{"id":1098,"date":"2026-03-12T11:48:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T15:48:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/?p=1098"},"modified":"2026-03-16T08:58:38","modified_gmt":"2026-03-16T12:58:38","slug":"4-h-day-at-the-capitol-connects-madison-county-youth-with-elected-leaders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/2026\/03\/4-h-day-at-the-capitol-connects-madison-county-youth-with-elected-leaders\/","title":{"rendered":"4-H Day at the Capitol connects Madison County youth with elected leaders"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On Feb. 26, Georgia 4-H\u2019ers filled the halls of the Capitol in Atlanta, turning the building green and experiencing the civic process firsthand. More than 700 youth, staff, volunteers, and supporters attended the annual Georgia 4-H Day at the Capitol, celebrating the positive impact of the 4-H program across the state. Among the attendees were 10 Madison County 4-H\u2019ers who had the opportunity to engage directly with state government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"A
Our group before going into the State Capitol<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Two
All smiles for 4-H Day at the Capitol!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"A<\/figure>
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State Sen. Larry Walker and Georgia Rep. Rick Jasperse served as legislative hosts for the delegation, while Madison County native Senator Frank Ginn welcomed students into his office and provided a Capitol tour, explaining the duties and responsibilities of Georgia\u2019s House and Senate. In addition, Madison County 4-H\u2019er Oakley King had the honor of serving as a legislative page for the day in Representative Alan Powell\u2019s office. The legislative page program provides students with the unique opportunity to assist lawmakers with day-to-day tasks, observe legislative proceedings, and gain firsthand experience in government operations.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Throughout the day, county 4-H groups toured the Capitol and many arranged meetings with senators and representatives from their districts. Civic engagement and leadership are central to Georgia 4-H programming, helping youth develop life skills, positive relationships, and community awareness while preparing them to be active, engaged citizens. Support from Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation and the Georgia 4-H Foundation helped make the day possible, including transportation, logistics, and lunch for students.<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"Group<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The event concluded with a luncheon at the Georgia Freight Depot, where 4-H honorees were recognized for state and national accomplishments, and students received encouragement from leaders including Senator Russ Goodman and Representative Jasperse. Georgia 4-H President Robert Thomas addressed attendees on behalf of 201,000 4-H\u2019ers statewide, sharing how 4-H projects helped him discover his spark and pursue his passions. Dean Nick T. Place of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and State 4-H Leader Melanie Biersmith also provided remarks, recognizing the importance of 4-H in shaping Georgia\u2019s youth. As the state\u2019s premier youth leadership organization, 4-H reaches hundreds of thousands of young people annually through UGA Extension offices and 4-H facilities, empowering them to become leaders of the future. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information about joining 4-H in Madison County, contact the Madison County Extension office at (706) 795-2281 or email 4-H Agent Michaela Brown at michaela.brown@uga.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Feb. 26, Georgia 4-H\u2019ers filled the halls of the Capitol in Atlanta, turning the building green and experiencing the civic process firsthand. More than 700 youth, staff, volunteers, and supporters attended the annual Georgia 4-H Day at the Capitol, celebrating the positive impact of the 4-H program across the state. Among the attendees were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":483,"featured_media":1099,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[18],"class_list":["post-1098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-4-h","tag-4-h"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/483"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1098"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1128,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1098\/revisions\/1128"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1098"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1098"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/site.extension.uga.edu\/madison\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1098"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}