Floyd County Extension Director Keith Mickler said he was blind-sided by the proposed University of Georgia budget cuts that would eliminate all 4-H programs in the state under a worst-case scenario.

He wasn’t alone. Mickler told members of his Urban Agriculture Advisory Leadership Committee that J. Scott Angle, dean of the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at UGA, was not privy to the recommendations until they were announced late last month.

“We know that we’re going to take cuts, we ask that they be fair and just,” Mickler said.

The Floyd County extension chief told his advisory group that the proposed budget cuts have gotten the reaction they deserve, but told the panel that its help is needed in the effort to hold on to as much money as possible.

“If they cut as drastically as they say they’re going to cut, we wouldn’t be able to operate,” said Polk County extension director Ricky Ensley.

Click here to visit the Floyd Extension Office Web site.

There are more than 6,700 students enrolled in 4-H across seven counties in Northwest Georgia. Statewide, the program serves more than 156,000 youth.

Ending the program would save the University of Georgia an estimated $6.3 million.

Dr. Darrell Lowrey, a Rome orthopedic surgeon, grew up on a farm in Floyd County and said being a member of 4-H was a natural thing for him to do.

“It allowed me an opportunity to see a whole new world. I got to go to Atlanta, Washington, D.C. I won a state project and went to Chicago. It was the first time I got to fly,” said Lowrey.

The surgeon said losing 4-H would be a tragedy.

“It shaped my life. It develops leadership, citizenship and allows you to grow as a person,” said Lowrey.

Vera Brock, a member of the nursing faculty at Georgia Highlands College, which is dealing with its own set of budget woes, grew up in a 4-H family. “I got a lot of discipline during the formative years from 4-H. It taught me to make goals and how to reach out and grab for those goals, said Brock.

Casey Hobbs is the Walker County Extension agent in charge of 4-H Youth Development.

“I was a 4-Her myself and I know if it wasn’t for the nine years I spent in the program I wouldn’t have the public speaking skills and I wouldn’t have been able to do so well in college and do what I do today,” said Hobbs.

Beth Carlan-Watson, the 4-H agent for Gordon County, is a third generation 4-Her.

“I’ve seen what this program can do from both sides,” she said. “I was that shy fifth-grader who learned how to speak in public. Now I do it all the time and I see how this program helps children,” said Carlan-Watson.

Barbara Carter, a retired extension home economist in Floyd County, said the loss of even a portion of the funds for 4-H would be a huge blow to the youth of the state.

“4-H channels you toward activities that lead to careers,” Carter said.

Ensley said each county is a little different in what activities they offer. Some counties focus on farm-related activities, while others may emphasize general leadership skills.

“It’s not just cows and cooking,” said Charles Lancaster, the Extension coordinator in Catoosa County. “There’s public speaking, leadership, and a number of other projects that allow the kids to dig in deep and learn a lot from.”

Floyd County has not had a 4-H agent since Sylvia Johnston retired last June. The county has a part-time 4-H program assistant, Mary Donahue, whose position is funded by the state. Another part-time program assistant, Elizabeth Brewster is funded by Floyd County.

Mickler’s advisory committee discussed the encouragement of written letters to lawmakers, e-mail, and telephone calls. “You can’t deny a big canvas bag full of letters,” said Shannen Ferry, a member of the advisory group from Georgia Northwestern Technical College.

The University of Georgia’s proposal to end the 4-H programs would eliminate 116 filled positions, including 94 county 4-H agents.

In addition to the layoffs, the action would result in the closure of five 4-H facilities, including the Rock Eagle camp near Eatonton.

The 1,400-acre camp is nestled in the pines of the Oconee National Forest and is also used by North Georgia Conference of the United Methodist Church for its annual United Methodist Men weekend.

Allyson Hyde Dixon, an administrative secretary at Johnson Elementary School in Rome, was in 4-H from fifth grade all the way through high school.

She served as president for both Model High and the Floyd County chapter.

“I went to Rock Eagle many times. It was always great getting to meet so many people from all over the state,” Dixon said.

Savannah Kirkland, a seventh-grade 4-Her in Gordon County, said she learned archery and canoeing skills through the program.

“I don’t think getting rid of the program is a good idea because it helps kids learn and do better in school. It gets us ready for real life,” Savannah said.

Lowrey said he served as a camp counselor at Rock Eagle and called it the finest 4-H camp in the nation.

Notable Georgia 4-H alumni include Nancy Grace, host of her own CNN Headline News and Court TV programs; Hershel Walker, a Heisman Trophy winner at the University of Georgia; Trisha Yearwood, multi-platinum and multi- Grammy award winning country singer; Wayne Shackleford, former Georgia DOT commissioner and Rosalyn Carter, former first lady and wife of former President Jimmy Carter.

The budget axe also calls for the closure of half of the county extension offices in the state.

That would save the college another $5 million. Mickler reminded his advisory group that the University of Georgia was a land grant college and has money that was set aside specifically for the furtherance of agricultural education.

The local advisory committee is seeking to organize a massive letter writing campaign from garden clubs, the local farm bureau, the cattlemen’s association, just about anyone who has anything to do with agriculture.

They’re not only asking people to write to members of the local legislative delegation, but to all of the members of the House and Senate Appropriations committees.

This past Thursday morning the chairmen of the House and Senate Higher Education Appropriations subcommittees, Rep. Earl Ehrhart, R-Powder Springs and Sen. Seth Harp, R-Midland, conducted a news conference where they said they never intended for the University System budget to be slashed to the full $300 million that was announced Feb. 26.

Harp, however, made it clear in a session with Chancellor Erroll B. Davis Jr. that legislators wanted a $300 million cut list, not excuses, from Davis. Gov. Sonny Perdue also alleged that the university system was intentionally attempting to stir up the populace by releasing a list of cuts that it never intended to make.

Ferry said the drastic cuts, “were intended to spark interest and outrage and did just that.” She also encouraged the extension advisory group to get a plan of action ready for the second wave, after it becomes a little clearer how much will actually be cut from the budget.

Susan Kirkland, Calhoun Times; Melody Dareing, Rockmart Journal; Adam Cook, Catoosa County News and Becky McDaniel, Walker County Messenger, contributed to this report.