June 2005
Volume 43 Number 3

Research in Brief

Life Skills Development in Youth: Impact Research in Action

Christy Fitzpatrick
4-H Youth Development Extension Professional
Aroostook County Extension Office
Houlton, Maine
cfitz@umext.maine.edu

Karen Hatch Gagne
4-H Youth Development Extension Educator
Kennebec County Extension Office
Augusta, Maine
karenhg@umext.maine.edu

Ron Jones
4-H Youth Development Extension Specialist
Orono, Maine
rjones@umext.maine.edu

Jennifer Lobley
4-H Youth Development Extension Educator
Washington and Hancock County Offices
Whitneyville, Maine
jlobley@umext.maine.edu

Lisa Phelps
4-H Youth and Family Development Extension Educator
Cumberland County Extension Office|
Portland, Maine
lphelps@umext.maine.edu

University of Maine

Introduction

A key element for many youth development programs, including 4-H, focuses on the development of practical life skills (Perkins & Borden, 2003). Since the introduction of the 4‑H Life Skills Wheel (Hendricks, 1998), 4-H practitioners have used the model as a framework to plan, implement, and evaluate 4-H Youth Development programs.

Though use of the model has been extensive, research evaluating the development of life skills for youth involved in 4-H Youth Development programs has not. Because 4-H is a publicly funded program, it is important to demonstrate the difference 4-H makes in the lives of youth and adult volunteers. There is no shortage of anecdotal stories from parents, volunteers, and youth about how 4-H has influenced their lives.

While sharing these stories with stakeholders is important, 4-H Youth Development staff must also be more intentional and systematic in collecting and reporting program impacts. Astroth (2003) presents a convincing argument about the need to increase the scholarly status of 4-H. Though there has been some effort to evaluate the development of life skills in 4-H youth program or event participants (Seevers & Dormody, 1995; Dormody, Seevers, & Clason, 1993; Hein & Cantrell, 1986; Boyd, Herring, & Briers, 1992), more documented impact is needed.

Although the 4-H Life Skills Wheel identifies and defines 35 life skills, our research project in Maine used selected questions from a study in New York to identify the impact of 4-H Club membership (Rodriguez, Hirschl, Mead, & Goggin, 1999) on recent 4-H Club alumni. Questions from that survey, as well as other open-ended questions, were used to capture the impact of life skills development through participation in Maine 4-H Youth Development programs. The combination of qualitative and quantitative data collected from the survey provided insights into the development of life skills learned by 4-H alumni.

Purpose

The purpose of our study was to measure the long-term impact of Maine 4-H Youth Development programs by surveying recent 4-H alumni to determine if they had learned specific life skills. The following research questions guided our study:

• Does involvement in 4-H Youth Development programs help youth learn and use specific life skills?

• Which of the life skills do youth and volunteers think are the most and least important to learn?

In an attempt to answer these questions, narrative stories from recent 4-H alumni--those who had graduated from high school between 1999 and 2003--and adult volunteers were collected and analyzed.

Methodology

The qualitative study incorporated telephone interviews with 4-H alumni and adult volunteers for data collection. Data collection occurred in two phases, and the interview questions were drawn from a study of 4-H Clubs in New York (Rodriguez, Hirschl, Mead, & Goggin, 1999). Two questions from each of the four areas (Head, Heart, Hands, and Health) of the 4-H Life Skills Wheel were arbitrarily selected. Participants were asked both multiple-choice and open-ended questions.

A criterion sampling strategy was used to gather information-rich cases. Criterion sampling requires all participants in the study to meet certain criteria and to have experienced the phenomena being studied (Creswell, 1998; Patton, 1990). Eighty percent of the 4-H alumni (n=48) interviewed had been involved with 4-H for more than 7 years, and 97 percent (n=58) lived on a farm, in the country, or in a small town.

Thirty percent of the adult volunteers (n=13) had been involved with the 4-H program for more than 10 years, and 52 percent (n= 22) of the adult volunteers had been involved for 1 to 6 years. Seventy-five percent (n=32) of the adult volunteers live on a farm, in the country, or in a small town.

Phase One: 4-H Alumni

• All county Extension offices in Maine provided the names of 4-H alumni that had graduated from high school over the previous 5 years (1999-2003).

• A total of 63 potential survey participants were contacted. This number was small because of address and name changes and lack of an adequate tracking system. Only three declined to participate in the study. A graduate assistant conducted telephone interviews with eight males and 52 females. All of the participants were asked the same questions. Multiple-choice questions were asked first, followed by open-ended questions. This research design may have influenced the answers to the open-ended questions.

• Narrative data from the telephone interviews were transcribed.

• Data were analyzed using QSR NVivo version 2.0.161 qualitative research software to identify common themes. NVivo software organizes and stores qualitative data, searches for patterns, and assists researchers with other tasks (Bazeley & Richards, 2000).

Phase Two: Adult Volunteers

• Forty-three adult volunteers were identified in six of Maine's 16 counties. The six counties were chosen based on the county staff member's willingness to participate in the study. Volunteers were randomly selected in some counties and not in others.

• Interview questions were selected from a corresponding set of questions asked of the 4‑H alumni in this study. The questions were modified to relate to their roles as 4-H volunteers. All participants were asked the same questions.

• County staff conducted interviews with participants by phone and face to face. County staff members were given minimal instructions and training regarding interview techniques.

• Narrative data were transcribed and analyzed using QSR NVivo version 2.0.161 qualitative research software to identify common themes.

• A cross-case analysis was completed to analyze the common themes from the interviews with adult volunteers and 4-H alumni.

Results

Table 1 reflects the percentage of youth and adults who responded positively (yes) to the question, "Did  4-H help you learn this life skill?" Sixty to 90% of the youth identified the following skills: accepting people who are different, community service, making healthy choices, and learning job skills. Seventy-five to 95% of the adults surveyed indicated youth learned six life skills: community service, making decisions, keeping records, communicating, making healthy choices, and learning job skills.

Table 2 lists the common themes that emerged from the narrative responses from 4-H alumni and adult volunteers to the following open-ended questions:

• "What life skills did you gain in your involvement in 4-H?" (youth)

• "What life skills do you think 4-H members gained from being 4‑H Club members?" (adult)

The common themes were self-esteem, teamwork, responsibility, planning/organizing, and cooperation.

Table 3 summarizes the responses to the question, "What are your future plans?" More than 80% of the youth indicated an aspiration of furthering their education after high school.

Table 4 summarizes the responses youth gave regarding the question, "Compared to others your age, how well did you do in school?" Compared to others their age, 56% of 4-H alumni rated themselves above or much above average.

Limitations

One of the major limitations in this study was the inability to contact 4-H alumni. Current contact information was not available for all potential study participants. In Maine, there is not a system for tracking 4-H alumni once they exit the program. Each county office provided a list of recent graduates with their last known contact information. However, researchers found some families had moved, 4-H graduates had gone on to college, and 911 address changes in some areas of the state made it difficult to find people. This limited the potential sample population to 63.

County staff members interviewed volunteers, thus, our data collection techniques varied. Although the same set of questions was used with each individual, volunteers were randomly selected in some counties and not in others. Some were interviewed by phone, while others were interviewed face to face.

In the study, participants were first asked multiple-choice questions. By using this method, responses may have been limited. It may have been more telling to have asked open-ended questions first.

