Office Happenings

          Busy, busy bee! Friday I was in Norfolk helping at the Regional 4-H Speech contest. I was the emcee for the junior division, introducing each speaker. There were 20 4-Hers in this division who had some pretty adorable speeches that also told great stories and some learning lessons. Some of the examples were:

• How many Revolutions?
• HELP!!! I'm stuck in my horse's body
• My Bucket Calf-Shasta
• Bugology 101
• Passing on the Torch
• and many, many more!

          Yesterday, Monday, I was downtown Ainsworth with the lovely ladies of North Central Development Center (NCDC) assisting with BizKidz which is an entrepreneurship camp. We had two sessions. The morning was with returning students and the afternoon was for first year students. This is a week long camp where the individuals come up with a product or service to sell in which they start their new business. They get to learn several aspects about developing a business from business plans/goals, finances, advertising, marketing, and much more. Yesterday, we went over several key terms: need, want, service, product, mission statement, S.M.A.R.T. goals, etc. The students also made All About Me posters where they discovered their strengths and challenges and gave insight to their business. Some of the products and services that the students will be offering include:

• Hot Dog stands
• Homemade Ice Cream and floats
• Farm Fresh Eggs
• Tech Support
• Lawn Mowing Service
• Dog Walking
• Crafts
• Chapstick
• Candy Bouquets
• Kettle Corn
• and many, many more brillant ideas!

          Today, Tuesday, I have done two sessions of UNL Recruitment at the Tractor Training workshop. Yesterday and today, local 14-16 year olds have been in training session learning about tractor safety and guidelines. During two mini-sessions I have been over there playing CASNR Bingo with the students to inform them about the 28 majors that are offered at the UNL's College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. They seemed to have fun with the game even though it was probably more because I gave them Tootsie Rolls for their marker pieces but they asked some questions and a couple of them did show some interest in the college. They are at that point where they may begin to think about college but none of them had really thought much about it yet. Hopefully this activity got them thinking about college and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. I encouraged them to also get involved with clubs and organizations on campus as that is where you make great friends and keep lifelong connections for careers. Also, since we are in ranching country and most of them have cattle background I told them about the unique beef program at UNL.
          I am a student in the Nebraska Beef Industry Scholars program which is a separate certificate program through the University. This program intrigued me during my college search as it focuses on the beef industry covering topics of beef issues, communications through social media, policy issues, networking, and so much more. My first post to my blog was about the study tour we generated and took in the beginning of May.

Click here Nebraska Beef Industry Scholars for more information about this unique opportunity at UNL!

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          What is to come? The next two days I will be in Bassett at the Sandhills Ranch Expo in the UNL Extension booth featuring the Mobile Beef Lab on Wednesday and the 4-H Shooting Sports Trailer on Thursday! Come by and visit if you are in the area!