Virginia 4-H State Congress

Virginia’s first annual 4-H Boys’ and Girls’ State Short Course was held in Aug. 1919 on the campus of Virginia Tech. The weeklong event provided instruction in agriculture and home economics to 167 young people from 39 counties. An annual short course for African American youth began at Hampton Institute in Aug. 1923 and moved to Virginia State College in 1931. The course was desegregated in 1966 and became known as Virginia 4-H State Congress in 1967. The premier event for Virginia’s 4-H participants, its mission is to instill life skills and leadership abilities by providing competitive and non-competitive educational experiences.

Department of Historic Resources, 2020