Implications

Measuring Impact

One of the questions that arises time and time again is, "Can the impacts of 4-H really be measured?" The answer is yes. The life skills learned can be tracked through the use of project records, fair exhibits, 4-H stories, testimonials, and interviews with 4-H alumni. What's frustrating is that Extension staff members do not always see an immediate impact with many program areas. The long-term impact often cannot be determined until the youth reach adulthood and can reflect back on how their 4-H experience has helped them.

Recommendations to capture these important impacts include development of an instrument for tracking  4-H alumni. Such an instrument could also provide support in volunteer recruitment and funding to state  4-H foundations. In a time when funding is continuously being trimmed, Extension staff must improve their ability to document and report the positive impact of life skills development.

Does Time Matter?

Results from this research project imply that life skills were learned by being involved with a specific 4-H project over time. Eighty percent of the youth participants were active in 4-H for seven or more years. Sixty-two percent of those surveyed were active in animal science projects, which are known to be time intensive. A question that deserves further exploration might be whether there is a minimal amount of time that youth need to be exposed to an educational program before it has an impact. And, if so, what is the minimum amount of time?

Aspirations

One of the most interesting results from the research indicated that over 50% of the students rated themselves as above average or way above average when it comes to academics in school. Eighty-two percent of the youth aspire to go on to college after high school, with 25% indicating they would like to further their education after college. The 5-year average for Maine High School graduates furthering their education after high school is only 67%.

Opportunity is knocking at Extension's door. Are there ways in which Extension staff can partner with other departments and colleges on student recruitment? Do 4-H members across the nation attend land-grant universities as a result of their early experience with a research-based youth development program?

Difference of Opinion

One final implication revolved around the dramatic differences that were noted between youth and adult responses to the questions about what life skills were learned as a result of 4-H programming (Table 1). Skill development in community service, healthy lifestyle choices, and work-force preparation were rated similarly in percentage by both 4-H alumni and adult volunteers. However, significant differences were noted in the following areas: accepting people who are different, keeping records, communication skills, and making decisions.

Why is there such a perceived difference in the areas noted above? In the case of accepting people with differences, 92% of 4-H alumni stated they had learned this skill as a result of 4-H involvement. Only 23% of the adult volunteers felt this was a skill that club members learned.

Further research is needed to confirm these results. If these perceived differences are in fact real, this may have profound implications for areas such as program design, volunteer training, and volunteer support.

Conclusion

The results of our study lead us to believe with some confidence that involvement in 4-H Youth Development Club programs does indeed help youth learn and use specific life skills. Although both recent 4-H Club program graduates and adult volunteers verified this hypothesis, their opinions regarding which skills were deemed most important differed greatly. The findings show clearly that both youth and adults involved in 4-H display a high degree of satisfaction with the program. Even more important, the data gathered suggest there are plenty of opportunities to further capture the impacts of the 4-H program on youth development.

References

Astroth, K. (2003). Doorway, doormat, or doghouse? The challenges facing 4-H Youth Development scholarship in land-grant universities. Journal of Extension [On-line], 41 (6). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2003december/comm1.shtml

Bazeley P., & Richards, L. (2000). The NVivo qualitative project book. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Boyd, B. L., Herring, D. R., & Briers, G. E. (1992). Developing life skills in youth. Journal of Extension [On-line], 30(4). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/1992winter/a4.html

Creswell, J. W. (1998). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five traditions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Dormody, T. J., Seevers, B. S. & Clason, D.L. (1993). The youth leadership life skills development scale: An evaluation and research tool for youth organizations. Research Report 672. New Mexico State University Agriculture Experiment Station.

Heinsohn, A. L., & Cantrell, M. J. (1986). Pennsylvania 4-H impact study: An evaluation of teens' life skill development. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University.

Hendricks, P. (1998). Targeting life skills model. Available at: http://www.extension.iastate.edu/4H/lifeskills/homepage.html

Miller, R. A. (1976). Leader/agents guide: Leadership life skills. Stillwater, OK: Oklahoma State University.

Patton, M. Q. (1990). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (2nd ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.

Perkins, D. F., & Borden, L. M. (2003). Key elements of community youth development. In F. A. Villarruiel et. al., Community youth development. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

QSR International. (1999-2002). QSR NVivo (version 2.0.161) [Computer software]. Melbourne, Australia: QSR International Pty Ltd.

Rodriguez, E., Hirschl T. A., Mead, J. P., & Goggin, S. E. (1999). Understanding the difference 4-H clubs make in the lives of New York youth: How 4‑H contributes to positive youth development. Retrieved December 10, 2002, from http://www.cce.cornell.edu/4h/Documents/final_report.rtf

Seevers, B. S., & Dormody, T. J. (1995). Leadership life skills development: perceptions of senior 4-H youth. Journal of Extension [On-line], 33(4). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/1995august/rb1.html

Leadership, Teaching, Self Efficacy, and Networking: Untapped Benefits of Membership in Extension Volunteer Networks

Leone Ohnoutka
Extension Educator
Extension Assistant Professor
leone.ohnoutka@mail.wvu.edu

Linda Waybright
Extension Educator
Extension Associate Professor
ljwaybright@mail.wvu.edu

Allison Nichols
Extension Specialist
Extension Clinical Assistant Professor
ahnichols@mail.wvu.edu

Patrick Nestor
Extension Specialist
Extension Associate Professor
plnester@mail.wvu.edu

West Virginia University

Introduction

For nearly 90 years, a network of individuals in communities across West Virginia has strived to strengthen families through education, leadership, and volunteerism. In West Virginia, these groups were first called Farm Women's Clubs, but later changed their name to Home Demonstration Clubs, then to Extension Homemakers, and then again in1998 to Community Educational Outreach Service (CEOS). Whatever their name, they have been a major source of service through volunteerism for Extension programs in West Virginia. The study described here identified benefits of membership in West Virginia's CEOS groups. The results of the study should give insights to leaders of similar Extension volunteer or service networks on how to develop programs that enhance outcomes for participants.

History of CEOS in West Virginia

In 1914, groups of rural women in West Virginia organized the first Farm Women's Club. At the same time, the West Virginia Extension Service, through the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, received a charge to provide community groups with practical information on agriculture, home economics, and related subjects (Eagan, 2002). At that time, an alliance between the Farm Women's Club and Cooperative Extension was made. In 1998, this group became the West Virginia Community Educational Outreach Service, or CEOS (Eagan, 2002). CEOS is the primary service network associated with WVU Extension.

The Benefits of Volunteers Groups to Extension

The University of Wisconsin documented the scope and value of volunteers for state and local Cooperative Extension programs in a national study in 1984. The study, "Implications of Volunteerism for Extension," reported that the numbers of persons volunteering for Extension programs nationwide was more than 2.9 million. The value of the volunteers' time (based on $8 an hour) was estimated at $4.5 billion dollars, five times greater than the total Extension budget at the time the study was conducted (University of Wisconsin, 1984).

The Benefits of Service Organizations to Participants

There are many reasons why people join service organizations. CEOS promotional materials suggest that members gain up-to-date educational information on emerging issues such as public policy, parenting, health, nutrition and diet, and financial planning. Other benefits include leadership development, friendship, and social growth. Developing leadership skills and competencies in members of volunteer organizations is important to Extension because there is a positive relationship between participation in community groups and leadership in the community as well as political participation (Bolton, 1991).

