Why join 4-H?                                                                             

Think you're too young to be in 4-H? Not for the 4-H Cloverbuds!                                                     

Our youngest 4-H'ers aren't quite ready to participate in many of the project areas and/or activities that their older siblings can but there's still plenty to do in 4-H, starting with fun!

The Cloverbud experience emphasizes on participation, learning, and teamwork, not competition. Anyone ages 5-7 can become a 4-H Cloverbud and start building their skills for their future "career" as a 4-H member.  

Wonder how tap dancers do the paradiddle? Curious how many eggs chickens lay? Dream of inventing a robot to do your chores? Budding gardener but still a sprout? Wonder how to become president? Aspire to be a fashionista?

Life's little questions aren't meant to be answered alone. In 4-H, kids learn practical things like pet care, growing gardens or building things - and important values like responsibility, leadership, and teamwork. Explore things that spark your interest! Discover new talents! Make new friends! Develop important skills! And best of all, have fun!

So whether you are in the city or the boonies, become a Pennington County 4-H member today and we'll tackle life's little questions together! 4-H is open to anyone ages 8-18.

4-H Ages: 

Cloverbuds 5-7 - not allowed to show large livestock or join shooting sports

Beginners 8-10

Juniors 11-13

Seniors 14-18

Why become a volunteer?

Want to make a difference? Eager to give back to your community? Enjoy working with young people? Ready to share your special talents?

There are a lot of reasons to become a Pennington County 4-H volunteer! Volunteers are critical to the success of 4-H youth by serving in a number of capacities: some choose to help at camp, teach a workshop or lead a club, while others chaperone an event, lend their professional skills or help at the fair.

As they provide hands-on guidance and real-world experience, these volunteers also offer young people another crucially important element: a healthy adult role model who helps build their confidence and ignite their dreams for the future. By giving your time to young people in your community, you'll help them answer life's little questions, achieve big dreams, and prepare for a lifetime of success.

How do I join?

Come on down to the Pennington County 4-H office for the chance to meet the Youth Program Advisors, talk about the 4-H program and register. 

Click Here (2023-2024 Family Handbook) for information about Pennington County 4-H, how to sign up and a list of Clubs in Pennington County, SD.

Enrollment for the 2023-2024 year begins October 1st, 2023

You will need to sign up online and pay at the office. There is not an option to pay online.

Call the Pennington County 4-H office at 605-394-2188 or email pennington.county@sdstate.edu for more information.

What if I'm already a member?

Great! Re-Enrollment is from October 1st - December 31st each year. Re-enrollment online will happen starting in October 1st for the 2023-2024 year, please watch for an email from our office for instructions when re-enrollment is available. You can come to the office and pay your dues starting October 1st. 

Here are some instructions:

Go to v2.4honline.com - Select "South Dakota"

When you get to the Login page you will be able to select if you already have a profile, which you do.  Use your email as the username and enter your password.  

Once you are Logged In you will Click on “Go To Family” then you should see a list of family members. Click “edit” behind a name you want to re-enroll.

Scroll to the bottom and click re-enroll for “2023-2024 4-H year” and go through all the pages to make sure all the information is correct.

Then repeat for the next family member.

All newly re-enrolled members will be "Pending" until you pay the annual fee at the office.  

Once you are re-enrolled you will need to pay ($5 for members, $15 for volunteers) to the Pennington County 4-H office (601 E Centre St, Rapid City).

Cash, Check, or Credit Card, but Credit Card does cost an extra 2.75% to cover the fees the credit card service charges.

After payment the office will enter the information on 4-H Online and your account will change to "Active", you are then ready for the new 4-H Year.