Southern University Ag Center area agent Edna Lastrapes joins the six-member team representing the Louisiana 4-H Youth Development program.

The team was selected to participate in the Building Partnerships for Youth's Spotlighting Positive Youth Development program offered through a partnership between National 4-H Council and the University of Arizona. According to the Louisiana 4-H Club, the selection for the conference was very competitive with fewer than 15% of applicants being accepted.

"I expect to develop greater knowledge of how positive youth development can address the many issues facing youth in Louisiana with a focus on the issues faced by youth in the Southwest Center's service region," said Lastrapes.

The effort will provide the team with an opportunity to learn ways to coordinate efforts of deliberate incorporation of positive youth development into programs and policies. According to Louisiana 4-H, the overall goal of the program is to produce a systems-level impact that supports youth throughout the state.

"With this knowledge, our team will design a plan to build greater capacity by forming a coalition and offering a youth development conference for youth and adult teams throughout the state, which will include students and adults who I am currently working with," said Lastrapes who organizes the youth programs of the Southwest Center for Rural Initiatives' 10-parish region.

"By creating a coalition and facilitating collaboration, the goal will be to engage youth in positive youth development experiences with caring adults yielding a better informed, healthy, and supported youth," she said.

Members of Louisiana’s team are:

• Eve Franchebois, Collegiate 4-H
• David Free, Collegiate 4-H and Pastor, Memorial Baptist Church
• Lanette Hebert, Regional 4-H Coordinator, Louisiana 4-H, LSU AgCenter
• Edna Lastrapes, Area Agent, Youth Development, Southern University
• Trey Williams, Department of Social Services, State of Louisiana
• John Wyble, Louisiana CASA Association

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