Research Questions

The study was designed to answer the following questions

1. Do West Virginia CEOS members attribute improvements in certain skills to their participation in the CEOS group?

2. Do West Virginia CEOS members attribute higher confidence in performing certain skills to their participation in the CEOS group?

3. Do West Virginia CEOS members attribute the development of certain personal traits to their participation in CEOS?

4. Does the length of time a person is a member of a West Virginia CEOS group have an affect on improvement of skills, higher confidence levels, and attainment of certain personal traits?

Methods

In the spring of 2000, a team of Extension educators designed the research protocol.  The survey instrument, a retrospective questionnaire, was piloted with an organization of past Extension Homemaker presidents in Cuming County, Nebraska. A team of Extension county-level educators then mailed the instrument to all CEOS members in 28 West Virginia counties. A total of 3, and there were690 questionnaires were distributed 868 respondents, a 24% return. Non-respondents were not followed up to find out if they were different from respondents.

In column one of the questionnaire, CEOS members were asked to describe their current skills levels on a 4-point Likert scale, from very poor to very good. In column two, they were asked to describe the same skills before participating in CEOS. The skills included planning, leadership, parenting, serving on a committee, teaching CEOS lessons, facilitating CEOS lessons, homemaking, caring for young children, managing personal money, using a credit card, and speaking in a public forum.

CEOS members were then asked to respond to a series of questions that asked them to rate themselves in five personal traits on a retrospective scale. The traits included self-concept, level of independence, control of my personal life, interest in being a life-long learner, and willingness to accept responsibility.

Finally, CEOS members responded to retrospective questions about confidence in performing tasks currently and before membership in the CEOS group. The responses on the scale were not confident, somewhat confident, confident, and very confident. The tasks included planning a CEOS event, making organizational decisions, being a committee chairperson, serving on a committee, facilitating a CEOS lesson, teaching a CEOS lesson, completing homemaking tasks, controlling my own life and surroundings, being a CEOS officer, caring for children, handling money, using credit cards, and speaking in public.

Respondents were also asked a series of demographic questions, including employment status, gender, age, and length of participation in CEOS, ethnic background, marital status, and highest level of school completed. Their responses were used as independent variables in the analysis.

Results

Population

The majority of the respondents were married (67 percent), females (99.4 percent), over the age of 50 (87 percent), with a high school diploma (45%), and White/Non-Hispanic (95%). Almost two-thirds of the respondents were over the age of 60. Approximately one fourth had been in CEOS fewer than 6 years; however, over half had been in CEOS for more than 11 years.

Figure 1.
Age of Participants

Figure 2.
Years in CEOS

Figure 3.
Highest Level of Education

Improvements in Skill and Confidence Levels

To answer the question "Do CEOS members attribute their participation in CEOS to improvements in and higher confidence in performing certain skills as well as the development of personal traits?" paired sample T-tests were performed on all of the retrospective questions. T-tests test the hypothesis that a person's mean scores on the before list will be the same as the mean scores on the after list. All of the paired sample T-test results were significant to the .000 level.

The researchers believe that the reason the means were significantly different on every item may be that respondents couldn't adequately judge their skill and confidence levels before they joined the CEOS group because, in some cases, it was a very long time ago and, out of loyalty to the organization, they wanted the organization to appear successful. Therefore, the analysis was expanded to further discriminate between items. The difference between the means scores on the pre- and posttests were compared with those at .5 or higher selected (Table 1).

The shift from the negative categories to the positive categories was analyzed by collapsing the very poor and poor responses into one category and the good and very good responses into another category. The confidence categories were collapsed in the same way. Table 2 lists the items that had the largest increase in the percentage of those who said that their skills were good or very good before being a member of the CEOS group. Table 3 lists the items that had the largest increase in the percentage of those who said that their confidence in their ability to do tasks was confidence or very confident. All items on these lists are teaching or other leadership type tasks. Skills such as homemaking, caring for young children, managing personal money, and using a credit card do not appear in this list.

Length of Time in CEOS

For the remainder of the analysis, the post or the "after participation" responses were used as dependent variables to answer the question about whether years in CEOS can be attributed to more positive responses to the questions about skill level, confidence in doing tasks, and improvement in personal traits. A linear regression analysis was used, with "years in CEOS" as the independent variable. Table 4 shows the significant competency variables, meaning that as number of years in the CEOS increases, the answers to the following questions become more positive.

The variable "years in CEOS" was then coded into two categories: fewer than 6 years and 6 years or more. The results of Pearson Chi Square tests for the following variables showed there were significantly more people in the "6 years and more" category that answered very good on the skills questions and very confident on the task questions than expected (Table 5).

Benefits of CEOS Membership

Respondents were asked to respond to the following question, "Are there any ways in which you have benefited from the CEOS program? Please tell us about them." Using qualitative methodology, the responses were examined and coded. Table 6 shows the categories that emerged.

Discussion

Following is a discussion of respondents' answers to the research questions.

First, do CEOS members attribute improvements in certain skills to their participation in the CEOS group? Respondents indicated that they credit their CEOS experience to increased skill level in teaching and facilitating CEOS lessons, public speaking skills, leadership skills, committee membership skills, and planning skills. They do not give as much credit to their CEOS experience for the development of skills in managing personal money, using a credit card, parenting, homemaking, and caring for young children.

Second, do CEOS members attribute higher confidence in performing certain skills to their participation in the CEOS group? Respondents indicated that because of their experience in CEOS they were more confident in public speaking, planning a CEOS event, being a CEOS officer, teaching and facilitating a CEOS lesson, being a committee chair, and making organizational decisions.

Third, do CEOS members attribute the development of certain personal traits to their participation in CEOS? Respondents seemed to attribute the following personal traits to their participation in CEOS: improved self-concept and interest in being a life-long learner.

Fourth, does the length of time a person is a member of CEOS have an affect on improvement of skills, higher confidence levels, and attainment of certain personal traits? We have shown through the use of regression and Chi-Square analysis that years of participation in CEOS seemed to have an effect on whether they attribute skills, confidence level, and attributes to their membership. Those who had been members of CEOS groups for longer periods of time were more likely to say that they have gained skills in teaching and facilitating CEOS lessons, leadership, and public speaking and that they gained confidence in being a CEOS officer, planning a CEOS event, making organizational decisions, and facilitating and teaching CEOS lessons, and participating as a committee member.

We placed the areas of greatest gain or benefit into four categories; leadership (committee membership, holding an office, public speaking), teaching (CEOS lesson teaching and facilitating, planning CEOS events), personal efficacy (self-confidence, life-long learning), and networking.

Answers to an open-ended question about other benefits of membership in CEOS groups confirmed the quantitative analysis, except on one important point. The quantitative questions did not ask respondents to rate the importance of networking and making new friendships. When the qualitative materials were coded, this was found to be an oversight. Networking and making new friendships appears to be a very important benefit of the CEOS experience.

Implications for Extension

The Cooperative Extension Service has long been aware of the value of developing the home and family skills of members of service groups, particularly women. However, the value of these service groups for preparing members for leadership positions may have been overlooked. The results of this study show that even older members, those who had been involved in a West Virginia CEOS group for many years, attributed their skill and knowledge about public speaking, committee participation, and teaching to membership in CEOS more frequently than they did their skill and knowledge about homemaking and parenting.

