4-H Cash Composition Contest 2026

Youth Participant

* Youth First Name

* Youth Last Name

* Address

* City

* State Alabama Alaska Alberta Arizona Arkansas British Columbia California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Manitoba Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Brunswick New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York Newfoundland & Labrador North Carolina North Dakota Nova Scotia Nunavut Ohio Oklahoma Ontario Oregon Pennsylvania Prince Edward Island Quebec Rhode Island Saskatchewan South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Yukon Not Applicable

* Zipcode

* Email We will use this e-mail for communication with registrants whether youth or adult.

* Age of youth as of January 1, 2026   9  10  11  12  13  14  15  16  17  18  19  This contest is for youth 9-19 years old as of January 1, 2026.

4-H Information

* The youth is enrolled in 4-H Online   Yes  No 

* If you selected no, are you interested in learning more about 4-H?   Already a member (if you selected yes above)   Yes, please send more information  No, I am not interested in 4-H at this time 

* County Enrolled in 4-H Alcona Alger Allegan Alpena Antrim Arenac Baraga Barry Bay Benzie Berrien Branch Calhoun Cass Charlevoix Cheboygan Chippewa Clare Clinton Crawford Delta Dickinson Eaton Emmet Genesee Gladwin Gogebic Grand Traverse Gratiot Hillsdale Houghton Huron Ingham Ionia Iosco Iron Isabella Jackson Kalamazoo Kalkaska Kent Keweenaw Lake Lapeer Leelanau Lenawee Livingston Luce Mackinac Macomb Manistee Marquette Mason Mecosta Menominee Midland Missaukee Monroe Montcalm Montmorency Muskegon Newaygo Oakland Oceana Ogemaw Ontonagon Osceola Oscoda Otsego Ottawa Presque Isle Roscommon Saginaw Sanilac Schoolcraft Shiawassee St. Clair St. Joseph Tuscola Van Buren Washtenaw Wayne Wexford Not Applicable

Youth Demographics Information

MSU Extension is interested to know more about who is attending programs to help identify potential gaps in audience reach. The following questions are optional to answer but we would appreciate any information you would be willing to give to help us understand more about our audiences served.

Parents or guardians will need to fill out demographic information for the youth if a youth is under the age of 18.

* Residence Type   Farm  Rural non-farm or town under 10,000  Town or city (10,000 - 50,000 and its suburbs)  Suburb of city with more than 50,000  Central city of more than 50,000  Prefer not to state 

* Grade   Kindergarten  1st  2nd  3rd  4th  5th  6th  7th  8th  9th  10th  11th  12th  Post-high school  Not enrolled in school  Grade does not apply 

* The youth is enrolled in a special education program   Yes  No  Choose Not to Respond 

Military Status - Family *

No one in my family is serving in the military I have/had a family member serving in the military Choose Not To Respond

Family Contact Information

* Parent/Guardian First Name

* Parent/Guardian Last Name

* E-mail This e-mail will be a secondary e-mail if needed. Primary e-mail should be shared above.

* Phone Number (with area code)

Essay Submission

Please paste or directly type the 300 word essay submission below.

* 300 word essay:

Parent/Guardian/Adult Authorization Or Over 18 Years Old Youth Authorization

I authorize Michigan State University Extension/4-H to record my image and/or the image of my child and/or voice for use by Michigan State University Extension or its assignees in research, education, and promotional programs. I understand and agree that these audio, video, film, and/or print images may be edited, duplicated, distributed, reproduced, broadcasted, and/or reformatted in any form and manner without payment of fees in perpetuity.

As a participant in the Michigan State University Extension/ 4-H program, your child may be asked to help with the evaluation of the program. Your child may be asked to complete a short survey about what he/she learned or did as a result of the program. Surveys could be given before the program begins and/or after the program has ended. Surveys typically take no more than 10 minutes to complete. All surveys are confidential. Youth are not required to participate in a survey. If you or your child does not wish to participate, it will not affect involvement in any programs of Michigan State University. If you do not want your child to participate in program evaluations or have questions about the evaluation, contact your local 4-H coordinator at the MSU Extension Office. By signing below I acknowledge that my child may be asked to participate in a short program evaluation. I understand that program evaluations are completely voluntary.

For the full media/medical/code of conduct authorization, please visit https://www.canr.msu.edu/resources/michigan-4-h-youth-enrollment-code-of-conduct-authorizations-paper-format

* Please indicate your authorization   Yes  No 

Parent/Guardian Essay Acknowledgement OR Acknowledgement by Participant 18 Years and Older

Parent/Guardian: I certify that the attached essay is fully and solely the work of my child. I recognize that all essays become the property of Michigan State University Extension 4-H Youth Development Program and may be used by staff to promote financial literacy. I understand that if this essay is found to not be original, written by another person or was generated by artificial intelligence tools, it may receive fewer points and/or be disqualified.

If participant is 18 years old or older: I certify that the attached essay is fully and solely my work. I recognize that all essays become the property of Michigan State University Extension 4-H Youth Development Program and may be used by staff to promote financial literacy. I understand that if my essay is found to not be original, written by another person, or was generated by artificial intelligence tools, it may receive less points and/or disqualified.

* I agree   Yes  No