In order to help 4-H expand its reach from under six to ten million youth across the United States and territories, National 4-H launched the Beyond Ready Initiative. Dr. Kevin Carey, acting Illinois 4-H Director shares that the Beyond Ready initiative not only helps expand the reach of 4-H but sets up students for success in their futures.
“There are lots of ways that we see the skills from an arts-based program we provide to an ag-based program we provide to the direct workaround just being career ready. We also know that our youth need life skills to be successful. They need to be able to think critically, they need to think creatively, they need to know how to thrive in an environment, in a world that they live in today,” says Carey. “We believe that we have opportunities that exist in front of us, through our projects, through our programs, through our localized experiences and mentorship with our volunteers, through family engagement, through schools. There’s lots of ways we know that we in the next five years in Illinois, 4-H can be successful in supporting that national goal.”
Carey adds that the 4-H curriculum includes a wide array of programs designed to help youth develop and be ready to enter the work world, focus on healthy living and mindfulness, as well as other interests.
