Healthy living summit for teens

B'Onko Sadler, Michigan State University Extension -

Teens can take their passion for healthy living to the National Youth Summit on Healthy Living hosted by the National 4-H Council. Applications are Michigan youth are still being accepted.

For the past three years the National 4-H Council has been hosting a National Youth Summit on Healthy Living built strictly for youth in grades 9-12 that helps to develop the necessary life skills and knowledge to stay engaged in addressing today’s issues for childhood obesity, nutrition, physical fitness, personal safety and overall wellness. Youth that attend this summit gain useful skills as they work in their state teams to develop a state action plan. They present their action plans to adults and peers to gain confidence in presenting and also to be comfortable translating their ideas to an audience. While they get hands-on training, they figure out the structure in how to make it happen at the community level back home.

Youth engage with other youth from other states to learn about culture and teambuilding. Youth also get to experience breakout sessions that lets them experience healthy programs at the local colleges, career panels and historical experiences in the Washington D.C. area. Youth also experience current programs that give them insight on addressing youth issues as it relates to healthy eating, physical fitness, personal safety and social emotional health.

Michigan has taken six youth in the first year and four youth in 2015 to attend this summit. We are currently waiting to receive applications for the 2016 trip. If you know a teen that has a passion for healthy living and may be interested in an opportunity to attend the upcoming healthy living summit, please have them contact their Michigan State University Extension county office.

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).

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