The results of this study challenge Extension to consider developing volunteer groups throughout the country like CEOS to become "hothouses" for developing leadership skills in volunteers, particularly young women. This would mean a change of image and programming. But it would not require a change in mission: "to strengthen families through education, leadership, and volunteerism."

References

Bolton, E. B. (1991). Developing local leaders: Results of a structured learning experience. Journal of the Community Development Society, 22(1), 119-143.

Bolton, E. B. (2000). The Cooperative Extension volunteer teacher: Volunteers and Extension.

Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences; Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Tallahassee, FL.

Eagan, S. (2002). Exploring the roots of your organization (CEOS). West Virginia University Extension Service, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Finley, C. (1987). Extension volunteer partnerships: Volunteers who teach. University of Wisconsin: The Department of Continuing and Vocational Education. Madison, Wisconsin.

University of Arkansas. (2002). History of Arkansas Extension Homemakers. University of Arkansas, Little Rock, Arkansas.

University of Wisconsin. (1984). Implications of volunteers in Extension project staff: Volunteers and Extension agents: Partners in action. University of Wisconsin: The Department of Continuing and Vocational Education, Madison, Wisconsin.

Experiences of 4-H Japanese Exchange Program on Participants: An Evaluative Study

Rama B. Radhakrishna
Associate Professor
brr100@psu.edu

Patreese D. Ingram
Associate Professor
pdi1@psu.edu

Department of Agricultural and Extension Education
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, Pennsylvania

Introduction

The National 4-H Japanese Exchange Program has existed since 1972 and currently involves 35 states. Since 1972, more than 30,000 families in the United States have hosted Japanese teenagers, and more than 6,000 4-hers have made visits to Japan through this unique program. The program has grown and expanded over the years to include a variety of opportunities. The 4-H Japanese Exchange program is operated by the Cooperative Extension Service nationally, and through the 4-H Youth Development Departments of Cooperative Extension of the land-grant university in each state. The overall mission of the 4-H International Exchange Programs is to provide age-appropriate experiential, educational, cultural, and development opportunities for youth.

The National 4-H International Programs Committee (IPC) formulates overall guidelines to promote uniformity and continuity in the management of the exchanges in the United States. The IPC works with three Japanese organizations on the high school program--Labo, Lex, and Uterk. These Japanese organizations promote the program in Japan and select and prepare delegates according to guidelines mutually agreed upon by 4-H and the Japanese Organizations. This program is in compliance with the rules and regulations of the Council for Standards on International Education (CSIET).

A number of studies have documented the impact of international exchange programs on participants, host families, and the host institutions (Boyd, et al., 2001; Tritz & Martin, 1997; Opper, Teichler, & Carlson, 1990; Hansel & Grove, 1986). Tritz and Martin (1997) suggested that exposure to a country, its people and culture, will have an impact on anyone who has studied abroad. As a result of the exposure, perceptions are changed, thoughts challenged, and, most important, a worldly perspective is garnered. Similarly, Opper, Teichler and Carlson (1990) indicated that participation or involvement in international activities provides cultural awareness, improves communication abilities, and increases foreign language skills, and ultimately will have an amazing effect on students' overall development. Boyd et al. (2001) found that the International 4-H Youth Exchange (IYFE) program made positive impacts on participants. For example, IYFE participants indicated that they were more sensitive to other cultures, more aware of global events, and more involved in community activities than prior to their participation.

Other researchers have examined the influence of Study Abroad Programs (SAPs) on college students (Ayers, 1996; Hutchins, 1996; Zhai & Scheer, 2002). Findings from these studies suggest that SAPs have provided a variety of opportunities for students to increase their awareness and appreciation of cultural diversity, personal growth, and develop skills and attitudes that will allow them to function successfully in an interdependent world. In addition, exchange programs have helped participants to acquire foreign language skills, and an understanding of different people and cultures.

Hansel and Grove (1986) found that adolescents traveling abroad showed greater improvement than those who did not have the opportunity to travel abroad in 10 of the 17 personal characteristics (adaptability, appreciation of own family, awareness and appreciation of host country and culture, awareness of opportunities, communication with others, critical thinking, exchange of ideas, foreign language appreciation and ability, high standards for personal relationships, independence-responsibility for self, international awareness, non-materialism, open mindedness, personal growth and maturity, self-confidence, and understanding other cultures). Students who traveled abroad seem to have learned more about other cultures and have a greater appreciation of their own culture. In addition, they found that travel abroad students gained skills that enabled them to deal more effectively with demands of later life experiences and have increase concern for spiritual values rather than material things. Hansel and Grove also found that students who went abroad only for a summer tended to show greater adaptability than those who went abroad for a whole year (p. 86). Overall, they concluded that intercultural homestay has a positive effect on adolescents.

Arnold (2003) reported that host youth had a number of experiences that contributed to their personal growth. Prominent among these were making new friends, learning to communicate with others from a different culture, being a good representative of the United States, site seeing with their international student, and having someone from a different culture live with them. Host youth also reported worries and difficulties in hosting exchange students which included the exchange student getting homesick, making mistakes, communication, language, not getting along with the student, and not making a good impression.

The study described here attempted to assess the impact of the 4-H Japanese High School Exchange Program on its participants.

Purpose and Objectives

The overall purpose of this study was to assess the impact of the 4-H Japanese High School Exchange Program on Japanese participants. Specific objectives were to:

1. Describe the demographic profile of exchange program participants;
   
   
2. Assess the Japanese exchange program in terms of:
   • Arrival and departure orientation programs,
   • 4-H program expectations
   • Host family expectations,
   • Program coordination, and
   • School and community experience.

Methodology

The Japanese students were all high school students (N=52) who ranged in age from 16 to 19 years. Students spent a full school year (2002-2003) attending high school and living with host families in 22 different states. Each student was selected for participation in this program by one of the three Japanese youth-serving organizations: Labo, Lex, and Utrek.

Based on a review of literature and experiences of authors, a 50-item questionnaire was developed and validated by the International Program Committee (IPC), consisting of faculty; specialists from youth development, diversity, and international programs; and two Japanese youth exchange professionals. Forced-choice and Likert-type scale items asked youth to rate their experiences related to and expectations of the host family, program coordination, school and community experience, and the value of the arrival and departure orientation programs and demographic characteristics. A post-hoc reliability analysis on the Likert-scale items revealed an acceptable reliability (Cronbach's alpha=0.83). The questionnaire was administered by one of the IPC members during a departure orientation meeting. A Japanese interpreter was present to clarify any items that were unclear to students. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

Results

Demographic Profile

Most exchange students (96%) were in the age group of 16-18 years. The state of Utah hosted more than seven students, followed by the states of Michigan and Ohio (5 students each). Forty-five percent of the students represented Lex organization in Japan, followed by Labo (41%), and Utrek (14%).

Arrival and Departure Orientation

Prior to coming to the United States, 92% of the students indicated that they were interviewed by their home country youth organizations, and 98% attended orientation before leaving the home country. Similarly, 98% received orientation about high school in the U.S., and 88% indicated that the orientation was very useful. However, only one-half of the students reported they were well prepared for the program.

4-H Exchange Program Expectation

A substantial majority of exchange students indicated that the 4-H exchange program met their expectations relative to host family (78.4%), school (72.5%), and local coordinator (60.8%). Results are shown in Table 1. However, exchange students were somewhat skeptical about their expectations relative to social and community activities (54.9%) and program support (49.0%).

