![]() ![]() ![]() 4-H members of the day learned to take out loans and keep scrupulous records and accounts. “I would argue that 4-H is central to that story.” The Depression-era extension agents who espoused subsidized crops spent 30 to 40 percent of their time on youth work, gaining the trust not just of future farmers but also their farming parents-relationships Rosenberg describes as “transformational” in shifting agriculture from labor-intensive methods to capital-intensive, mechanized ones. “You can’t really understand why people were willing to accept the subsidy machine without understanding the groundwork laid by extension agents,” Rosenberg explains. He also believes that the organization played a pivotal role in helping the USDA carry out New Deal legislation, such as the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act, which offered federal subsidies to farmers in an attempt to reduce surplus and raise prices for key crops. ![]() Rosenberg, author of the 2016 book The 4-H Harvest and an assistant professor of Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies at Duke University. “It’s absolutely the case that a lot of cultural norms around gender and sexuality are directly illustrated by the history of 4-H,” says Dr. One has only to glance at the cover girl on a 1930 Iowa 4-H manual to get the gist: Outfitted in a bonnet and a poufy skirt, this role model seems better prepared to attend a costume party as Little Bo Peep than to shepherd any sheep. Instead of cultivating crops and raising animals, female participants took part in home economics projects that taught child-rearing, cooking, and hostessing skills. Initially, 4-H membership looked much different for girls than for boys. And by 1921, those disparate youth farming clubs had come together under the unified umbrella of 4-H- short for the “head, heart, hands, and health” members must engage “to make the best better.” Almost immediately, the USDA sought control over the organization, eventually gaining full ownership of the name and iconic four-leaf-clover emblem in 1939. In 1914, the Smith-Lever Act formalized the relationship between land-grant universities and nearby farms, establishing the Cooperative Extension System to help underwrite the researchers’ outreach efforts. According to 4-H National Program Leader Jim Kahler, “Parents who didn’t want to bet the farm on whether or not a new corn variety might work became believers when they saw those results.” In 1911, Ohio Farmer magazine reported that the top 100 corn-club boys had produced an average yield of 133.3 bushels per acre, more than five times the U.S. From the get-go, local businesses provided financing for projects and cash prizes for competitions. Those university researchers began partnering with county school superintendents throughout the Midwest and South to develop corn, tomato, and other crop clubs for children. Its roots can be traced back to the early 1900s, when many rural farmers were resistant to newfangled advancements, such as soil testing and better seed selection, suggested by scientists at land-grant universities. Though often viewed through the hazy lens of nostalgia, 4-H was always intended as an important step in the march toward modernization. You may be tempted to draw a straight line connecting those corporate contributions with the corruption of an institution espousing old-timey ideals. The youth organization also receives funding from the nonprofit National 4-H Council, which spent approximately $48 million last year, and accepts donations from a veritable who’s who of Big Ag: Monsanto, ConAgra, DuPont, and Altria each gave at least a million dollars in 2015. In reality, the United States Department of Agriculture (or more specifically, the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture) designates millions of annual Cooperative Extension Program dollars for regional “youth development” initiatives-a total of $68 million in 2015, much of that going to 4-H. Clad in dungarees, a crisp white button-down, and a bolo tie, this clean-cut 4-H kid paints a reassuring picture of American agriculture as an honest pursuit unsullied by politics or private business interests. But the corn-fed image feels so classic, it could have been taken decades, even a century, ago. It was 2009 when Levi Parks, then 7 years old, posed with his prize-winning fainting goat, Hildie, at the Tazewell County Fair in southwestern Virginia. ![]()
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