What is this program?

The goal for this program is to give Virginia 4-H High School students an opportunity to travel to a Spanish speaking, developing country to interact with their peers. While there for a week, the 4-H'ers work with local Dominican teen partners to conduct an environmental 4-H Day Camp for Dominican children, learn about Dominican culture and food and conduct at least one service project in the local community.

We offer this 4-H program in partnership with the Grupo PuntaCana Foundation, Center for Sustainability and Biodiversity, of which Virginia Tech is a research partner. We began this grass roots program in 2006.  During 2007, it received the National World Citizenship in 4-H Youth Development Award from the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents.  The current program is in its 16th year, with trip leaders Carol Nansel and Christine Hodges.  Due to the pandemic, the program was suspended in 2020, 2021 and 2022.  We had such a large turnout in 2023, that we expanded the program into 2 separate weeks for 2024 to accommodate more 4-H'ers from around Virginia.    

This is our second group of 2024 and they are traveling from July 30-August 6.  The delegation includes 11 teens and 6 adults from 9 different counties/cities:

      4-H Teens

1 from Alexandria

1 from Culpeper

1 from Loudoun

1 from Mecklenburg

2 from Scott

2 from Shenandoah

3 from Petersburg

     4-H Volunteer 

 Jamie Simpson, Culpeper

    Extension Agents, 4-H

Carol Nansel, Shenandoah

Christine Hodges, Alleghany

Cristy Mosley, Culpeper

Deborah Madden, Arlington

Nicole Swinson, Virginia State University

We hope you will enjoy the group blog that we are publishing during our trip.