Foundations of Positive Youth Development – Early Career 4-H Professionals Academy

Positive youth development in 4-H doesn’t just happen! It depends on you! We want to prepare you to be the best 4-H PYD educator you can be, and it begins with understanding the science and research of PYD and how you can use it to help youth thrive. Please join 4-H colleagues from throughout the country at the Foundations of Positive Youth Development: Early Career 4-H Professionals Academy. The academy will provide you with a fundamental understanding of the science and practice of positive youth development in 4-H. You will explore the research base of positive youth development and the science of learning and development that inform everyday 4-H practice. You will also learn how this research is reflected in the 4-H Thriving Model, and how the model is used to predict the way that 4-H has its positive impact on youth development. Finally, you will discover the critical elements of programs necessary to ensure a high quality and impactful PYD experience for youth, and learn practical ways for putting all this information into immediate use to make your best 4-H program even better!

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The PYD Foundations for Early Career 4-H Professionals consists of two guided learning sessions, followed by an in-person session on Sunday October 9th in Madison, WI, at the Monona Terrace Hotel and Conference Center immediately prior to the start of the NAE4-HDP Conference. The NAE4-HYDP Conference will be at the same location, and begins with the National 4-H Priorities Day on Monday October 10th, running through Thursday evening October 13th. The in-person session will be at the NAE4-HYPDP conference site, exact location TBD. A separate registration for the NAE4-HYDP Conference is required. Click here to learn more.

NOTE: Travel expenses related to attending the in-person session are not included in the registration fee.

Academy Schedule

• September 23^rd-Virtual Learning Content Opens with self-paced week of independent learning in preparation for Live Session #1
• Live Virtual Session# 1-The Research Base of PYD: Tuesday September 27 and Thursday September 29 (select one) from 12:00pm to 4pm ET (11am- 3pm Central; 10am – 2pm Mountain; 9am to 1pm Pacific)
• September 30^th -Virtual Learning Content Opens with self-paced week of independent learning in preparation for Live Session #2
• Live Virtual Session #2-High Quality PYD Program: Tuesday October 4 and Thursday October 6 (select one)  from 12:00pm to 4pm ET (11am- 3pm Central; 10am – 2pm Mountain; 9am to 1pm Pacific)
• In-Person Session #3-PYD in Practice: Sunday October 9^th from 8:30-4:30 CT (light breakfast and lunch will be provided)

Important Information

• Participants are required to complete the self-paced activities and participate in one of the two live webinars each week, 4 hours each
• The two self-paced pre-session activities will take approximately 4-6 hours each week to complete
• On September 22nd, participants will be provided a unique code to access the session content that can be found by clicking on the “session information” buttons below. The code provides access to both virtual learning sessions.
• Participants who complete all three phases of the PYD Foundations Academy will receive a Certificate of Initial Competency – PYD Foundations, a pre-requisite for more advanced PYD academy offerings in the future.

Once registered, participants will be provided a unique code to access the session content that can be found by clicking on the “session information” buttons below. The code provides access to both virtual learning sessions.

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4-H is the youth development program of our Nation’s Cooperative Extension System and USDA. 4-H.org is maintained by National 4-H Council as part of our mission as an independent, private-sector partner to the Cooperative Extension System. As an independent, 501 (c)3 charitable organization, National 4-H Council does not direct or implement 4-H programs at the state or local level.