Link to printable page

Washington County Demonstration Site

Program Description

Staff Contact: Lisa Conroy

Washington County is characterized by both urban density and quiet rural settings. One of the state's most rapidly developing areas, the county's principal industries are agriculture, manufacturing, food processing, and electronics. During the past decade the Latino population in Washington County has more than tripled. The county now has the largest Latino population of any county in Oregon. Although Latinos comprise 11.2% of the county's population, they do not share in the county's prosperity. Most have recently immigrated from Mexico and work in low-wage agricultural, retail, and service occupations-not the high-tech industries that have boosted incomes and housing prices in the county.

Latino youth in the county are often described as having limited economic resources, underachieving in school, and seldom participating in out-of-school enrichment opportunities available in the broader community. Since 1999, however, specifically targeted 4-H outreach efforts in Washington County have demonstrated that Latino youth are eager to participate in a community-based youth development program that will help them succeed in school and prepare them for higher education and/or future careers. These efforts were originally affiliated with the CYFAR state-strengthening grant that supported early Oregon 4-H Outreach programming, but now is being sustained using other resources.

The two major components of Washington County's 4-H outreach program are the 4-H Tech Wizards and the 4-H Summer Day Camp. Both programs are bilingual and bi-cultural.

4-H Tech Wizards

4-H Tech Wizards is a an after-school group mentoring program using technology training as the "hook" to involve Latino high school students in learning academics as well as basic life and workforce skills. The program has three levels-website development, video and media arts, and GPS/GIS spatial technology. Students usually enter the first level when they are in the 9th or 10th grade and continue until graduation. Cohort groups at each level of 4-H Tech Wizards are active at local high schools. In each cohort group, 3-5 high tech volunteer adult mentor/instructors connect with 10-12 participating youth. The mentor/instructors encourage and inspire the pursuit of technology learning; the preparation for higher education; and the selection of careers in math, science, or technology related fields. Positive community involvement is also a component of the Tech Wizards program. Each student is annually expected to contribute fifteen hours of community service in a real-world project relating to their technology learning.

Participants are selected in a culturally responsive recruitment process based on relationships. Two Latino project staff members spend 2-4 weeks in the target schools, building relationships and trust with at-risk Latino youth through informal interactions as school volunteers. Concurrently, school counselors, administrators, and teachers take note of Latino youth who fit the project profile and identify them to the project staff, who informally interview the youth to assess their interest in the program. The staff members then make home visits to the parents of interested students to provide them with information about Tech Wizards and to secure support for their child's participation. These home visits continue throughout the child's involvement in Tech Wizards, forging a relationship that builds trust, keeps parents informed, and provides staff with opportunities to assess continuing family support for participant involvement.

The Tech Wizards program has yielded many positive results (see Key Outcomes) as well as national recognition, including a NetGeneration Congressional Award for youth service and technology leadership, an NAE4-HA Diversity Award, and a featured spot on the Intel Innovation Odyssey website. Additionally, nearly 30 youth have been involved in presenting workshops and posters to share their learning at about a dozen national conferences. For more information, see the Tech Wizard web site at www.4-HTechWizards.org.

4-H Summer Day Camp

The 4-H Summer Day Camp annually provides 250 younger youth with an active learning environment for five afternoons a week over a seven-week period. The program primarily focuses on technology and science, including computers, computer microscopes, digital web cameras, and GPS/GIS spatial technology. Other content areas have included cultural appreciation, health and nutrition, and overviews of 4-H project learning. Activities are led by adult and teen volunteers and resource people from the community.

Updated March 2006

For more program details, see Key Outcomes.