An Examination of Life Skill Development by Louisiana 4-H Club Officers

Abstract

During a recent legislative impact audit of the Louisiana 4-H program, it was noted that there was very little data to document the impact 4-H programming has on the state’s youth. Because of the nature of 4- H, informal or authentic assessments have been the cornerstones of evaluation, but innovative strategies were needed to strengthen the program’s evaluation efforts. One area of concern was the life skill development of youth participants. Therefore, this study focused on the life skill development of 4-H Club/Group officers. The results show that 4-H Club/Groups Officers' life skills improved as a result of the training. This improvement was noted in most of the officers’ life skills examined in the study. Previous service as a 4-H officer resulted in increased life skills for presidents, vice– presidents, and secretaries, but no change for other officers. Years of officer training had low to moderate positive relationships with most officers’ life skills levels. Years of holding other 4-H offices had low or moderate positive relationships with most of the presidents’ and vice–presidents’ life skills levels but negligible relationships existed for the other officers.