4-H Youth Development Agent - Johnson County, KS

The Johnson County Extension team consists of eight agents and eleven staff, who collaborate to serve Johnson County’s residents through research-based outreach and education. The county’s 4-H Youth Development program includes over 450 youth across 16 clubs and is supported by 170 volunteers. There is additional reach through school enrichment and after-school programs. As a 4-H youth development agent, you will work with established 4-H clubs while expanding outreach to new audiences.

Extension agents are professional educators, community connectors and innovators who serve as a link between Kansas State University and communities across Kansas. Agents are jointly responsible to the director of K-State Extension (represented by a designated administrator) and the local extension board.

• Lead the development, implementation, and evaluation of a comprehensive 4-H youth development program for school-aged youth in cooperation with local community members and extension colleagues. The primary focus of this position is youth development, along with adult volunteer development; youth education program development; membership growth and participation; and community partnership expansion. Programming will include but is not limited to: community club support, out-of-school programs, school enrichment, volunteer management, and outreach to create program opportunities with new and existing community partners.
• Supervise the Johnson County 4-H Youth Development team, which currently consists of a full-time 4-H office professional and two part-time program coordinators.
• Successful extension programs require agents to:
• Identify local needs and emerging issues related to K-State Extension’s five critical issues (water and natural resources; community vitality; health; developing tomorrow’s leaders; and global food systems) by engaging with program development committees and other community organizations and professionals.
• Design appropriate educational strategies to respond to emerging needs and engage clientele by aligning with the imperatives of the K-State Next-Gen Strategic Plan. Strategies might include educational programming in a community-based setting; events and activities that provide experiential learning opportunities; use of innovative technologies; individual educational consultations; and group facilitation.
• Collaborate with local partners to meet community and programmatic needs.
• Recruit and manage volunteers to further the reach and impact of extension programming.
• Develop and implement strategies to serve all community audiences.
• Collect and communicate evidence of educational program impact.
• Cultivate expertise in a subject matter competency area by engaging as a member of the Youth Development Program Focus Team.
• Pursue internal and external funding to support educational programming.
• Serve as a member of the Johnson County team, cooperating in the planning and delivery of county-wide programming and related events.