Reprinted from the December 26, 2016 High Plains Journal.
By Jennifer M. Latzke
If you talk to J.D. Ragland very long, you’ll quickly realize that in his eyes, every “kiddo” has potential for great things.
All they need is a nudge in the right direction.
That nudge is the basis of the Randall County Dream Team Program in Canyon, Texas. This program takes select at-risk youth in seventh and eighth grades and uses the swine 4-H project to teach them skills and build confidence. All of it is in the hope of intervening at a critical crossroad in their development and pointing them down the path away from the juvenile justice system.
The Dream Team was an idea that came about because the Randall County judge and the County Commissioners’ Court were frankly tired of seeing at-risk youth in the juvenile justice system. Not only does it cost the county upward of $35,000 per youth per year to house and feed juvenile offenders, but there’s also a tremendous personal cost to the at-risk youth who feel like their only choices are bad decisions.
“Man, if we could just give these kids who were getting into trouble some sort of incentive, we could save the taxpayers a lot of money and maybe more important, keep the kids out of juvenile detention center and try to have a positive impact on these kiddos and keep them from getting into the trenches again,” Ragland explained.
So, back in 2009, the Commissioners’ Court approached the Extension staff, including Ragland, with the challenge of starting a 4-H club program for these at-risk youth. The pieces came together slowly, first with a committee developed of middle school principals and counselors along with the two Randall County justices of the peace and the AgriLife Extension staff. Ragland was the one who suggested the swine project. But they needed a central location to house the project pigs and one that was easy enough for Dream Team families to drive to twice a day, seven days a week to do chores and train their pigs.
The committee found funding to build the Digger Howard 4-H Livestock Barn. The barn is the primary host site for the Dream Teamers, Ragland said, but it’s also a place where traditional 4-H members and their families can house their animals as well.
“In the north end of Randall County it’s a more urban setting, and many folks live in town and don’t have facilities for livestock,” Ragland explained.
In 2011, they had a facility, they had a project idea, they had changed from a committee to a more permanent board structure, and they had the rules lined out for how the Dream Team would be implemented. Now they just needed participants.
And for that they turned to their principal and counselor contacts in area schools. These contacts identify at-risk youth according to official criteria as potential candidates for the program, then explain the Dream Team to the youth. Then the board interviews the applicants and their parents or legal guardians separately to determine whether they are idealmatches for the program.
Ragland explained that the board interviews gauge their intent to participate. Right now the program is limited to nine youth participants at a time, with hope of expanding as the Dream Team concept grows and funding is found. But that means the board has to make sure each participant is ideal to be helped by the opportunity.
Dream Teamers, Ragland explained, have to follow the rules to participate. For example, they must commit to feeding their pigs twice a day, with parents or legal guardians committing to driving the youth to the barn to do chores. They have to keep their grades up in order to show their pigs at the Randall County Fair. And, at the end of the project, the pigs have to be sold.
“Most of these kids have never been challenged with responsibility,” Ragland explained. “So we tell them we expect them to put in the work. This takes a lot of time and effort and dedication.” That’s the whole point, really. It challenges them to keep their grades up in order to show their pig. They learn to care for an animal, with real-world applications of their science and math classes in the barn.
And if they’re busy working with a pig project and putting in all this time and effort, they’ll think twice about the destructive decisions that come their way.
The Dream Team program provides everything for the members, at no cost to them or their families, Ragland explained, which is another reason why each class of Dream Teamers is set at nine. Ragland finds and purchases the project pigs for the Dream Teamers just like he does for traditional 4-H members who ask him. All of the feed, veterinary care as well as housing and their 4-H membership fee are covered for the Dream Team members too. Funding comes from private sources and in part from the sale of the pigs after the county fair.
“The ultimate goal is that we hope that the kiddo’s pig is quality enough to make the premium sale at our county show,” Ragland said. “It doesn’t always happen because our county show rules say only the top 75 percent of each class is eligible for the premium sale.” If a Dream Teamer’s pig doesn’t happen to make the sale, there is a group of angel supporters in the county who will add on dollars to that youngster’s pig, he explained. It’s not a lot, but it is a small premium for the kids above market price.
That matters because if the Dream Team participant’s pig brings a gross amount of $500 or more, then the money is divided into a 10-10-80 split, Ragland said.
“So, whatever the gross dollars are for that kiddo, we give them 10 percent of that right up front because we feel like they need some immediate reward for their effort,” Ragland said. “Then 10 percent goes back into the Dream Team program to support future participants. Then the remaining 80 percent goes into an individual scholarship fund for that particular kiddo that they don’t receive until they graduate high school. It’s an incentive for this group because these at-risk kids tend to have high drop-out rates. We want to keep them in school until they graduate at least.”
