Maryland 4-H State Council Retreat
Annapolis, Maryland
February 18 – 20, 2017
Saturday, February 18th:
At 2:00pm, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Annapolis, Maryland, the State Council
executive board and advisor held a brief meeting to discuss the retreat schedule of activities and
overall expectations.
At 3:30pm, State Council members began to arrive. State Council members were
encouraged to mingle, and decorated signs with their names as a get-to-know-you activity.
At 4:00pm, Advisor Jamie Morris and Vice President of Planning and Outreach Kaitlyn
Davey led Council Members in opening icebreaker games.
Following the icebreakers, State Council President Becky Jones welcomed everyone to
the retreat and shared her excitement for the upcoming 4-H year. The State Council Officers
provided brief introductions and introduced the overall purpose of their respective committee.
An overview of events that State Council will be engaged in throughout 2017 was shared. Events
such as Maryland Day on April 29th at the University of Maryland, Maryland 4-H Congress in
June, the State Fair, and the 4-H Volunteer Forum were highlighted.
Next, Advisors Megan Owens and Amanda Clougherty spoke to State Council members
about their expectations of the weekend. State Council members were urged to positively
promote Maryland 4-H and State Council by exhibiting respectful behavior throughout the
retreat.
The evening concluded with a State Council dinner at the Greene Turtle where State
Council members were able to mingle and form relationships with their fellow members over
dinner. The first day of the retreat ended with lights-out at 10:00pm.
Sunday, February 19th:
At 8:00am, State Council members gathered for breakfast, which was followed by a fun
energizer. A major focus of the morning was selecting the 2017 Maryland 4-H State Council
Public Issue.
Caitlyn Gardner, Vice President of Public Issues, opened the discussion and separated
State Council members into brainstorming groups. Within these smaller groups, members
discussed various ideas for potential public issues. These groups rejoined and an engaging
Council-wide discussion followed. Numerous ideas were shared and State Council members
openly and respectfully shared their thoughts.
Following this discussion, State Council members voted on the 2017 Public Issue by
using the “sticker-voting” method.
While the results were being determined, Council members returned to their seats and
Sean Clougherty began the first Professional Development session. Sean Clougherty presented
on various types of media from print to social media. He encouraged State Council members to
write about and publicize their positive experiences in 4-H, and discussed how social media has
shaped the role of the press in recent years.
After Sean Clougherty’s presentation, Council members enjoyed lunch and were eager to
learn of the 2017 Public Issue. The issue selected was “Environmental Impact with a Focus on
Bee Population (Know Your Impact).”
Directly following lunch, Committees begin to brainstorm ideas and potential activities
related to the selected Public Issue. The individual Committees’ ideas are outlined below:
Public Relations:
•
Social Media – brainstormed ideas to promote Maryland 4-H on social media
- 100 Days of MD 4-H photo campaign
- Social media slogans and hashtags to promote different aspects of MD 4-H and
MD 4-H State Council
Service:
•
•
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Focus on community outreach by providing individuals with opportunities and
resources to help the bee population (ie: plant wildflowers)
Incorporate the Public Issue to the MD 4-H Congress Service Project
Look into planning other service opportunities such as park clean-ups and blanket
drives. Environmental themed-book drive.
Public Issues:
•
•
•
Actively promote and educate regarding the Public Issue at MD Day
- Potentially incorporate Agsploration curriculum to explore the role of pesticides
and the roles of bees.
Raise awareness throughout the state
- Create visuals that can be distributed throughout the Maryland counties that
explain bees’ purposes.
Create engaging activities for children
Planning & Outreach:
•
Design crafts and activities geared to kids that also help to raise awareness on the
Public Issue
•
Work to keep people within Maryland 4-H and outside of 4-H engaged in the Public
Issue throughout the year.
Following this brief Committee session, advisors led the second Professional
Development focused on dressing for success. Appropriate attire for various settings was
discusses and Council Members participated in a fun activity to illustrate what clothing is
appropriate for each setting.
During this Professional Development activity, the State Council Executive Team met
briefly to recap the events and discussion from earlier in the day so that Vice Presidents would
be prepared to lead their Committees in the next Committee-work session.