Host Family Expectations

Host families welcome the Japanese youth into their homes "as a family member," encouraging youth to participate in the daily activities and lives of the host family and community.

Students reported very positive experiences with the host families. Only five students (10.0%) reported that they had to change host families, while 90% stayed with the same host family throughout the program. On a three-point scale (1=never to 3=always), students indicated that they "always" had good relationships with host families (M=2.69) and that they received support from host families in adjusting to the new environment (M=2.72) and communicating with host families (M=2.74). Ninety-four percent of the students were aware that host families did not receive any monetary benefit to host them.

Program Coordinators

The Program Coordinator manages the exchange program at the state level. Responsibilities include matching host families to Japanese youth; arranging for enrollment in the area public school system; providing arrival and debriefing orientations for Japanese youth and host families; visiting the Japanese youth, host family, and schools; negotiating concerns between the youth and United States participants; and communicating any problems to the appropriate persons at the national level.

Students indicated that program coordinators were very helpful to the exchange students. Program coordinators maintained regular contacts with exchange students through a variety of channels. Examples include frequent contacts via telephone (67%), home visits (49%), group travel 37%), social settings (29%), and schools (27%). Exchange students were very positive regarding help and assistance provided by the program coordinators. As shown in Table 3, 67% of exchange students indicated that coordinators were there for them when they needed help, were friendly and approachable (87%), were fair-minded and objective (77%), and were able to see the student's point of view (72.3%).

School and Community Service

Ninety-eight percent of the exchange students indicated that they liked the high school. Classes were difficult for nearly 61% of the students, while 55% of the students needed some extra help. Most students (77%) reported that they enjoyed school and community service and were able to make friends and participate in various community activities and events (92%).

Overall 4-H Exchange Experience

Sixty-seven percent of the students reported that their overall 4-H experience as "excellent," while 29% said "good." The service received from 4-H, friendliness, and professionalism were also rated high by students (35% excellent, 48% good). Seventy-one percent indicated that they would recommend 4-H exchange to others in their home country, while 27% said "maybe." As a result of participating in 4-H Exchange program, exchange students agreed (on a scale, 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree) that they understand 1) intercultural sensitivity (M=4.08) and 2) global perspectives (4.42).

Conclusions and Recommendations

Overall, the 4-H Japanese Exchange program had a positive experience on students. Students gave high ratings for arrival and departure orientations. Students also indicated that the 4-H exchange program met their expectations relative to host family, school, and local coordinator.

Almost all students liked the high school. However, quite a number of students (a little over one-half) indicated that classes were difficult and they needed extra help. Students enjoyed school and community service and were able to make friends and participate in various community activities and events. Perhaps the language coupled with cultural adjustment to the new school environment may have contributed to school difficulty experienced by exchange students. Further research is needed to identify factors or issues that make school activities difficult for students. Program coordinators should visit with school officials and host families to address this issue.

An overwhelming majority of students indicated that they would recommend 4-H exchange program to others in their home country. However, findings should be viewed with caution because visiting exchange students may not like to report negative perceptions about the host families.

During these times when war between and among countries has become an on-going event, exchange programs provide positive opportunities for young people to make friends with those in other parts of the world. Additionally, our increasingly global economy will require that more and more workers of the future have the skills to relate effectively with those from other cultures.

As our world becomes more globally conscious, a greater number of exchange programs may be pursued. There is a paucity of research literature that focuses on organized exchange programs and its impact. A need exists to systematically document outcomes of exchange programs. Further, the results of this study may be useful to other organizations that deal with foreign student exchanges with high school students. The events of September 11 have created an even greater urgency and the need to understand the roles we all have to play for a better, safer, and peaceful world.

The 17 personal characteristics examined by Hansel and Grove should be used as a framework to develop an assessment tool for evaluating the impact of exchange programs. In addition, contemporary research relative to impact of exchange programs should be reviewed to select outcome measures.

Host families are the heart and soul of the exchange program. The impact of exchange programs on host families should be examined and documented. Findings from such studies will be of immense value in preparing host families for the exchange program as well as making programmatic improvements relative to the roles and functions of host families.

A follow-up survey of all 4-H Japanese Exchange program participants will be of immense value in assessing the impact of 4-H Japanese Exchange program on later life experiences and on global awareness and understanding.

References

Arnold, M. E. (2003). 2003 Japanese exchange program evaluation. 4-H Youth Development Program Evaluation Report #03-002. Oregon State University.

Ayers, D. P. (1996). Attitudes of American students: Programming effects (study abroad). Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Kansas State University

Bennett, M. (1986). A developmental approach to training for intercultural sensitivity. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10(2), 179-176.

Boyd, B.L., Giebler, G. Hince, M., Liu, Y., Mehta, N., Rash, R., Rowland, J., Saldana, C., & Yanta, Y. (2001). Does study abroad make a difference? An impact assessment of the international 4-H youth exchange program. Journal of Extension [On-line]. 39(5), Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2001october/rb8.html

Hansel, B., & Grove, N. (1986). International student exchange program--Are the educational benefits real? NASSP Bulletin, 70, 487, 82-90.

Holman, M. A. (2001). Cooperation and collaboration in U.S. Study Abroad Programming. Open doors on the Web, Council for International Educational Exchange. Available at: http://opendoors.iienetwork.org/

Hutchins, M. M. (1996). International education study tours abroad: Students' professional growth and development in relation to international, global, and international perspectives (study abroad). Unpublished doctoral dissertation, The Ohio State University.

Opper, S., Teichier, U., & Carlson, J. (1990). Impact of study abroad programs on students and graduates. London, U.K.: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Sowa, P. A. (2002). How valuable are student exchange programs. In B. W. Speck & B. H. Carmical (Eds.), Internationalizing higher education: Building vital programs on campuses, (pp. 63-70). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Tritz, J. A., & Martin, R. A. (1997). The collegiate international experience: Criteria for successful experience abroad programs. Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education 4(2), 51-57.

Zhai, L., & Scheer, S. D. (2002). Influence of international study abroad programs on agricultural college students. Journal of International Agricultural and Extension Education 9(3), 23-29.

Horses and Youth (H.A.Y.): A Not-So-Typical Approach to At-Risk Programming

Deborah L. Cole
County 4-H Agent
Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Atlantic County
Mays Landing, New Jersey
dcole@aesop.rutgers.edu

Background

The four major categories of risk behavior in adolescence are identified as drug and alcohol abuse; teen pregnancy and unsafe sexual practices; school under achievement and/or drop out; and delinquency, crime, and violence (Lerner, 1995). The "New Jersey Report Card" education data from 2000 indicates that Atlantic County at-risk communities have a significant rate of high school dropouts and poor attendance--Atlantic City had an 18.9% drop out rate, and Pleasantville had an 11.5% rate compared to the state average of 3%. Though Atlantic County has improved its ranking for juvenile arrests, it still ranks 13th out of 21 counties, and the juvenile commitment rates account for 7.1% of the state average.

Youth problem behaviors and poverty are interrelated; this "comorbidity" is of historic proportions (Lerner, 1995). Child poverty leads to early school drop out, lack of job preparedness, and arrests for crimes, often of a violent nature (Schorr, 1997). In Atlantic County, an estimated 15.4% of children (2000 Kids Count, New Jersey) live below the poverty level, and there has been a 40% increase in juvenile assaults and misdemeanors since 1999.

