Dr. Nancy Valentine anxiously awaited her 10th birthday so she could join the 4-H club near the rural town of Rivesville, WV (population 300). This began her 54 years of engagement with 4-H.
As a County 4-H Agent, Dr. Valentine provided leadership for: a county-wide 4-H Foundation, over 25 4-H community 4-H clubs and after-school programs; a volunteer management system with over 150 adult volunteer leaders; and a 100-acre camp facility. In 1989, due to state budgets, the WV Extension Service was slated to be reduced by about 65%. Dr. Valentine led a major state and university-wide effort that restored funding and secured legislation to keep the WV Extension Service at full capacity.
Dr. Valentine became a National 4-H Program Leader at the USDA in 1990 where she administered major grant programs such as: Youth at Risk (now Children, Youth and Families at Risk) – $10M, Agriculture in the Classroom – $500,000, and Rural Youth Development – $2M. She co-authored a staff development grant funded at $3.5M and collaborated with 4-H Council to administer a $5.3M grant. Dr. Valentine also managed the 4-H Name and Emblem Authorization Process which included incorporating the federal mark “USC 707″ with the 4-H Emblem, the first change in many decades.
