Red River Parish 4-H is proud to announce member Stonie Harris attended the Citizenship Washington Focus July 12-18, 2009. The event was a leadership program for high school youth from across the country. Every summer thousands of young people stay at the National 4-H Center near Washington, D.C., to participate in the weeklong program. The trip was funded in part by the Louisiana 4-H Foundation, local parishes and individual sources.
For more than 50 years, the National 4-H Youth Conference Center has invited 4-H members from across the country to travel to Washington, D.C., to participate in civic workshops, committees and field trips before returning home to make positive changes in their own communities. Citizenship Washington Focus, which celebrated its 50th anniversary this summer, not only strengthens young people’s understanding of the government’s civic process, but it also boosts their leadership skills, communication skills and overall confidence.
During the event, youth got a behind-the-scenes look at the nation’s capital while meeting with members of Congress to learn more about how their government works. At the end of the program, youth were to draft step-by-step action plans to address important issues in their communities.