Introduction

The goal of the H.A.Y. (Horses and Youth program) was to provide prevention strategies for young people by helping them gain competencies, self-confidence, group interaction capabilities, leadership skills, and opportunities to explore non-traditional vocations. Juvenile offenders and at-risk youth, ages 12 ? 18 took part in the four phases that make up H.A.Y.--life skills development, horse care and management, horsemanship, and aftercare.

Exposing at-risk youth to horses and horsemanship may seem naïve until one realizes that the horse industry in New Jersey is valued at over $6.5 billion. Future careers are not the only possible outcomes. By learning responsibility and respect for a 1,000-pound horse, youth will also learn responsibility for their own actions and self-respect. In addition, the horse may provide the initial factor of trust for at-risk youth. The uniqueness and curiosity of working with horses are used to develop competencies in both life and project skills.

The main objectives of H.A.Y. are:

• To gain a better understanding of whether long-term involvement in a non-traditional project for urban youth made a significant impact on developing life skills.

• To improve anger management and conflict resolution skills.

• To increase self-awareness and self-worth.

• To increase knowledge of horses, their care and management, and to develop horsemanship skills.

• To improve problem-solving and leadership skills.

• To improve skills in working with and relating to others.

• To reduce recidivism (offenses of equal or greater extent) by those involved in all four components of H.A.Y.

Materials and Methods

The H.A.Y. participants received 6 weeks of life skills lessons, in addition to 26 weeks of horse care and knowledge lessons, group building activities, and horseback riding. By offering only the life skills component to a comparison group of youth, we attempted to assess whether or not long-term involvement in a non-traditional project for urban youth could make a significant impact on developing life skills above and beyond what could be learned through a life skills curriculum.

Strategies for the development and implementing of H.A.Y. focused on the three general characteristics of effective programs identified by Roth (1997). These characteristics are: 1) the more features of the framework, the more likely to promote positive youth outcomes; 2) caring adult-youth relations are central to program effectiveness; and 3) program sustainability is related to program effectiveness.

Life Skills Development--Component 1

This component provided action-oriented activities that address the areas of understanding self, increasing self-esteem, character development, communication skills, interpersonal relationships, and critical thinking skills. 4-H SPACES (Barker, McEwan, Mather, & Warner, 1991) and Talking with TJ (Halper & Richardson, 1993) curricula lessons and Character Counts^SM (Josephson, 1993) materials were implemented or adapted to teach this component.

Horse Knowledge, Care, and Management--Component 2

Basic knowledge of horse breeds and characteristics, horse terminology, and equipment were initially taught. Building on the basics, participants learned proper selection and uses of horses, nutrient requirements, and management skills needed to care for a horse. 4-H Cooperative Curriculum System (4-HCCS Horse Design Team, 1998) project manuals from the 4-H Skills for Life: Animal Science Series for the horse project were used for developing lesson plans and activities.

Horsemanship--Component 3

This phase of the program consisted of activities that include grooming and saddling, equipment selection and care, and riding. Certified riding instructors experienced in teaching riding lessons to youth provided this component of the program.

Aftercare--Component 4

A personal growth plan was developed based on individual Life Skill Accomplishment Summary Reports that reflected personal characteristics, skills and aptitudes, and career considerations. The personal growth plan was used for assessing continued progress in life skills development.

Participants were recruited from Atlantic City and Pleasantville through Vision 2000, the Ministers' Home Detention Program, and the Atlantic City Housing Authority's afterschool programs. A comparison group of youth involved in the Boys and Girls Club Summer Day Camp program took part in the life skills component for 6 weeks.

H.A.Y. began with 36 participants. The group met 2 days a week for the first 6 weeks. Saturdays they met on the farm working directly with the horses. On Thursdays, the group met for the Life Skills. For the final 20 weeks, they met only on the farm.

Thirty youth began the 6-week program consisting only of the Life Skills Component of the project. The group met as part of the Boys and Girls Club Summer Day Camp. The life skills component was equal in duration and utilized the same lesson plans that were used with the H.A.Y. group.

Participants completed a Horses and Youth Life Skills Evaluation Record at the beginning and end of the program. The self-evaluation instrument was adapted from Penn State's Life Skill Evaluation Record based on the targeted objectives of H.A.Y. The Life Skills Evaluation Record asked each participant to rate themselves on six life skills based on the objectives of the program. The Likert scale of measurement was 1=None, 2=A Little, 3=Some, 4=A Lot. They were also asked to select three out of six life skills they would like to improve on or learn how to develop.

At the completion of each program, they were then asked to evaluate themselves again on how they performed the skills. The H.A.Y. group did not complete the Life Skills Evaluation Record until the completion of the 26 weeks, even though the life skills component ended earlier in the program.

The self-evaluations were analyzed using the H.A.Y. Life Skills Accomplishment Records Summary Report Form, which was adapted from Penn State's materials on Targeting Life Skills.

Adult and teen volunteers were recruited to assist with implementation of the activities and to serve as positive role models for the participants identified by collaborating agencies. It was a goal of the project to have the group form a 4-H club, with the volunteers serving as leaders at the completion of H.A.Y.

Results

After the first 4 weeks of H.A.Y., five youth dropped out, and after 11 weeks, eight more dropped the program. A total of 23 youth--seven female, 16 male, grades 4 to 8--completed the 26-week program. Only 21 youth, 12 female, nine male, grades 4 to 8, completed the 6-week comparison program, and results were tabulated only on those 21 individuals. There was a 36% dropout rate for the H.A.Y. group and a 30% dropout rate for the comparison group. These dropout rates are not atypical for youth in this at-risk community. The H.A.Y. participants who dropped out attributed the requirement for general horse care and management as a major factor, which could account for the slighter higher dropout rate for this group.

After 6 months, 21% of the H.A.Y. participants were still actively involved with horses, and 100% participants remained in school.

H.A.Y. Group

Nineteen participants (83%) listed Leadership as one of the three skills for improvement and/or development. Out of the group, 12 participants (52%) listed Anger Management/Conflict Resolution and Self-Awareness as one of the three skills for improvement. Problem Solving was selected by 11 of the participants (48%) as a targeted life skill.

Comparison Group

A total of 18 youth (86%) were most interested in Self-Awareness/Worth development, and 67% were concerned about Anger Management/Conflict Resolution. Problem Solving ranked third overall with 52% of the participants interested in increased development.

Both the H.A.Y. group and Comparison group participants were similar in the selections of Self-Awareness, Anger Management/Conflict Resolution, and Problem Solving as the skills most wanted to improve or learn. The H.A.Y. group differed in that the number-one selected skill was Leadership, which was not a highly rated skill selection for the Comparison group.

Tabulation of the H.A.Y. participants' mean pre and post Life Skills Records rating showed significant increase in anger management, leadership, self-awareness, problem solving, interpersonal skills, and workplace skills (p < .05).

In the comparison group, tabulation of mean pre and post ratings showed a significant increase in the areas of leadership and anger management (p < .05).

A comparison of the average means of skills gained for the two groups showed a significant difference between the H.A.Y. group and Comparison group means for anger management, problem solving, interpersonal skills, and workplace/marketable skills (p < .05).

