001, the trip takes place “on the road”
throughout a chosen region of Arizona and surrounding states in July.
Activities promote communal living, trust-building, exploration, personal
responsibility, interactive and interpersonal skill development and
problem solving. Teenagers of various backgrounds gather from five Arizona
counties to engage in the five components of the Road Trip: interactive
geography/history lessons; service learning; work force/career exploration;
cultural/diversity awareness and appreciation; and technology in action.
Participants develop a strong sense of teamwork and community, learn
to adapt to new situations, learn how to live and work with others,
participate in new activities and function as a working youth/adult
partnership team. Conflict resolution, relationship building and trust
skills create the "road trip community", promoting and strengthening
participants’ abilities to thrive in various situations and environments.
Participants photograph sites during the trip and work with a 4-H agent
to download them to the web site and in the form of electronic postcards.
It is possible to follow the trip via the Internet, and interact through
e-mails to ask questions of the group. At least two hours per night
are spent creating a traveling camp so other teens and interested parties
can experience a “virtual” Arizona road trip. See www.arizona.edu/4-H/roadtrip/
In the fourth Road Trip experience, the size of the camp shrank from
34 participants to 17 - at the request of the returning participants.
In their evaluations and as a result of the planning group, the teens
stated “the large group undermined the success of the camp in
our opinion. It became so large, we no longer had the commitment of
every participant to make camp run smoothly and everyone didn’t
have to accept personal responsibility for camp stuff getting done.”
The intensive experience created by road travel of over 1000 miles is
one that is determined by the participants buy-in and commitment, so
the group was limited in size once again.
Impact
The program is so popular that 80 percent of the 2004 participants were
returning from previous Road Trips to take part in Road Trip IV. Comments
from participants regarding what they learned about communal living
and working with others, making new friends, trusting others, accepting
responsibilities, trying new things, problem-solving, and leadership
skills:
"It's fun and tough at the same time trying to get along at first,
but then it's like you become a family and just instinctively help each
other out." –Road Trip III participant
"When living with 35 people, independence doesn't work. Everyone
has to work together and make an effort. Thinking about others before
yourself is the key." –Road Trip III participant
"Ground rules are necessary. The more that is expected of each
other, the greater the response toward a civilized community you will
have." –Road Trip III participant
"It's 4-H - it's all about making friends. And on the road trip,
even though some people didn't like each other in the beginning, they
finally realized, ‘Hey, I'm stuck with them for the rest of the
trip!" And eventually. everyone was best friends." ? Road
Trip II participant.
Funding
University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
Private registrations
Arizona 4-H Youth Foundation
Contact
Bryan Chadd, associate 4-H youth development agent
University of Arizona
Maricopa County Cooperative Extension
4341 E Broadway
Phoenix, AZ 85040
(602) 470-8086 ext. 350
(602) 470-8092 fax
Email: bchadd@ag.arizona.edu
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