The Texas 4-H Water Ambassador Program provides high school age youth an opportunity to gain advanced knowledge and practice leadership skills related to the science, technology, engineering, and management of water in Texas.
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This issue:
- 4-H Water Ambassadors Making Waves in their Communities
- Texas Water Industry Opening Doors and Inspiring Youth Leaders
- Applications Open Soon for 2018-2019 4-H Water Ambassadors
- How to Become a 2018 Sponsor
- 2017-2018 4-H Water Ambassadors
- Follow us on Social Media
Please join me in spreading the word of this unique opportunity to grow the next generation of Texas water leaders!
David Smith, 4-H2O Program Coordinator
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4-H Water Ambassadors Making Waves in their Communities
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Since July 2017, water ambassadors have provided more than
350 hours of service and have reached more than 4,500 adults and youth with water education. They lead water education efforts in their schools, 4-H clubs, and at community events. Several ambassadors have also presented to their local groundwater conservation districts and at regional water planning meetings. Here are few highlights of their activities ...
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Logan West (Wilson Co.) discussed 4-H Water Ambassadors and water conservation with 4-H Club members.
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Hale Ingram (Montgomery Co.) led interactive games on water pollution and Texas water facts at the Outdoor & Sporting Banquet in Conroe.
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Amanda Lochte (Bexar Co.) participated in the Watershed Health and Low Impact Development worshop at the Eco Centro hosted by the San Antonio River Authority.
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Molly McKinney (Bexar Co.) participated in the San Antonio Water System Open House to learn about water conservation education and to explore how she and other school members could contribute.
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John Phillip Jones (Waller Co.) demonstrated stream flow erosion and deposition to ~650 4th graders at the Waller County Ag Day in Hempstead.
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Kyndal Sligh (McLennan Co.) and Kolby Dague (Bell Co.) promoted the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program at the 17th Bell County Water Symposium in Killeen.
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Jovana Pena, Maggie Garcia, and Gerardo Garcia (Nolan Co.) delivered a presentation and plaque to sponsor Wes-Tex Groundwater Conservation District in Sweetwater.
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Christian Hernandez (Brazoria Co.), Logan West (Wilson Co.) and Grant Miller (Nueces Co.) represented the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program at the Texas Water Conservation Association Fall Conference in San Antonio.
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Kolby Dague (Bell Co.) taught the water cycle by playing the water web game for Holland ISD first graders.
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Jovana Pena (Nolan Co.) delivered a presentation on the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program and played a Kahoot.it water game with Roscoe Collegiate high school students.
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John Phillip Jones (Waller Co.) participated in the Region H Water Planning Meeting and spoke about the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program.
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Kolby Dague (Bell Co.) delivered a presentation on the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program to American Legion Post #526 and Ladies Auxiliary in Holland.
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John Phillip Jones (Waller Co.) presented about the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program at the Waller County Commissioners Court.
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Christian Hernandez (Brazoria Co.) presented a poster titled "Assessing Restoration EcoCulture - A Comparison of Agriculture Systems at the 2017 Conference of Texas Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration in Dallas.
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Jonah McGinty (Walker Co.) taught about water erosion and demonstrated a stream table for New Waverly Intermediate School students.
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Logan West (Wilson Co.) delivered a presentation on water conservation and the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program for the Bluebonnet 4-H Club.
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John Phillip Jones (Waller Co.) delivered a presentation about the 4-H Water Ambassadors Program at the December Groundwater Management Area 14 board meeting.
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Amanda Lochte (Bexar Co.) delivered a presentation on Water Quality Testing as part of the District 10 Speech and Presentation Competition. Earned 2nd place and will be headed to State in June 2018. Congratulations Amanda!
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Molly McKinney and Amanda Lochte (Bexar Co.) completed on a model of the Mitchell Lake Audubon watershed. They plan to present their work at the 20 San Antonio Water System Confluence Conference as their SAWS IMPACT team project.
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Christian Hernandez (Brazoria Co.) participated in the First Basin 11 TDML (Total Maximum Daily Load) Chocolate Bayou Water Planning Coordination Committee. Reviewed bacteria data, point/non-point sources, and relative impacts of each. He also joined working groups to involve the community.
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Texas Water Industry Opening Doors and Inspiring Youth Leaders
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Thanks to the support of many in the Texas water industry, 4-H Water Ambassadors are being exposed to a broad perspective of water issues - from water law, policy, and management to water treatment, emerging technologies, and conservation. These individuals have also been given a platform to engage with their peers and community members and are developing leadership qualities that will serve them a lifetime.
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Molly McKinney (Bexar Co.)
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"I have had the opportunity to learn a lot of new things and explore the water industry this past summer. I gained a new perspective: Water doesn’t just appear in your faucets and hoses, it’s carefully planned and managed by a community of passionate people.”
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Christian Hernandez (Brazoria Co.)
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"As an amateur ecologist and small farmer equipped by Texas 4-H2O, I have recently presented on new agriculture methods that protect soil and water at a science conference, and joined a citizen-lead committee to manage water pollution on Chocolate Bayou in Brazoria County."
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John Phillip Jones (Waller Co.)
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“The Texas 4-H Water Ambassadors Program has opened my eyes to a whole new world of water, both in industry and government. This program has provided me with many opportunities to increase my leadership skills, especially in the areas of teaching and teamwork.”
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Kaleb Herfurth (Guadalupe Co.)