Demonstrated improvement in anger management and interpersonal skills in one young man who participated in H.A.Y. was noted by volunteer and paid staff. His teacher, the Housing Authority, and Vision 2000 recommended this young man based on his previous trouble in these areas. His grandmother, who is his legal guardian, commented on his ability to concentrate more at home and noted that he no longer seemed to need to have everything go his way. Today, this young man is a registered 4-H horse project member and actively involved in the county's teen group. Recently, he gave a presentation to New Jersey's professional 4-H association.

One Saturday an adult male volunteer asked if he could have a few moments with the participants. He brought out two horses with very obvious different characteristics in color, size, and conformation. He asked the group to describe the horses, which they did. He then asked if they were both horses and deserved the same treatment. The group agreed they did. He then briefly, but very effectively, stated that each of the participants was different, too, and like horses, they all needed to be treated with equal respect. This act by the volunteer was an indication he had taken ownership in the program and also helped with the problem of the participants teasing one another.

Two volunteers and a paid student assistant started a 4-H horse club for the interested participants at the close of the project. The club is still operational, two members participated in their first 4-H Fair in 2002, and one is still actively involved.

Conclusion

In comparing the two groups, the group that participated in the entire 26 week H.A.Y. project did show increases in all life skills areas as indicated through evaluation of pre and post Life Skill Record data. Those in the Comparison group had significant increases in two categories, anger management and self-awareness.

Often, pre and post self-evaluations do result in lowered ratings. This is usually attributed to participants having limited knowledge at the beginning of the program that prevents them from assessing their baseline knowledge accurately (Kohn & Rockwell, 1989). This could be a possible explanation for the decreased level of knowledge noted in three of the six areas for the comparison group. Other possible causes could be the difference in environments and opportunities to travel out of the city or negative attitudes toward the leader or the program.

One possible explanation for the greater improvement of the H.A.Y. group over the Comparison group was that they had more time to use the new skills. At the end of the 26 weeks, they really felt they had improved in these areas of life skill development, having time to actual use the skills and be reinforced for demonstrating use of these skills. In retrospect, having the H.A.Y. group complete post self-evaluations at the end of the 6-week lessons on life skills and at the conclusion of the entire program would have provided additional data on whether the opportunity to continue with activities that required using the skills had an impact on the increased in reported knowledge.

Though interpersonal and workplace skills were not selected as desired skills for improvement by the H.A.Y. participants, they showed significant increased ratings at the conclusion of the program. The weekly farm sessions that stressed teamwork due to sharing of equipment and horses can be considered a relevant factor in this result. In addition, the youth were exposed to numerous careers within the horse industry through the variety of guest presenters.

The combination of non-traditional experiential learning over an extended period with opportunities to put those skills into practical situations may be an effective method for improved learning of essential life skills. The key seems to be including life skills development in project-related experiential activities rather than simply providing lessons specifically focusing on life skills. The ability to relate or incorporate life skills learning in ongoing project work seems to have a marked positive impact on targeted life skills. Further study utilizing different 4-H project areas incorporating life skills training over extended periods could prove beneficial in determining if it was the impact of working with horses for this audience that was the deciding factor or the method of implementation.

References

Barker, J., McEwan, R., Mather, R., & Warner, B. (1991). SPACES: Preparing kids for a high tech and global future. Cooperative Extension Service--Michigan State University.

Halper, A. & Richardson, S. (1993). Talking with TJ: Conflict resolution series. Hallmark Corporate Foundation. Kansas City, MO.

Josephson Institute of Ethics (1993). Character Counts^SM. Josephson Institute of Ethics, Los Angeles, CA.

Kids Count Data Book (2000). Annie E. Casey Foundation. Baltimore, MD.

Lerner, R. M. (1995). America's youth in crisis: Challenges and options for programs and policies. Sage Publications. Thousand Oaks, CA.

New Jersey Report Card. (2000). Available at: http://education.state.nj.us/rc/

Roth, J., Brooks-Gunn, J. Galen, B. Murray, L., Silverman, P. Liu, H., Man, D., & Foster, W. (1997). Promoting healthy adolescence: Youth development frameworks and programs. New York: Teachers College, Columbia University.

Schorr, L. (1997). Common purpose: Strengthening families and neighborhoods to rebuild America. Doubleday. New York, NY.

Task Force on Youth Development and Community Programs. (1992). A matter of time: Risk and opportunity in the nonschool hours. Carnegie Corporation. New York, NY.

4-HCCS Horse Design Team (1998). 4-H Skills for life: Animal science series. 4-H Cooperative Curriculum System. Minnesota.

County Agents and University Tenure and Promotion Systems

Shawn Olsen
County Extension Director
Utah State University
Farmington, Utah
shawno@ext.usu.edu

Introduction

At Utah State University, the Provost's Office and the Faculty Senate have been debating the faculty status of county agents, their eligibility for inclusion in the tenure process, and their use of professorial titles. Discussion of these topics is not new. In the early 1900s, Rasmussen (1989) indicates there was considerable debate about the best way to develop and administer expanded educational programs to reach farmers. Kenyon L. Butterfield, president of Rhode Island State College, speaking in 1904, called for:

A vast enlargement of extension work among farmers. . . . This work will not only be dignified by a standing in the [agricultural] college coordinate with research and the teaching of students, but it will rank as a distinct department with a faculty . . . whose chief business is to teach people who cannot come to college.

Under agreements to implement the 1914 Smith-Lever Act for Extension, agents appointed for Cooperative Extension work were to be employees of the agricultural colleges. Placement of county agents at colleges/universities gave them access to new research and technology to help local clientele. However, this decision also led to many debates over the years regarding the role and structure of Extension within the universities.

Survey and Results

In order to form a broader framework for the discussion about faculty status and tenure of county agents at Utah State University, an email survey was initiated in September of 2002 to gather information on these issues from other land-grant universities. A short questionnaire was sent to the president of the agricultural agent association or its equivalent in each state. The email survey had a response rate of 78%. A telephone contact was made to those who did not respond to the email questionnaire. Responses to the questionnaire are applicable to all county agents: Agriculture, 4-H, FCS, and other program areas. The three main questions of the survey were:

1. In your university personnel system, are county agents classified as faculty, professional, or other status?

2. Are county agents eligible for tenure or something similar?

3. What titles or ranks are used in the county agent promotion system?

Results of the survey are shown in Tables 1 and 2.

Discussion

University Personnel Status

In this survey, county agents are classified as faculty or parallel to faculty at 58% of the universities. The term "parallel to faculty" is often used to indicate that review for promotion is done within Extension and not university wide or that tenure is not granted. Agents are classified as professional in 30% of the universities, and miscellaneous titles appear in the remaining 12% of universities. In one university, county agents are classified as "professional faculty," which illustrates the dilemma of how to classify Extension and outreach work. Having faculty status probably gives county agents more prestige and opportunities within the university. However, Schauber et al. (1998) indicate that while professorial academic rank gives certain privileges, "it also requires scholarly work that is recognized in college departments." They discuss ways to satisfy the demands of university promotion and tenure by doing a better job of documenting the impact of ongoing educational programs and communicating program successes to peers and administrators.

Astroth (2003) indicates that "There is a misguided and pernicious belief that 4-H faculty certainly are not scholarly and should be accorded neither academic rank nor tenure." Astroth goes on to indicate that he disagrees with this statement and that "increasing the scholarly status of 4-H professionals will only serve to enhance the engaged university's standing in the public eye." He promotes better definition and articulation of youth development scholarship and developing examples that fit within the four categories of scholarship described by Boyer (1990). These four categories are: discovery, integration, application, and teaching.

