Posted on August 24, 2012 at 3:09 PM by Global Reach
Theodore "Ted" Hutchcroft - Information Director, National 4-H Club Foundation
Hometown: Mediapolis, Iowa Nominated by: National 4-H Council
Major 4-H Accomplishments
Iowa 4-H member, 1942-1950. IFYE delegate to United Kingdom, 1949; Life member, IFYE USA. Campus 4-H, Iowa State College, 1950-1953. National 4-H Club Foundation Information Director, 1959-1967. Director of Inter-American Rural Youth Program (PIJR), 1970-75. Authored World Atlas of 4-H and Similar Rural Youth Educational Programs.
Honors Iowa State Univ., B.S., agricultural journalism, 1953; PhD, education, 1978; American University. M.A., communications, 1959. Public Relations Soc. of America, AR Chapter; Accredited, 1968; Fellow, 1994, Crystal Award, 1999. Agricultural Communicators in Education (ACE) Professional Award, 1990; International Award for Excellence, 1991.
Biography Ted Hutchcroft was a Mediapolis Junior Farmers 4-H Club dairy project member. He was an IFYE to Great Britain in1949. Ted was hired as Information Director of the National 4-H Club Foundation in 1959. He was active on severalnational 4-H public relations committees to shape the reputation of 4-H as a strong, highly regarded experiential youth development program. His previous work included USDA Information Specialist, Iowa Farm Bureau Federation director of a weekly radio station tape service, and associate in a weekly television film service. During undergraduate studies atIowa State in Agriculture Journalism, he was Editor of Iowa Agriculturalist magazine, among the nation's top student managed agricultural magazines.
When the Foundation assumed responsibility for the Inter-American Rural Youth Program, Hutchcroft was named Director. PIJR was a joint, cooperative program serving Latin America and Caribbean countries. Its purpose was to cooperate with national governments and institutions and private organizations to develop effective informal educational programs so the rural young people could contribute to increasing agricultural production and improving rural living conditions. Now retired, Hutchcroft recently donated his invaluable collection of National 4-H Foundation and PIJR publications to the National 4-H History Preservation Program.
Quote 4-H evolved in rural America is a unique informal educational method. 
Volunteer leaders - adults and youth - helped spark a revolution in agricultural production and improved rural life. I grew up in that system. Through PIJR I was able to share those values with rural youth throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. Today there are countless leaders in these countries who benefited from the 4-H ideals and are working to see them available to coming generations.
