Start fresh with 4-H

Oct. 8, 2026

October marks the start of a new year for 4-H in Alaska. As the nation鈥檚 largest youth development program, Alaska 4-H is supported by the Institute of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Extension right here at the 夜色福利 and has 10 active districts throughout the state, each with its own youth clubs, leaders and expertise. Alaska 4-H is one way IANRE enriches Alaskans' lives.

As we celebrate from Oct. 4-10, we recognize the past year of hard-working 4-H youth and volunteers and their huge variety of accomplishments, including:

  • Nome 4-H Dog Mushing. This new club is pushing traditional 4-H animal-care skills to include canines. Youth learn to care for sled dogs, manage a team and race. At the Pup Mush in April, 4-H youth were able to mush 1- to 3-dog teams.
  • MatSu/Copper River 4-H Fair Success. Clubs from all over the state shine at the state fair. From the MatSu-Copper River 4-H district alone, 144 youth participated in the livestock auction and brought in around $840K!
  • Kodiak 4-H Chicken Raising. From June through September this year, youth housed, raised, processed and sold 88 chickens 鈥 providing 537 pounds of chicken to feed their community.
  • Bristol Bay 4-H Culture. Leaders travel the area (about the size of the state of Ohio) to schools and villages, educating the community about local and native culture. Last year alone, about 1,000 residents participated in Bristol Bay 4-H.
  • Fairbanks Youth in Governance. Last year, this program took 10 kids to Juneau to talk with state legislators and learn about the Alaska government. The 4-H Ignite program goes a step further, taking kids to Washington, D.C., each year.

These club activities show that Alaska 4-H is so much more than just cows and sewing. As IANRE 4-H Program Lead Marla Lowder explained, 鈥淭he life skills youth learn in 4-H last a lifetime.鈥 She pointed out that the 4-H 鈥淏eyond Ready鈥 initiative is really about preparing youth for their future 鈥 whether in their careers, as leaders or simply in being successful in what they do.

4-H is the nation鈥檚 largest youth development program 鈥 with more than six million youth members 鈥 and is housed in Alaska under the Cooperative Extension Service, as part of the land-grant university at the 夜色福利. The Institute of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Extension will continue to enrich the lives of Alaskans by actively supporting Lowder and all the Alaska 4-H districts statewide.

To become a member and learn more, visit Alaska 4-H at IANRE: www.uaf.edu/ces/4-h/.