While faculty status provides certain privileges, it also brings increased expectations. Nichols (2004) conducted a survey of both state and field-based Extension educators in West Virginia. The survey found that 22% of respondents would do fewer evaluations if they did not have faculty status and that 78% of respondents would do fewer research projects without faculty status. Nichols concluded that "field-based Extension educators are comfortable with evaluation expectations, but not with research expectations." According to Nichols, field-based faculty need quality evaluation studies to successfully go through the tenure and promotion process.

It is not necessary to have faculty status to be an effective county agent. However, faculty status can provide important benefits such as prestige, higher salary, perhaps an edge in grant writing, and more stature in addressing controversial issues. Astroth (2003) feels that a connection to faculty status and scholarship distinguishes 4-H professionals from other youth development organizations such as Scouts and Boys and Girls Clubs.

Tenure

In this survey, county agents are eligible for tenure or equivalent (continuing appointment or extended term) in 50% of the universities. They are not eligible for tenure at 48% of the universities, and one university (2%) has a career ladder system.

Many respondents to the survey indicated that Extension had a different set of criteria for promotion that focused on Extension and outreach objectives rather than the same criteria as teaching and research colleagues. Also, Extension usually had their own promotion committee structure composed of Extension staff at the same or higher rank. At USU, the Provost's Office has indicated that "in the evaluations [for tenure and promotion], weighting and judgments should reflect the emphases and priorities listed in the faculty member's role statement" (Morse, 1992). This focus on individual role statements with specific Extension objectives has resolved many previous concerns.

Weiser (1996) feels that:

A university's values are most clearly described by its promotion and tenure policies and by the criteria used to evaluate faculty performance . . . . tenure and promotion decisions are typically based on evidence of significant scholarly contributions and effective performance of original duties Ð not on outstanding service [Extension].

Weiser and Houglum (1998) present an expanded definition of scholarship as "creative intellectual work that is validated by peers and communicated." They also emphasize that a faculty position description should serve as the basis for annual evaluations and the promotion and tenure process. Weiser (1996) concludes that "a university, and its faculty, performs essential and valuable activities that are not scholarship."

Krieg (1995) discusses a common concern of Extension agents of how to get through the promotion and tenure system. He says:

Extension is rarely considered as important as research and classroom teaching by our colleagues in those professions, or by University administrators. Very few of those folks understand the [Extension] work we do and often view it as superfluous to the 'real work' of the institution.

Tenure is often viewed as an important thing to have when working with controversial public policy issues. It seems that county agents are involved more and more with issues such as water rights, public land grazing, pesticide use, and other controversial topics where tenure could be helpful. Does a lack of tenure hinder county agents from getting involved in important, current topics?

Promotion System Titles

In this survey, titles for county agents vary greatly. Many agents use a working title such as Extension Agent-Agriculture and also use an academic title in the university promotion system such as Extension Associate Professor. The most common title in this survey was some variation of Assistant, Associate, and Full Agent in 42% of the universities. In 28% of the universities, agents used the academic titles of Assistant, Associate, and Full Professor. Some universities added the word "Extension" to the title--for example, Associate Extension Professor. The title Extension Educator was used by 22% of the universities, and miscellaneous other titles were used by the remaining 8%.

The term "county agent" evolved from the title "Special Agent for the Promotion of Agriculture in the South," which was given to Seaman A. Knapp in the early 1900s while he was working to control cotton boll weevil. The first agents employed by Knapp worked in districts that covered 10 to 20 counties. The boll weevil damage became so severe that local businessmen offered to pay most of the expenses for an agent to work full time with farmers in one county. This led to the use of the term "county agent." Knapp felt that there should be an agent, preferably one in each county, to work directly with farmers (Rasmussen, 1989).

The title "county agent" is still used today for many field Extension staff and is the title of the official publication of the National Association of County Agricultural Agents (Title page, 2002). Over the years, a variety of other titles have been used for county agents, such as Extension Educator, Extension Agent, and Farm Advisor.

The title "county agent" is no longer used in several states because they have gone to regional or statewide offices due to funding problems or organizational structures that cover several counties. For example, the University of Minnesota Extension Service recently announced that it would shrink from 87 county offices to 18 regional offices (Smetanka, 2003).

Conclusion

The university personnel status, eligibility for tenure, and titles used for county agents in promotion systems vary greatly across the country. This is no surprise because Extension was set up to be a de-centralized system with an emphasis on local clientele input and local control. The effectiveness of different systems to integrate Extension personnel into the university system is subject to on-going review and discussion.

County agents should become involved in university discussions about faculty status, tenure, and promotion. For example, agents in Utah were given faculty status in 1996 but were not allowed on faculty senate until 2001, when a united group of agents requested representation. County agents should develop flagship programs that can be rigorously evaluated to show scholarly impact. Extension administration should recognize that county agents conduct many programs and activities that are valuable to local clientele and the university and yet do not qualify as scholarly work

The results of this survey raise some questions for further examination. Do faculty status and academic rank for county agents influence working relationships with core faculty and Extension specialists? Do titles and promotion systems affect the ability of county agents to be recognized and compensated adequately? For example, in some universities, agents receive the same salary increase for promotion as teaching and research faculty, while in other universities, they receive a certain percentage less. Do professorial titles enhance the stature of county agents as they initiate collaborative efforts with non-traditional organizations or clientele?

References

Astroth, K. A. (2003). Doorway, doormat, or doghouse? The challenges facing 4-H youth development scholarship in land grant universities. Journal of Extension [On-line], 41(6). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2003december/comm1.shtml.

Boyer, E. L. (1990). Scholarship reconsidered--Priorities of the professorate. Princeton, NJ: The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Krieg, K. (1995). Getting Extension faculty promoted and tenured. The County Agent, 58, 7.

Morse, K. (1992, June 5). An open letter to faculty and staff. USU Provost Office.

Nichols, A. (2004). The effect of tenure and promotion policy on evaluation and research in Extension. Journal of Extension [On-line], 42(4). Available: http://www.joe.org/joe/2004april/rb1.shtml

Rasmussen, W.D. (1989). Taking the university to the people: Seventy-five years of Cooperative Extension. Ames, Iowa: Iowa State University Press.

Schauber, A., Aldrich-Markham, S., Olsen, J., Gredler, G., Olsen, P., & Reichenbach, M. (1998). Defining scholarship for county Extension agents. Journal of Extension [On-line]. 36(4). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/1998august/iw1.html

Smetanka, M.J. (2003, July 22). From 87 to 18: U Extension cuts decided. Star Tribune, Minneapolis, MN.

Title page and publication information. (2002, August). The County Agent, 62, 3.

Weiser, C.J. (1996). The value of a university--Rethinking scholarship. Oregon State University [On-line]. Available at: http://www.adec.edu/clemson/papers/weiser.html

Weiser, C.J., & Houglum, L. (1998). Scholarship unbound for the 21st century. Journal of Extension [On-line], 36(4). Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/1998august/a1.html

Evaluation of Training Program for Caregivers to Aging Adults

Gloria J. Barrett
Sacramento County Director
Community Development/ Public Policy Advisor
University of California Cooperative Extension
Sacramento, California
gjbarrett@ucdavis.edu

Patti Wooten Swanson
Nutrition, Family & Consumer Science Advisor