What are Special Interest Programs?
Special Interest Programs are special learning experiences that are not part of a club or school. They have a minimum time of at least 6 hours and over at least 6 weeks.
Ag Mechanics (Welding & Woodworking)
About the program: info coming soon
Time Commitment: info coming soon
Shooting Sports: Archery
About the program: When you think of archery, you might picture pulling back the bowstring and releasing an arrow toward the target. Yes, that’s part of it—but in this project, youth will experience much more!
Participants will:
- Learn about equipment, safety practices, and range commands.
- Develop proper shooting form while exploring different types of bows, arrows, and tips.
- Create and maintain archery equipment, including inspecting, servicing, and making simple repairs.
- Play fun target archery games in a safe and controlled environment.
We plan to have no additional costs to families for participation in the project. A field trip or two may be offered during the year, with only minimal costs associated.
Time Commitment: The group will meet one to two times per month, depending on group size and ages. The exact schedule will be set once enrollment is complete. Our current plan is to meet on Sunday afternoons, with a finalized schedule coming soon.
If you have questions about this Special Interest Program, please email for more information. To sign up, enroll at https://4h.zsuite.org, select the Special Interest Programs unit then select the Shooting Sports: Archery project. Once you've completed the enrollment portion, then pay the enrollment fee here. The enrollment fee covers your 4-H enrollment from July 1 thru June 30.
Equestrian Drill Team
About the program: Contact the leader, Kaitlyn Snow, prior to enrolling in the Equestrian Drill Team.
Time Commitment: Meets most Thursdays from 5:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m., October thru June for practice. Also participate in competitions, events, and parades throughout the year.
FRC High School Robotics Team
About the program: The team is for all High School students in South Placer County. We participate in FIRST Robotics Competition (FRC). We are Vortechs FRC 3257.
Time Commitment: During the 3 month season we meet 17 to 23 hours per week. We attend three to four 3 day competitions that are about 30 hours each.
For the season each member puts in about 276 to 306 hours. The programing and cad team each put in about 20 to 40 hours more.
Members must be High School students in South Placer County. If you would like to join this Special Interest Program, please email for more information and to sign up.
Placer County Livestock Judging Team
About the program:
Time Commitment: The Placer County Livestock Judging youth practice thru the year. The group generally meets one to two times a month in person and on zoom to learn, practice and enhance their skills. Members compete at contests throughout Northern California. In August, members attend a 3 day judging camp at Chico State University in Chico, California.
Travel Requirement: Regular meetings are held in Auburn. We will occasionally be traveling semi-locally to farms in the area to practice judging live animals. Travel is required to attend all competitions, which for the most part are from the Bay Area to Chico.
Competitions we have attended include: Cow Palace Grand National Livestock Judging Contest, California Triple Crown Livestock Judging Series(includes Fall Classic at Modesto Jr. College, West Coast Elite at UC Davis & the Cattle Contest at CSU Chico) and most importantly the UC Davis State Field Day Livestock Judging Competition which is the state qualifier for Nationals.
Members must be 9 or older to participate. If you would like to join this Special Interest Program, please email for more information and to sign up.