4-H Clubs Thrive in Postwar Iraq

An Iraqi student tends cattle on the farm of the 4-H Club in Mahmoudia, Iraq, last month. Months after most U.S. troops pulled out of the country, Iraq now has 4-H clubs in each of its 18 provinces.

—Kamaran Najm/Getty Images for Education Week

USDA employee imported program to serve Iraqi youths

By Nirvi Shah

About twice a month, thousands of Iraqi teenagers and preteens gather across their country and make a very American pledge to use their heads, hearts, hands, and health for the greater good of their community, their country, and the world.

It's the traditional promise of the 110-year-old 4-H Club .

Although most American troops have pulled out of Iraq, the 4-H Club remains . The club was imported about three years ago by a U.S. Department of Agriculture employee who was sent to the Middle East to help women develop their dairy-management skills. The organization now counts more than 3,000 Iraqi...