September 16th, 2026

Marie's Message

Leadership Launch: Igniting Sparks and Building Belonging in the New 4-H Year

As we begin the 2026-27 4-H year, Dodge County 4-H looks forward to welcoming new club officers, emerging youth leaders, and adult volunteers into leadership roles across our county. This transition presents a unique opportunity to bring youth and adults together to build relationships, develop leadership skills, and establish a shared vision for a successful year of 4-H programming.

Rather than offering a traditional officer training, we plan to host a 4-H Leadership Launch that combines officer development, youth-adult partnership, and club planning in an engaging and interactive format. Club officers and adult leaders will participate in activities focused on helping youth discover their sparks, creating welcoming club environments where all members feel they belong, and strengthening leadership practices that encourage youth voice and engagement.

Through a Belonging Challenge, officer training breakouts, Youth Voice Café discussions, and club planning activities, participants will leave with practical strategies and action steps to implement within their clubs. The event will provide opportunities for youth and adults to learn together, share ideas, and develop plans that support membership retention, leadership growth, and positive youth development.

By launching the year with a focus on belonging, youth leadership, and relationship-building, we hope to energize club officers and volunteers while equipping them with the tools needed to create meaningful 4-H experiences for all members throughout the year. This event will help set the foundation for strong clubs, engaged youth leaders, and successful partnerships between young people and the adults who support them.

Please register in the Focus! We hope to see all clubs represented with youth and adults!

Thanks,
Marie

Marie Witzel
Positive Youth Development Educator
marie.witzel@wisc.edu
920-386-3790

If clubs or groups have items to share, send them by noon on Monday to be included in that week’s issue. Anything received after 12 p.m. Monday will be considered for the following week. 

Please send any 4-H or youth development related emails to marie.witzel@wisc.edu

Pictured:
Lucy Stowell
Aubree Reider,
Kaitylynn DeJager and
Raylee Everson.

Not Pictured:
Adalynn Reed. 

Dodge County 4-H Horse was well represented at the WI State 4-H Gymkhana held at West Allis on September 12, 2026. 

Raylee Everson, Grade 6 of Burnett, Inc; Aubree Reider, Grade 6 of Oak Grove Owls; Lucy Stowell, Grade 9 of Achievers; and Kaitlynn DeJager, Grade 11 of Trenton Highlights participated in all 6 classes of Poles, Barrels, Flags, Plug, LT Special and Key Race while Adalynn Reed, Grade 9 of County Line participated in Poles, Barrels and Flags. Isabel Radichel, Grade 8 of Hyland Prairie was unable to compete (lame horse).

Raylee received a Top Ten LT Special; Aubree received a Top Ten in Flags; Adalynn received Top Tens in Barrels (9th) and Plug (4th); Lucy received Top Tens in Poles and Keyhole; Kaitlynn received Top Tens in Poles, Barrels, Flags, and Keyhole. 

Astico Perseverance (Blake Kurth) - At the September 7, 2026, Astico Perseverance
4-H meeting, members discussed county fair experiences, approved a $150 donation for a food drive and another $150 for fish pond prizes, and planned a community book drive for the October meeting. The club also held officer elections, selected new leadership for the coming year, and discussed upcoming activities including roadside cleanup and a potential November meeting at a local nursing home.

The meeting concluded with leader announcements about 4-H record book resources and an upcoming meat sale listening session, with the next meeting scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at either a local nursing home or Columbus High School.

Reminder for 3rd Grade Members:
In Dodge County 4-H, 3rd grade members must enroll in the Exploring project and may add one additional project of their choice. If they choose Beef as their additional project, they are only eligible to exhibit in the Beef Feeder Class at the Dodge County Junior Fair. It looks like they will need to add the Exploring project and decide which one additional project they would like to complete this year.

Reminder for Adult Volunteers:
All adult volunteers must complete the required volunteer training and background check process before they can be approved and participate as a 4-H volunteer. If you have not yet completed these requirements, please do so as soon as possible to avoid delays in your volunteer approval.

4-H Club Kick-off Meeting designed to bring 4-H Club Leaders and Club Officers together as we launch another exciting 4-H year!  We will have some interactive activities, leadership challenges, hands-on learning, team-building experiences, planning sessions, and other activities that will help participants connect and start the year strong.

Youth and adults from all clubs are encouraged to attend!

Dodge County 4-H members are encouraged to apply for exciting educational experiences and recognition opportunities, including Beyond Wisconsin, Ignite by 4-H, National 4-H Congress, National 4-H Conference, and the Wisconsin 4-H Key Award. These opportunities help youth build leadership skills, expand their networks, and represent Dodge County on the state and national level. Applications are due September 30 and must include a completed application, cover letter, resume, and reference page.