Before starting the next Committee-work session, individual were asked to quickly
research some interesting facts about the role of bees, the issues facing the bee population, and
their effects on agriculture and individuals. Council members reported their most interesting
facts to the group. This helped to inspire and motivate individuals to actively participate in the
Committee-work session.
Following the Committee-work session, individuals from each Committee presented on
the main topics that they discussed. Each Committees ideas are outlined below:
Public Relations:
•
•
Social Media – Further ideas on how to promote State Council and MD 4-H on social
media were shared.
- Slogans such as “Don’t bee a hater, save the pollinator!” were discussed a
potential ideas to promote the Public Issue
- Ideas to promote Maryland 4-H Congress on social media were also shared
Electronic Newsletter – a newsletter that covers State Council engagements and
events to help promote Council, especially within individual counties.
Service:
•
•
Discussed ideas for Service Projects at MD 4-H Congress
- Blankets for the homeless
- Environmental clean-up
- Book drives
Brainstormed ideas for service projects that would occur throughout the year at
various MD 4-H events
Public Issues:
•
•
Begin to plan for MD 4-H Congress
- Forum/discussion to promote and raise awareness on the Public Issue
- Potential tour of the campus farm or presentation to educate on the role of bees
Discussed plans for outreach and year-round engagement
Planning & Outreach:
•
•
Ideas for themes of MD 4-H Congress, potentially focused on the Public Issues
- “Know your Impact”
Activities and ideas for the opening ceremony of MD 4-H Congress were discussed.
Following these Committee discussions, the “Etiquette – Inside the 4-H Actors Studio –
Dinner” began. State Council officers were planted throughout the dining area, and each
demonstrated undesirable or improper behavior. State Council members were tasked with
identifying these behaviors with the goal of learning how one should act as a member of
Maryland 4-H State Council and as a representative of Maryland 4-H.
The evening activities consisted of board games, and a pool party where Council
members were able to mingle and relax.
State Council Officers Becky Jones, Kaitlyn Davey, and Anna Schuster left the retreat in
order to attend their college classes the following morning.
Monday, February 20th: (Notes prepared by State Council Member Sophie Anderson)
During the final day of the State Council retreat, Committees were able to meet to further
discuss their committees’ plans.
Below is an outline of each Committee’s ideas:
Public Relations:
•
•
•
•
•
Ideas for the State Council Newsletter were shared
Ideas to publicize each State Council event were shared
Promoting the Tractor Supply fundraiser as an opportunity to fundraise for MD 4-H
State Council
Social media campaigns ideas were discussed
Ideas for producing bee-themed posters and flyers for MD Day were also shared.
Service:
•
Ideas for Service Projects for MD 4-H Congress:
- Operation Gratitude: 550 cord bracelets in yellow and black
- Bee-themed blankets for children in-need
- Campus or park clean-up
- Uplifting letters to people in-need
- Environmental-themed book drive
Public Issues:
•
A Campaign centered on the slogan, “Don’t BEE a hater, Save the Pollinator!”
Additionally, each topic was delegated to specific Committee members.
- BEE Aware: Teaching about the environmental impact
- BEE Healthy: Encourage the use of honey as a natural sweetener – Nyah
BEE Helpful: Plant flowers – Alana
BEE Colorful: Use MyPlate to discuss nutrition and the foods that require bees –
Olivia
- BEE Supportive: Share how bees working in colonies, cooperation, and
teamwork.
- BEE Generous: Fundraise to build hives
- BEE Involved: Learn your role in helping save the bee population from further
decline – Sarah Parker
- BEE Green: Promote local agriculture – William
- BEE Smart: Teach about the good and bad bugs found in gardens – Samantha
- BEE Creative: recipes and ideas for projects such as beeswax candles – Sarah
Stauffer, Lynne
Use the March meeting to prepare to plant flowers and teach about good and bad bags
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•
Planning & Outreach:
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•
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Create a survey about bees for the State Council meeting on March 19th, 2017
Locate and contact guest speakers who may be able to present on topics related to the
Public Issue
Begin planning activities for MD Day
The 2017 Maryland 4-H State Council Retreat ended at 2:00pm after many successful
and productive discussion as Council members begin to plan for a fantastic 4-H year.
The next meeting of the Maryland 4-H State Council will be on Sunday, March 19th from 2:00 to
5:00pm at the Maryland 4-H Center.