Florida 4-H Program Handbook

SECTION 3: Federal and State Policies

This section identifies the state and federal laws or rules that impact county 4-H programming policies, guidelines, and procedures. All county policies and procedures will be consistent with State Extension and 4-H policies and procedures and support State and Federal laws. The statewide 4-H programming guidelines in the following sections of this handbook provide you the basic foundation but any procedures or participation criteria that is more extensive in nature should be created with, discussed and acted upon by your advisory committee.

Federal Laws and Guidelines

Affirmative Action Guidelines for Programming

One set of guidelines that impact programming procedures for counties is the Federal laws and the Affirmative Action Plan (AAP) for Florida Extension. The County 4-H Coordinator or County 4-H Program Leader is responsible for oversight of these procedures as an instrument of the Cooperative Extension Service. These guidelines provide the basis for programming procedures to be used and are detailed in the back of this section. Additionally, the Affirmative Action report required to be completed annually is described in the REPORTING & ACCOUNTABILITY SECTION of this handbook.

The 4-H Name and Emblem: Guidelines for Authorized Use, CREES/USDA

Federal laws also govern the use of the 4-H name and emblem. These guidelines are referred to frequently throughout this handbook. A complete set is located in the appendices of this section.

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State Laws and Guidelines

Florida Statutes and Administrative Codes

Florida Statutes and Administrative Codes provide state laws and governing rules for developing and implementing 4-H Youth Development Programs as part of the University of Florida Cooperative Extension Service. The Florida 4-H policies and guidelines will be identified in the following sections as a foundation for determining county-specific policies, guidelines, and procedures.

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University of Florida 4-H Program Administrative Rules

The University of Florida's rules governing 4-H are published as part of the Florida Administrative Code as referenced by the code numbers to the left. The current rules were amended in 1993 from the originally published ones in 1975. A copy of these published and distributed for county use can be found in the appendix of this section. The current set of state rules were revised to support the diverse program needs of Florida's youth, family, and community participants. These rules encourage state and county faculty to provide developmentally and age appropriate programs at county, district, state, national and international levels. More specifically, the rules(s) allow counties to plan and implement programs that address specific local youth development needs.

There are basically eight rules that govern the program, it's process of program planning and operation within the State of Florida.

The first rule establishes the basis of the philosophy that the 4-H Program is the youth development component of the Cooperative Extension Service, with the Dean of Extension as the official administrator of the 4-H name and emblem.

1. The youth development component of the Cooperative Extension Service is the 4-H program. The Dean for Extension authorizes the use of the 4-H name and emblem in Florida in accordance with Federal law.

The second rule defines the purpose of 4-H as the development of youth through hands-on learning experiences using the research and knowledge base of the land-grant system.

2. The purpose of 4-H is the development of youth through design and delivery of experiential programs that utilize the scientific knowledge and research of land grant universities.

The remainder of the eight rules provide the fundamental programming philosophies, expectations and operating procedures from which county and state programs must function.

3. Programs are determined through educational needs assessments that include input from local communities, analysis of state and national trends and issues, availability of human and financial resources, current educational research, and expert faculty opinion.
4. Program participants include children and youth, and adults who have an impact on the quality of life for Florida's children and youth. Programs are provided to individuals, organizations, and institutions that do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, disability, or national origin. Participation may be limited based on age and/or developmental level pursuant to program guidelines as developed in subparagraph (5) of this rule.
5. Faculty authorized to use the 4-H name and emblem establish and publish program guidelines, in consultation with appropriate county or state 4-H advisory groups and subject to approval by the Dean for Extension. Faculty may also establish program rules for competitive events.
6. Institutions and organizations with which 4-H programs are cooperatively conducted, parents, or guardians of individual youth participating in 4-H community-based groups, must sign a statement of understanding that describes the program and conditions of participation, including costs.
7. While no membership or participation fee is required, fees may be charged for materials, appropriate health insurance coverage, or other expenses associated with the educational program as established by the Cooperative Extension Service.
8. The 4-H volunteers working directly with youth will be screened utilizing procedures and standards consistent with Federal and State laws.

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Implications of Florida Administrative Codes for County 4-H Programming

Role of Advisory Committees

Rules three (3) and four (4) deal with the implications of the role of the County 4-H Advisory Committee and the Affirmative Action Guidelines.

Faculty and volunteer 4-H program personnel in cooperation with appropriate advisory groups are changed to establish and publish county policies and procedures. It is recommended that 4-H program guidelines be reviewed annually to support current program needs.

An active County Advisory Committee is a critical component of a good county 4-H Program. The Affirmative Action Guidelines in the back of this section identify some procedures for identifying the geographical/population representation of this group, some of their functions and roles relative to providing 4-H program for all youth within the county.

Program Participation Guidelines

Rule four (4) of the Administrative codes refers to the need to be nondiscriminatory in program opportunities. It also identifies that 4-H can limit participation due to programmatic criteria, specifically age or developmental appropriateness.

For example, Florida 4-H has some statewide program guidelines that limit participation of youth ages 5- 7 from select program/project areas and from competitive events. These guidelines will be clarified and explained in further detail in this section.

Specific guidelines (established pursuant rule 5) and participation in competitive events can be established.. These need to be established by faculty in cooperation with appropriate county, district, or state advisory committees.

For example, there are some specific statewide competitive event participation criteria identified in the Section 8: Events and Activities.

Program Guidelines for Participants

We have the responsibility to establish and publish programmatic guidelines in cooperation with our respective state and county advisory groups. These guidelines are subject to approval by the Dean of Extension.

Statement of Understanding of Program, Conditions of Participation, Risks, and Costs (Rules 6 & 7)

We are responsible to inform the youth, their parents or guardians and organizations or institutions, with whom we have program partnerships, of the conditions of program participation, including costs. This provides the basis for our requiring youth and parental/guardian signatures on 1) enrollment forms; 2) participation/registration forms including the Code of Conduct, Parent-Youth Agreement Form identifying risks and responsibilities, and the Health Form.

While we require no membership fees 4-H may charge for materials, insurance or other programmatic costs associated with conducting educational programs.

Some counties add a statement of acknowledgment of programmatic costs associated with some 4-H activities to their enrollment form for youth and parental signatures.

Volunteer Recruiting, Screening and Monitoring

Rule eight (8) of the administrative codes addresses the fact that 4-H volunteers must be screened using procedures and standards consistent with Federal and State laws. Please refer to Section 6: Volunteer Development and Management of this handbook for the various Florida state statutes and Florida 4-H guidelines relevant to managing a volunteer-based youth program. Additionally, the University of Florida provides guidelines and procedures regarding use of volunteers that are addressed in this section.

 

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