Welcome to Bastrop County 4-H!

Welcome ! How to Join 4-H Projects 4-H Resources

4-H Calendar, Blog, & Emails Upcoming Opportunities & Contests

Welcome!

Welcome to our Family!

4-H is a community of young people across America who are learning leadership, citizenship and life skills. Any youth may become a member of 4-H when he or she has reached 9 years of age, or 8 years of age and has entered the third grade. Younger youth (K-2) can participate in a program called Clover Kids that allows them to experience 4-H through non-competitive, small project activities. They can register as a Clover Kid as long as they are in K-2nd grade. Their experience may vary from club to club based on what the club offers. We depend on our adult volunteers from the community to help facilitate most projects.

We are glad that you have chosen to be part of the largest non-formal youth education organization in the United States! Over 7 million youth participate in 4-H each year to become self-motivated, productive, and contributing citizens.

4-H is designed to be a family affair so 4-H parents are encouraged to get involved in the 4-H experience. Ways that 4-H parents can contribute range from serving as a project leader to providing transportation to activities, or even supplying refreshments for meetings or special events. 4-H parents are also needed to help supervise 4-H activities.

Bastrop County has an outstanding group of dedicated adult volunteer leaders as well as a superb group of motivated 4-H members. We welcome your family into our Bastrop County 4-H family! Please look through the information on this page to learn more about our program and feel free to contact the Bastrop County Extension Office (CEO) for more information about the county 4-H Program!

Best wishes for a fulfilling year in 4-H! We look forward to seeing you at events throughout the year.

– Your Bastrop County Extension & 4-H Family

Bastrop County Extension Office Information

Physical Address:

Bastrop County Extension Office
15 American Legion Drive
Suite 109
Bastrop, Texas 78602

Mailing Address:

Bastrop County 4-H
PO Box 650
Bastrop, Texas 78602

Office Phone: 512-581-7186

Office Hours:

Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Evenings & Weekends dependent on programming

County Extension Agents:

4-H & Youth Development: Mellanie Mickelson
Ag & Natural Resources: Dakota Kempken
Family & Community Health (FCH): Amanda Ortega

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How to Join

Overview

Look at the current 4-H Clubs in the County and where they meet to determine what is feasible for your family
Reach out to the Club Manager with questions and verify that meeting time & location have not changed (Examples: does your club have a Clover Kid program, what project areas are youth in this club actively participating in?)
Attend 1 to 2 meetings to decide if the club is a good social fit for your family and you enjoy the programs and activities
Once you have found the club that fits your family, register them in the Texas 4-H CONNECT system at https://tx.4honline.com:
- Create a family profile first
- Add each member of your family (youth and adult) in that profile
- Cost of membership is usually $25 to $30 for youth and $10 for adults
Choose your projects and attend 4-H meetings, events, & activities!

4-H CONNECT Links & Enrollment/Re-Enrollment Help

Welcome To 4-H Handout
Family Profile Guide
Enrollment Volunteer Quick Sheets – Renew | New
Enrollment Youth Quick Sheets – Renew | New
Event Registration Instructions
Credit Card Management
Password Management
Registration Guide
Club Managers- Logging In and Viewing Members

Bastrop County Community 4-H Club Information

Click Here to Download Club Information Sheet

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4-H Projects

What is a 4-H Project?

4-H is amazing and is not just about cows and plows, but we have those, too! Literally anything can be a 4-H project as long as it has the 4 main components of a project: 6 learning experiences, community service, leadership, & exhibition. Check out the handout below for more examples of what those could look like!

Click Here to Download the 4-H Project Planning Form

Project Categories & One-Page Overviews

Below are the current 4-H Project Categories. Remember, 4-H is not just about cows and plows, but we have those, too! Literally anything can be a 4-H project as long as it has the 4 main components of a project: 6 learning experiences, community service, leadership, & exhibition.

Rest assured that we support your interests and independent projects that might not fit into the categories below to make sure that your experience is exciting and makes a difference for you.

One-Page Project Overviews:

Click Here to go to the Texas 4-H Project Page for more Information

How to Choose a 4-H Project

Select a project you like – check out a list of 4-H projects either in the menu above or at https://texas4-h.tamu.edu/projects/
Consider the money and time it will take. Can parents/guardians help?
Consider the space and equipment that you have at home.
A 4-H project should be fun, serve a purpose, and be worth the effort.
Select only the number of projects you can complete – try not to go crazy! Start out with 2 to 3 projects and see how you feel!
Seek out people with similar 4-H project interests and see what the Project Leaders & County Extension Agents are doing in these project areas!

Livestock Project Planning Information

To help with planning a livestock project, we have a few resources – be sure to check out the Livestock Project One-Pager and the Livestock Shows & Validation Page. All youth wishing to show animal projects must also pass the Quality Counts Test as a Junior (3rd-5th grader), Intermediate (6th-8th grader), and Senior (9th-12th grader). If you have any questions at any time, or you are feeling overwhelmed and are having trouble finding a starting point, please contact the Bastrop County Extension Office at 512-581-7186.

Download the Livestock Project One-Pager

Go to the Livestock Shows & Validation Page

Go to the Quality Counts Page

Please Note: Some special deadlines need to be kept in mind for new families wishing to exhibit livestock projects:
Texas has a State Validation program that assists with establishing and verifying the ownership period for livestock animals. This process requires exhibitors to order validation materials (RFID ear tag and DNA hair collection envelopes, in addition to nose-printing materials for lambs & steers) in order to prepare for the physical validation where the ear tag is administered, a hair sample is collected, and nose prints are taken for the species that require it. The timeline for these steps are listed below:

MONTH:	ACTIVITY:
April:	Ordering time for Steer & Heifer Validation materials Ordering time for State Fair Lamb & Goat Validation materials Ordering time for State Fair Swine Validation materials
June:	Physical validation of Steers & Heifers; starting ownership period Physical validation of State Fair Lambs & Goats; starting ownership period Physical validation of State Fair Swine; starting ownership period
August:	Ordering time for Major Show Lamb & Goat Validation materials
September:	Ordering time for Major Show Swine Validation materials Ordering time for Fall Heifer Validation materials
October:	Physical validation of Heifers; starting ownership period Physical validation of Lambs & Goats; starting ownership period
November:	Physical validation of Pigs; starting ownership period
February:	Physical validation of Rabbits participating in the Bastrop Area Livestock Show
March:	Physical Validation of Rabbits participating in the Smithville Livestock Show