State CYFAR Program Spotlight

Oregon Outreach Project

The term “minority” is quickly becoming a misnomer. By 2030, most of the country’s school-age children will be from a “minority” group, according to research published by the Institute for Educational Leadership. By 2050, so will most Americans.


Polk County sewing club members work together to create
original costumes.

Oregon is one of many states to experience this major shift in demographics. The Hispanic Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce reports that the number of Hispanic people in Oregon grew by 144 percent between 1990 and 2000. Today, more than 383,000 Hispanics reside in Oregon—the largest ethnic population in the state at more than 11 percent. Latino families are largely concentrated in the Willamette Valley, where there is ample work in the agriculture and service sectors.

As a result of the growth in Latino residents, the state’s school-age demographic has shifted as well. The Oregon Department of Education put Latino student enrollment K-12 at 17 percent of the student population for 2006-07. Due to the high number of Latino families of child-bearing age and the high birth rate among Latino women, that population is expected to surge.

Surprisingly, the state’s Latino youth were all but absent from 4-H just a decade ago. “In 1995 and 1996, we were reaching Latino youth in the classroom setting, but I was concerned about the low number of youth in our club-based programs, camps and state-level programs,” says Beverly Hobbs, an extension specialist at Oregon State University (OSU) and a professor in 4-H Youth Development Education.

Recognizing the need for change, Hobbs asked the field faculty in counties with a large Latino population why they weren’t engaging the families. Out of those discussions came three common barriers: One, the faculty didn’t speak Spanish. Two, they didn’t know the culture and were afraid to offend people. And three, they didn’t have the time that outreach requires.

“Most families come here because they want better lives for their children, and they’re anxious for their kids to get in the mainstream. At the same time, they don’t want to give up their culture. They’re delighted when they realize that 4-H can help preserve that.”

~Beverly Hobbs

Enter the Oregon Outreach project: a statewide effort that initially provided funding for three counties to hire full-time bilingual, bicultural program assistants. In turn, those assistants worked with agents to introduce 4-H to Latino families. Now in its 10th year and second round of CYFAR support, the project engages a third of Oregon’s 36 counties. Some 3,000 Latino youth participated in Oregon 4-H clubs last year alone, representing 11 percent of 4-H club members.

Of course, without the full support of Extension supervisors and administrators, the project may have fallen flat. “Reaching out to a new culture is a risk because it’s very time intensive and your results are minimal to begin with,” says Hobbs. “But when there’s time dedicated in the state office, it says ‘this is not just a short-term project; we’re committed to a long-term effort,’ and that offers support in itself.”


Members of a Clackamas County forestry club gain hands-on
experience.

In the high-context Latino culture, gaining support from the entire family is also vital to success. This entails building trust with the parents, the community and the youth participants. But even after relationships are formed, convincing adult partners to step up and volunteer is no small feat.

“In Mexico, volunteerism is usually something that the very wealthy do for the very poor, so it’s a huge education process,” says Hobbs. “Many families are working multiple jobs and have little discretionary time. Some adults step forward right away, but for most, it takes time.”

While reaching the Latino audience has been a slow and steady process, “it’s better to make sure you have a firm foundation than to get a lot of kids in 4-H and then not have the resources to continue,” says Hobbs.

For example, a large-scale soccer program would likely draw in thousands of Latino youth and adults to 4-H, as soccer is pervasive in the culture. But OSU Extension doesn’t have the means for trainings, processing and paperwork at the county level. Therefore, the soccer clubs they have facilitated are intentionally small, and are used as an invitation to other 4-H activities.

A central goal of the Oregon Outreach project is to increase both the quality and quantity of culturally relevant educational programs. So, in addition to mainstream 4-H programs like gardening, youth leadership and sewing, a number of counties in Oregon offer culture clubs and Latino dance or cooking classes.


Youth of all ages take part in Benton County’s Ballet Folkloric
dance club.

“Most families come here because they want better lives for their children, and they’re anxious for their kids to get in the mainstream,” says Hobbs. “At the same time, they don’t want to give up their culture. They’re delighted when they realize that 4-H can help preserve that.”

OSU Extension produces and distributes a Spanish-language video that can be used to introduce 4-H to Latino families. Two years ago, Hobbs got a call from a Midwest agent who said she couldn’t use the video because her county didn’t offer the activities featured in the video, such as ethnic dance, Web development and soccer. “So I said, ‘What if that’s what your families want?’ And she said, ‘We just don’t offer that.’” In order to have a successful outreach project, agents must be flexible enough to go beyond the status quo.

Flexibility is required in day-to-day operations, too. Most county Extension offices in Oregon have long consisted of all white faculty and staff. The addition of faculty and staff from diverse backgrounds has introduced different perspectives and different ways of doing business. In the case of OSU Extension, diversity training has helped to increase cross-cultural competence and has facilitated the working relationships among all personnel. 

Anyone who wants to launch a similar program in their state could write a scroll of reasons why they aren’t ready, but Hobbs says the fastest way to get ready is by doing. “The fact that you’re actually out there trying to help overrides any problems that might arise. You’ll learn along the way, and you’re easily forgiven.”

Further Resources
“Recruiting and Supporting Latino Volunteers,” a Web publication by Beverly Hobbs
http://oregon.4h.oregonstate.edu/oregonoutreach/volunteer_dev/recruiting_1.html

“Effectively Teaching Technology to Spanish Speakers,” a PowerPoint presentation (featured at the 2006 CYFAR Conference) by Mario A. Magaña, Regional 4-H Educator, Oregon State University Extension
http://www.cyfernet.org/tech/teachtechtospanishspeakers.ppt

All photos courtesy of Oregon State University

 

 


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