Since 2011 the Dream Team has nudged 31 of Ragland’s “kiddos” toward a better path. For the youth and their families, the Dream Team is an opportunity to come together as a family through the project work.
“I thought it would be fun,” said Brooke Carrithers, one of the Dream Team participants who came out to the barn to speak on behalf of the program. “I love animals, and my mom showed pigs when she was in 4-H.”
Brooke’s mom, Charlyn Carrithers, said she’s seen the blossoming of her daughter’s confidence through the program.
“She’s doing so awesome, I’m so proud of her,” Charlyn said. “We get up at 5:30 a.m. to feed, then she’s off to school, then we come back out here around 4:30 p.m. and we’re here until 6 or 7:30 p.m. It’s just me and her, so it’s a real blessing to have this.” And the program works some magic on the parents as well. Charlyn uses her past showing knowledge to help the other kids when they need it. She also sees her and her daughter becoming closer.
“It’s a blessing to these kids to have one chance to do this,” she said. “At least the kids have a chance to see how to raise an animal, get that responsibility and that applies beyond that to other areas.”
Kent David, father of Dream Teamer Claire David, echoed those sentiments. “This is the biggest commitment she’s ever done,” he said. And the Dream Team project has inspired Claire to get further involved in other 4-H project work. It challenges her and that’s good for her, he added.
Ragland said the benefits even transfer over into the traditional 4-H members who house their pigs out at the same barn. They learn not every kid in every family has the same opportunities, and some find their own leadership lessons in helping the Dream Teamers with their project learning.
There was no template for the Dream Team committee to follow when they developed the program, Ragland said.
“You have to surround yourself with a group of people passionate about the idea,” he said. “We had so many committee meetings trying to develop the program, our bylaws and guidelines. Then we had to become a 501(c)(3) for fundraising. The best advice I would give is to have a goal, then surround yourself with supporters who are passionate about the same idea you have.” Without the Randall County Commissioners and the court, a lot of the things we have in place today wouldn’t be possible, he added. They raised the funding for the facility and are some of the biggest, most vocal cheerleaders of the Dream Team in the county.
“Do we think we can save them all?” Ragland asked. “No. We know that going in. But if we just save a few, then the program, the funding, the time, the effort, the support money is all worth it if we can keep them out of trouble.”
It’s a nudge in the right direction for kiddos who need it.
Photo: Dream Team participants drive their pigs to the outdoor show pen at the Digger Howard 4H Livestock Barn.
By Jennifer M. Latzke
All they need is a nudge in the right direction.
That nudge is the basis of the Randall County Dream Team Program in Canyon, Texas. This program takes select at-risk youth in seventh and eighth grades and uses the swine 4-H project to teach them skills and build confidence. All of it is in the hope of intervening at a critical crossroad in their development and pointing them down the path away from the juvenile justice system.
The Dream Team was an idea that came about because the Randall County judge and the County Commissioners’ Court were frankly tired of seeing at-risk youth in the juvenile justice system. Not only does it cost the county upward of $35,000 per youth per year to house and feed juvenile offenders, but there’s also a tremendous personal cost to the at-risk youth who feel like their only choices are bad decisions.
“Man, if we could just give these kids who were getting into trouble some sort of incentive, we could save the taxpayers a lot of money and maybe more important, keep the kids out of juvenile detention center and try to have a positive impact on these kiddos and keep them from getting into the trenches again,” Ragland explained.
So, back in 2009, the Commissioners’ Court approached the Extension staff, including Ragland, with the challenge of starting a 4-H club program for these at-risk youth. The pieces came together slowly, first with a committee developed of middle school principals and counselors along with the two Randall County justices of the peace and the AgriLife Extension staff. Ragland was the one who suggested the swine project. But they needed a central location to house the project pigs and one that was easy enough for Dream Team families to drive to twice a day, seven days a week to do chores and train their pigs.
The committee found funding to build the Digger Howard 4-H Livestock Barn. The barn is the primary host site for the Dream Teamers, Ragland said, but it’s also a place where traditional 4-H members and their families can house their animals as well.
“In the north end of Randall County it’s a more urban setting, and many folks live in town and don’t have facilities for livestock,” Ragland explained.
In 2011, they had a facility, they had a project idea, they had changed from a committee to a more permanent board structure, and they had the rules lined out for how the Dream Team would be implemented. Now they just needed participants.
And for that they turned to their principal and counselor contacts in area schools. These contacts identify at-risk youth according to official criteria as potential candidates for the program, then explain the Dream Team to the youth. Then the board interviews the applicants and their parents or legal guardians separately to determine whether they are idealmatches for the program.
