September 12, 2000

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. — The ability to think on your feet and tell a judge on the spot why one horse, calf, pig or even a tree is better than another could some day impress a potential employer.

Just ask Stacie Jacob, a former member of the Dawson County 4-H meats and livestock judging teams. Jacob went on to compete at the collegiate level with the University of Nebraska meats and livestock judging teams. Today, she works with clients to counsel and implement national and regional communication programs in her job as account supervisor at Fleischman-Hillard Inc., an international public relations firm in Kansas City.

Jacob is just one of scores of former 4-H'ers to attest to the benefits of judging contests. In 1999, 61 Nebraska 4-H alumni were surveyed about their 4-H judging experiences. Respondents said their judging experiences contributed to an ability to think on their feet, while 98 percent said judging enhanced their decision-making skills. Eighty-five percent said the skills learned in 4-H help them express ideas, organize and plan.

NU 4-H offers a wide variety of judging contests at the county, district and state level. Four-H'ers can judge everything from livestock and horses to horticulture and family and consumer sciences.

"The benefits I learned are priceless," Jacob said. "Judging helped strengthen my self-confidence, gave me the ability to think quickly on my feet and taught me to make logical decisions in a timely manner. Judging taught me to think through decisions and defend my reasoning, even when others don't agree. (That's) the beauty of oral reasons."

Reasons are components of 4-H judging contests requiring youth to justify their placings. Reasons may be oral or written, but either way, 4-H'ers use reasons to defend their placing of a class to an official. The 4-H'ers are given a few minutes to study the animal or object before determining first through fourth placings. Their placings are compared against an official placing. However, it's not so much whether the placings are correct as the confidence and rationale built in explaining the selections to the judge.

Dave Stenberg, Dawson County extension educator and Jacob's coach, agrees with her about the positive side effects he sees in a 4-H'er?s self-esteem.

"The kids change from being a member of the audience to being a leader because of the self-confidence they gained from judging," he said. "They develop the ability to make decisions and stand on their own."

Stenberg continues to coach 4-H judging teams because of the leadership and decision-making skills it develops in 4-H'ers.

Marshall Frasier was a member of the Dundy County 4-H Range Judging Team for three years. Not only did he learn range plant identification and evaluation, but Frasier also was able to develop his communication skills.

"It (judging) provided an opportunity for me to begin to think analytically about real-world problems and improved my confidence in speaking in front of people," he said. "This opened doors to other opportunities for me - mostly by allowing me to see myself doing things I had not imagined before."

Today, Frasier is a professor at Colorado State University in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.

Judging experiences not only had an effect on skills former 4-H'ers use in their job, but they also affected some of the careers chosen.

"It (judging) was a big influence on my career choice and doing my job everyday," said Linda Hartman, former Frontier County 4-H'er who competed in both family and consumer sciences and livestock judging.

As a store manager for Talbots, a women's specialty chain store in Lincoln, Hartman oversees four assistant managers and 25 associates. Hartman also serves as a training store manager. She is in charge of training new managers in her store and then following up by traveling to the new manager's store.

In addition, Hartman is responsible for coordinating fashion shows throughout the year. She says oral reasons in judging have helped her with being able to stand up in front of people and talk about the clothes.

"I am able to use reasoning skills (learned in judging) to persuade or help people with decision making," she said. "Most of my job is selling, which is a direct correlation to my judging experience."

In 1999, 762 4-H'ers participated in judging contests.

Results from the survey were published in a University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension Report to Our Partners, "4-H Alumni Value Experience in 4-H Judging Contests."

09/12/00-TM

Sandra Stockall
4-H & Youth Development
Professor
(308) 532-3611 - Ext. 135

T.L. Meyer
Communications Associate - West Central Research Extension Center
(308) 532-3611 - ext. 150

Department: 4-H Youth Development