4-H Safety Programs
4-H SAFETY – Safe Archery and Firearms Education and Training for Youth
4-H Shooting Sports is a national program with 428,020 young people taking part, making it one of the largest shooting education programs in the United States. Here in Mississippi, 4-H S.A.F.E.T.Y involves thousands of kids and continues to grow annually. An established core of over 700 adult volunteer instructors and 4-H agents provide training and leadership for our program throughout the state.
All-Terrain Vehicles 4-H (ATV) Safety Education
The goal of the MSU Extension 4-H ATV Safety program is to reduce ATV-related accidents and fatalities in Mississippi. The objectives of the safety program are
- to increase the number of 4th- to 6th-grade participants by 1,000 in the 2-hour ATV Safety program using the ATV Safety Leader’s Guide,
- to increase the number of participants by 500 in the age-specific ATV Safety Institute (ASI) online E-Course ATV Safety Training,
- to increase the number of participants by 500 in the ATV Safety Tread-Sylvania online ATV safety game found at www.atv-youth.org,
- to develop ATV Safety public service announcements (PSA) involving ATV Safety program participants (statewide),
- to increase the number of certified ATV safety instructors by 10, and
- to increase the number of participants by 100 completing the 4.5-hour hands-on ATV RiderCourse training per year.
Publications
News
Qualifying senior 4-H members will compete in the Mississippi 4-H S.A.F.E.T.Y. State Invitational July 16 and 17 at the Jimmy Bryan 4-H Youth Complex in West Point and at the Starkville Gun Club.
LOUISVILLE, Miss. -- The Mississippi State University Extension Service will hold the North Mississippi 4-H Summer Camp Explore July 23-26 in Winston County.
The camp will be at Lake Tiak O’Khata, located at 1290 Smyth Lake Road in Louisville.
Participants will enjoy the outdoors, expressive arts, and STEM and S.A.F.E.T.Y. activities. Archery, canoeing, drama, air rifle, survival skills, first aid, robotics and a service project are among the camp’s offerings. The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians will conduct a heritage activity with the campers.
All-terrain vehicles are commonly used in Mississippi for entertainment and work, but driving them dangerously is a frequent cause of injuries and death.
Success Stories
Hinds County 4-H’er learns patience, persistence through rifle competition
When a heart condition kept Brandy Barnes from playing basketball, she ramped up her dedication to 4-H shooting sports.
Extension ATV training helps cancer survivors’ wishes come true
Getting a driver’s license and going through ATV safety training are rites of passage for many Mississippi teens, but, for two young outdoorsmen, achieving these goals meant much more
4-H Shooting Sports teaches teen character and generosity
Quitman native Taivon Collins learned an important life lesson when he broke his gun during a 4-H shooting sports competition.
“If life gives you lemons,” he says, “you get a new .22 rifle.
4-H S.A.F.E.T.Y. is Mississippi 4-H’s biggest program. Competitors in the Safe Archery and Firearms Education and Training for Youth program are immersed in essential firearm-safety training to learn maturity, self-discipline, responsibility, and sportsmanship.
“You know that saying, ‘It takes a village to raise a child’? Well, it takes a village to raise a goat, because it’s a kid!” Tyler Branch says with a smile.
A senior at the Mississippi School for Math and Science, Tyler knows this truth from experience. His 4-H career centered around showing Boer goats.
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