Ragland explained that the board interviews gauge their intent to participate. Right now the program is limited to nine youth participants at a time, with hope of expanding as the Dream Team concept grows and funding is found. But that means the board has to make sure each participant is ideal to be helped by the opportunity.
Dream Teamers, Ragland explained, have to follow the rules to participate. For example, they must commit to feeding their pigs twice a day, with parents or legal guardians committing to driving the youth to the barn to do chores. They have to keep their grades up in order to show their pigs at the Randall County Fair. And, at the end of the project, the pigs have to be sold.
“Most of these kids have never been challenged with responsibility,” Ragland explained. “So we tell them we expect them to put in the work. This takes a lot of time and effort and dedication.” That’s the whole point, really. It challenges them to keep their grades up in order to show their pig. They learn to care for an animal, with real-world applications of their science and math classes in the barn.
And if they’re busy working with a pig project and putting in all this time and effort, they’ll think twice about the destructive decisions that come their way.
The Dream Team program provides everything for the members, at no cost to them or their families, Ragland explained, which is another reason why each class of Dream Teamers is set at nine. Ragland finds and purchases the project pigs for the Dream Teamers just like he does for traditional 4-H members who ask him. All of the feed, veterinary care as well as housing and their 4-H membership fee are covered for the Dream Team members too. Funding comes from private sources and in part from the sale of the pigs after the county fair.
“The ultimate goal is that we hope that the kiddo’s pig is quality enough to make the premium sale at our county show,” Ragland said. “It doesn’t always happen because our county show rules say only the top 75 percent of each class is eligible for the premium sale.” If a Dream Teamer’s pig doesn’t happen to make the sale, there is a group of angel supporters in the county who will add on dollars to that youngster’s pig, he explained. It’s not a lot, but it is a small premium for the kids above market price.
That matters because if the Dream Team participant’s pig brings a gross amount of $500 or more, then the money is divided into a 10-10-80 split, Ragland said.
“So, whatever the gross dollars are for that kiddo, we give them 10 percent of that right up front because we feel like they need some immediate reward for their effort,” Ragland said. “Then 10 percent goes back into the Dream Team program to support future participants. Then the remaining 80 percent goes into an individual scholarship fund for that particular kiddo that they don’t receive until they graduate high school. It’s an incentive for this group because these at-risk kids tend to have high drop-out rates. We want to keep them in school until they graduate at least.”
Since 2011 the Dream Team has nudged 31 of Ragland’s “kiddos” toward a better path. For the youth and their families, the Dream Team is an opportunity to come together as a family through the project work.
“I thought it would be fun,” said Brooke Carrithers, one of the Dream Team participants who came out to the barn to speak on behalf of the program. “I love animals, and my mom showed pigs when she was in 4-H.”
Brooke’s mom, Charlyn Carrithers, said she’s seen the blossoming of her daughter’s confidence through the program.
“She’s doing so awesome, I’m so proud of her,” Charlyn said. “We get up at 5:30 a.m. to feed, then she’s off to school, then we come back out here around 4:30 p.m. and we’re here until 6 or 7:30 p.m. It’s just me and her, so it’s a real blessing to have this.” And the program works some magic on the parents as well. Charlyn uses her past showing knowledge to help the other kids when they need it. She also sees her and her daughter becoming closer.
“It’s a blessing to these kids to have one chance to do this,” she said. “At least the kids have a chance to see how to raise an animal, get that responsibility and that applies beyond that to other areas.”
Kent David, father of Dream Teamer Claire David, echoed those sentiments. “This is the biggest commitment she’s ever done,” he said. And the Dream Team project has inspired Claire to get further involved in other 4-H project work. It challenges her and that’s good for her, he added.
Ragland said the benefits even transfer over into the traditional 4-H members who house their pigs out at the same barn. They learn not every kid in every family has the same opportunities, and some find their own leadership lessons in helping the Dream Teamers with their project learning.
There was no template for the Dream Team committee to follow when they developed the program, Ragland said.
“You have to surround yourself with a group of people passionate about the idea,” he said. “We had so many committee meetings trying to develop the program, our bylaws and guidelines. Then we had to become a 501(c)(3) for fundraising. The best advice I would give is to have a goal, then surround yourself with supporters who are passionate about the same idea you have.” Without the Randall County Commissioners and the court, a lot of the things we have in place today wouldn’t be possible, he added. They raised the funding for the facility and are some of the biggest, most vocal cheerleaders of the Dream Team in the county.
“Do we think we can save them all?” Ragland asked. “No. We know that going in. But if we just save a few, then the program, the funding, the time, the effort, the support money is all worth it if we can keep them out of trouble.”
It’s a nudge in the right direction for kiddos who need it.
Photo: Dream Team participants drive their pigs to the outdoor show pen at the Digger Howard 4H Livestock Barn.