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“The water ambassador program has impacted me in many ways. I have become a better leader as well as a better advocate for our water. This program helped me to gain way more knowledge about water than I ever thought imaginable!”
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Jonah McGinty (Walker Co.)
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"Ever since I have joined the Texas Water Ambassadors I have learned more about the Texas water systems than I ever knew existed. It has changed my life in many ways as it has taught me responsibility and leadership."
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Amanda Lochte (Bexar Co.)
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"Not only did I learn how to communicate with others in the industry, but I also learned the "behind the scenes" of how we are provided with clean water every day. I gained a newfound respect for those working for a cleaner and conserved future."
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"I feel this program has changed me in so many ways, I can tell everyone about water and how important it is and all the laws and research that is being done. It has also given me a insight with our city officials and how our water systems work, the city manager plans on having back to experience other opportunities in water as well."
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James Schoenfeldt (Brewster Co.)
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"I learned that while we only have a finite amount of water, there are infinite ways to responsibly use this resource. We have already begun desalinating water to have more fresh water for use, and that just because water has been used does not mean that it cannot be reused. In fact the water we drink is the same water the dinosaurs drank when they were on this earth, humans though choose to use more than the dinosaurs do, and we use it for everything, drinking, power, even recreation. There are even laws protecting water sources and keeping it from being damaged or polluted in any way, and at the same time there are also laws regulating the use of water to make sure we still have some for future generations."
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Applications Open Soon for 2018-2019 4-H Water Ambassadors
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Do you know of someone in your community that might be interested in becoming a 4-H Water Ambassador?
Online applications for the 2018-2019 class of 4-H Water Ambassadors will be accepted February 19 through May 20. More details about the Program and application instructions are available online at
https://texas4-h.tamu.edu/projects/water/. To be eligible, youth must be entering the 9th, 10th, or 11th grades for the 2018-2019 school year.
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How to Become a 2018 Sponsor
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The 4-H Water Ambassadors Program is made possible by the generous support of individuals, businesses, and organizations in the Texas water industry. In 2017, approximately $25,000 in sponsorships were collected to support the summer 4-H2O Youth Leadership Academy as well as ambassador education and service opportunities throuhgout the year.
In 2018, plans are to support the activities of the inaugural cohort for a second year, and to welcome a new class of Water Ambassadors. If you or your organization sponsored in 2017, we hope that you will continue to support this important effort in 2018. For others, please consider supporting the Texas 4-H Water Ambassador Program. Information about the Program, sponsorship levels and benefits are included in the
Texas 4-H Water Ambassadors Program brochure.
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Thanks to our 2017 Sponsors
Signature Sponsor
- Central Texas Groundwater Conservation District
Legacy Sponsors
- Hill Country Underground Water Conservation District
- Bluebonnet Groundwater Conservation District
- Hickory Underground Water Conservation District No. 1
- Lloyd-Gosselink Associates
- High Plains Water District
Advocate Sponsors
- Clearwater Underground Water Conservation District
- Real-Edwards Conservation & Reclamation District
- San Antonio Water System
- Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District
- Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District
- Southern Ogallala Conservation & Outreach Program
Stewardship Sponsors
- Bandera County River Authority
- Central Texas Water Coalition
- Crockett County Groundwater Conservation District
- Dirk and Cindy Aaron
- Glasscock Groundwater Conservation District
- Lone Star Groundwater Conservation District
- Permian Basin Underground Water Conservation District
- Pecan Valley Conservation District
- Santa Rita Underground Water Conservation District
- Sterling County Underground Water Conservation District
- Texas Agricultural Irrigation Association
- Texas Rural Water Foundation
- Uvalde County Underground Water Conservation District
- Menard County Underground Water District
- Sutton County Underground Water Conservation District
- Wes-Tex Groundwater Conservation District
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2017-2018 4-H Water Ambassadors
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Bottom row (left to right).
Whitney Grantham (Bell Co. Extension Agent); Amanda Lochte (Jr., Bexar Co.); Lindsey Jones (Sr., Johnson Co.); David Smith (4-H2O Program Coordinator); Kyndal Sligh (Sr., McLennan Co.); Molly McKinney (Jr., Bexar Co.); Christian Hernandez (Sr., Brazoria Co.); Magdalena Garcia (Jr., Nolan Co.); Jovana Pena (Jr., Nolan Co.)
Top row (left to right).
Kolby Dague (Jr., Bell Co.); James Schoenfeldt (So., Brewster Co.); John Jones (Jr., Waller Co.); Grant Miller (So., Nueces Co.); Jonah McGinty (Jr., Walker Co.); Dr. Askarali Karimov (Extension Program Specialist); Hale Ingram (Jr., Montgomery Co.); Kaleb Herfurth (So., Guadalupe Co.); Logan West (So., Wilson Co.); Gerardo Garcia (So., Nolan Co.)
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Follow us on Social Media
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Visit our social media sites (links below) to keep current on Texas 4-H Water Ambassador Program activities.
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Texas 4-H is part of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas A&M System. Founded in 1908, 4-H is the largest youth development program in Texas, reaching more than 550,000 youth each year.
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Educational programs of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service are open to all people without regard to race, color, sex, religion, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or veteran status. The Texas A&M University System, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the County Commissioners Courts of Texas Cooperating.
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Texas 4-H Water Ambassadors Program | (979) 862-1989 | davidsmith@tamu.edu
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