UNL CWF 2025 and Beyond

A UNL Zoom meeting was held Tuesday, November 28 to discuss CWF in 2025 and Beyond.

Presenters included: 

Kathleen Lodl UNL 4-H Program Leader:  402-472-2966 or klodl1@unl.edu

Molly Brandt, UNL 4-H Extension Educator in charge of CWF

 

Lodl announced that UNL 4-H was making drastic changes in the future for CWF.  The 2024 CWF Trip is a go and reservations have been made with the National 4-H Council. Future trips scheduled after 2024 will no longer be offered. This cancels our proposed 2025 trip. 

When Lodl was asked if counties could plan their own trips which would be comparable to the CWF experience, she said “No” for two reasons.

  1.  Liability is too high a risk for the university to allow us as individuals to plan the trip even if hiring a travel agent.
  2. Employees would use too much UNL time doing the preparation for such a trip.

Local staff have evaluated possible avenues to continue offering the CWF program.  Unfortunately, UNL will not allow any such trips to be administered through UNL Extension offices.  Any similar trip planning would have to be done personally, by the parents. 

Lodl guaranteed all youth which have money being housed at the Nebraska 4-H Foundation will receive a full reimbursement of their earned funds. 

Nebraska has two groups planning CWF trips in May/June of 2024. Contacts were made with these two groups about the possibility of our youth joining their 2024 CWF trip. However, it has since been announced that CWF is SOLD OUT nationally.

        UNL suggested 2 alternative trips for youth: 

1.      Close-up- Offered by public Middle and High Schools with no 4-H affiliation. OR

2.      4-H Ignite Youth Conference- hosted in D.C. for a 4-day experience where high-school aged teens connect, make memories and find their spark by exploring the best 4-H has to offer in STEM, Agriscience, Healthy Living, Career Readiness and Emotional Well-being. Held in March (This year date:  March 9-12 conflicts with state shooting sports dates). To attend the 4 day 4-H Ignite Conference, the cost would be approximately $1,150 - $1750 excluding travel expenses. More information is available at:

https://4-h.org/events/ignite-by-4-h/

 

All SPCT CWF participant’s money is held at the Nebraska 4-H Foundation. The 4-H Foundation will draft a check to the Nuckolls County 4-H Council for the entire SPCT CWF account balance. This money will be dispersed by the Nuckolls County 4-H Council to reimburse youth their individual account balances.  These checks are expected to be mailed mid/late January, 2024.  Individual account balances have been emailed to each CWF member. If you did not receive an email, please contact me. I ask you to reply to said email including the mailing address you prefer to have your reimbursement checks mailed to.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions. Kathleen Lodl’s phone and email are also listed above for your convenience.

 

Sincerely,

Jean Stichka

SPCT CWF Trip Accountant