4-H Urban Outreach

The mission of the 4-H Urban Outreach Program is to take the 4-H Youth Development model and make it accessible to all audiences in our community. By providing daily after school and summer programming, the program empowers youth and adults by creating opportunities that build academic and life skills through experiential learning. The aim is to ensure that youth achieve a sense of independence, belonging, mastery and generosity, to develop into positive, caring, and productive citizens.

The program incorporates traditional 4-H clubs/activities such as animal science, gardening, agriculture and natural resources, in to an urban school setting. By offering programs the 4-H way, urban youth "learn by doing" through hands on learning involving animals, plants, science, and exploration with the natural world. Our hope is that the youth in the Urban Outreach program will approach the 4-H clover and pledge with an open mind to learn more about the what 4-H stands for (Head, Heart, Hands, and Health). 

The History of 4-H Urban Outreach

For over 35 years, 4-H Urban Outreach has provided youth development programming to downtown neighborhoods to increase literacy, STEAM, social and life skills.

Funded entirely through grants and in-kind services from community partners, donations and county dollars, 4-H Urban Outreach served approximately 131 youth in 2018 and held 232 after-school, weekend and summer programs in 2018. Participants in 4-H Urban Outreach have ranged in age from 5 to 19 living in downtown Ithaca. Through after school and summer educational enrichment programming, 4-H Urban Outreach provides youth with healthy relationships with adult role models, homework and literacy tutoring, STEAM field trips and engaging skill-building activities, exposure to the larger community, and opportunities for community engagement.

Our neighborhood-based approach has been successful because it meets individuals' needs directly where they live; allowing families to build trust in the program, by knowing their children are in a safe location, and by getting to know on-site staff on an ongoing basis. 4-H Urban Outreach has been successful helping neighborhoods grow stronger and thrive by fostering relationships, providing resources, and promoting the learning of life skills. The program has a holistic goal of strengthening families and building community. In addition to ongoing youth development, we also partner with other CCE-Tompkins Educators to bring adult workshops directly to residents' neighborhoods.

Now we continue our work in Belle Sherman, Southside Community Center and potential sites at West Village and South Hill, with our Primitive Pursuits programming. Youth play games, make fires, and learn about the plants and animals living in their neighborhood. They are developing a comfort in the outdoors while learning new skills with friends. The focus of all of our programming is youth-driven so we go where nature takes us.

Last updated March 13, 2026