Tiffany Cervantes began her duties as the 4-H extension program coordinator Jan. 9. She worked for the Extension office for 10 years prior to this new position.
Her duties cover programs and education in Clark, Crawford and Edgar counties. Her role is to expand and promote youth leadership and workforce preparation programs in the communities.
Originally from San Diego, Calif., Cervantes moved here in 2007. Prior to working for the Extension office, she was employed at the Marshall Public Library where she worked with youth and gained valuable experience for the Extension program coordinator.
“I have always been a people person, so I enjoy working with the public,” Cervantes said.
She has two outreach programs being introduced to schools. I Dream, I Create is a program for kindergarten through 12th grade. The focus is facing reality and the real world by learning adult and life skills. Her dream is to locate a coordinator that can become a leader in each county.
“I’d really like to see this program take off in other counties,” she said.
The other program is Welcome To The Real World. Students choose a career, buy a house, buy a car, open up a bank account, pay utilities and learn different lifestyles based upon their salaries.
“This is a real eye opener for the students. They are faced with reality and all of life’s challenges,” said Cervantes.
A Career Fair was recently held in area schools. Many business professionals assisted in helping students fill out a job application, learn the proper attire when preparing for an interview, what job skills are needed in a particular career and the policies of social media.
Cervantes recently held a Poverty Simulation for the staff at Shiloh School covering how living in poverty is an impediment to learning.
“The program was well received and we will continue to present similar programs in the future for other schools,” Cervantes said.