February 11 - 15, 2027, participants will travel to St. Louis, Missouri, where they'll explore hands-on science museums, discover art and culture, experience live music and performances, and sample regional foods. The journey begins with team-building activities and an overnight stay in Illinois, giving youth the chance to connect with new friends from across Wisconsin before heading to St. Louis for a weekend packed with discovery and fun.

More than just a trip, this experience is a great first step toward independence through supervised overnight travel. Youth will be accompanied by Wisconsin 4-H educators and trained, screened adult volunteers. They'll return home with new friendships, greater confidence, and memories that will last a lifetime.

Registration opens October 26th in 4-H Online

Are you 6th Grade or older? The 4-H Preparing for the World of Opportunities is a series of workshops that helps youth 6th grade and older prepare for the real-world experience of applying for member experiences, scholarships and even employment.

These are especially helpful for youth thinking about:

Beyond Wisconsin St. Louis, Missouri (Grades 6-8),  Ignite by 4-H: STEM or Animal Science Track Washington DC (Grades 10-12,  4-H Community Accelerators @ Ignite, Washington DC (Grades 10-12), National 4-H Congress, Atlanta, Georgia (Grades 10-12),   National 4-H Conference, Washington DC (Grades 10-12) and the  Wisconsin 4-H Key Award (Grades 9-13)  which are all due on Sept 30th

The series will focus on learning about the 4-H World of Work curriculum from Utah State, including how to find opportunities, creating a resume and cover letter, preparing for an interview, interview time and next steps. 

Get these answers, ask more questions, and get some helpful tips to success at the Preparing for the World of Opportunities sessions. They are held on zoom so you can work on your documents at home while we are meeting. You can sign up for one, three, all – it’s your choice! Please register AT LEAST one week prior to allow for planning and for you to make a google doc and share it with Marie at marie.witzel@wisc.edu

Sign up ASAP
Monday, September 21th @ 6:30pm ME Portfolio Zoom
Wednesday, September 23th @ 6:30pm ME Portfolio Zoom

Be part of a new virtual learning opportunity designed to help youth and adult volunteers bring 4-H projects to life. The September 24 kickoff session will introduce the series, provide a short "taste test" of a project lesson, showcase available resources, and give participants a chance to help shape future topics.

No experience needed!

📅 Thursday, September 24
🕡 6:30-8:00 p.m.
💻 Virtual

Join us to learn, connect, and help build future Project Learning Labs around the topics you're most interested in exploring! 🍀

Join the Wisconsin 4-H Arts Ambassadors!

4-H Arts Ambassadors are three distinct, arts-based groups of statewide youth leaders in Grades 9–12. If you have a deep interest in the expressive arts, want to grow your skills, and desire to lead art activities locally and statewide, apply today!

Choose Your Creative Team

Art Team: Focuses on the visual arts. Members experiment with a variety of mediums while dedicated to building their personal creativity, technical skills, and leadership abilities.

Drama Company: Collaborates to create and perform an original theatrical production featuring music, dancing, acting, and technical stage design. Actors, singers, dancers, and technicians are all encouraged to apply.

Photo Fanatics: Builds technical and artistic skills in photography and videography through hands-on learning, while capturing and supporting local and statewide events.

Key Dates

October 15: Registration opens
November 15: Registration closes
April 9–11: Spring Planning Weekend
June 11–17: Summer Academy

Program Cost

$500 per member (Covers all expenses for both the Planning Weekend and Summer Academy)
Scholarships are available to help cover this cost.

Ready to Elevate Your Art?

Fall is in the air, and we are so excited to offer a unique field trip experience again! Seeing your smiling faces brings smiles to our faces as we hear the laughter and see the little feet and hands explore the fall outdoors at Ebert’s Greenhouse Village. We are pleased to offer field trips for $9 per student and $6 per chaperone. Classroom teachers are free. The fee includes a hayride, a small pumpkin for students, a craft project, a story, and full access to our play areas. Although many ages enjoy the program and activities, it is especially geared toward pre-kindergarten to 3rd
grade. To book your field trip please call (920)261-5645 .

SEPTEMBER

21 - ME Portfolio Zoom 6:30 PM

23 - ME Portfolio Zoom 6:30 PM

24-  4-H Project Learning Labs 6:30-8:00 PM virtual

28 - Meat Animal Sale Post-Sale Meeting

29 - Dodge County 4-H Leadership Launch 5:45 pm Dodgeland

PYD Media Collection Project Resources Follow the link to learn more about the collection and request materials.

4HOnline  Log in to your account at the Wisconsin 4-H Online Sign in page

Visit the Wisconsin 4-H Website

WI 4-H Policy Updates

The University of Wisconsin–Madison Division of Extension provides equal opportunities in employment and programming in compliance with state and federal law.

University of Wisconsin-Madison, Division of Extension
Dodge County 4-H
Extension Dodge County  127 E. Oak Street  Juneau, WI 53039-1329
tel: 920.386.3790    fax: 920.386.3928