Hill County

The Hill County Extension Office has two full-time Montana State University Extension agents and one full-time administrative assistant. The staff serves a population of 16,179 residents. Hill County, which encompasses 2,916 square miles in northcentral Montana, borders Canada to the north with Havre being the county seat with a growing population of 9,314 residents. One of the main economic drivers in Hill County is agriculture. The primary sources of employment for Hill County include the U.S. Border Patrol, BNSF Railroad, healthcare and education. The Rocky Boy Indian Reservation is located in the southeast corner of the county with a population of 3,794 residents. Montana State University and the United States Department of Agriculture provide funding for education and outreach in agriculture, family and consumer sciences, natural resources, horticulture and 4-H youth development.

MSU Extension Hill County Partners with Stone Child Extension

MSU Extension Hill County has been partnering with Stone Child College on the Rocky Boy reservation for the past year. Stone Child College put on a Cattleman’s College Series, where they asked MSU Extension Hill County’s Ag and Natural Resources agent, Colleen Pegar to create hour long workshops on 6 different topics of cattle production. In these one-hour sessions Pegar presented branding, vaccinations, buying bulls, grazing management, ranch management, crops, heard health, marketing your calves, nutrition and calving. As a result of this current partnership, Pegar will continue to provide educational opportunities for Stone Child College in the coming year.

Caption: Program Agenda

Credit: Colleen Pegar

ServSafe In Hill County

Teaching ServSafe is one of the things I enjoy the most about my position as an MSU-Extension Hill County Agent. The community members of Hill County that commit to the classes both ServSafe Managers and SerSafe Handlers are there because they want to learn, and they care about their customers. Since January of 2023 twenty-two ServSafe Mangers and twenty-three ServSafe Handler tests have been administered in Hill County with a 96% pass rate. With food borne illnesses and viruses on the rise nationwide, ensuring the safety of our community members should be a top priority. Sanitation laws require every restaurant to have a minimum of one ServSafe manager on staff and recommend there be one per shift. The more personnel in the restaurant industry we can get certified the safer our communities will be.

Caption: ServSafe Book Cover

Credit: Kati Purkett

4-H Dog Agility

When you think of a dog show, the image of well-groomed dogs trotting beside their owner following heel and sit commands fill your mind. In Hill County the Dog agility project is growing and changing the way 4-H members imagine a dog show to be. The excitement of watching dogs bound over hurdles and walk-up A frames is now encouraging our members to add the dog project to their list. With more interest in the dog the project we are looking to expand the project and encourage more members to enroll in this exciting project area. Dog obedience, showmanship and agility are project areas members can concentrate on while learning about how shelters operate, animal science relates to dogs, and how to care for dogs in general. Look for more additions to the Hill County Dog project in the future.

Caption: Hill County 4-H Youth and their Dogs

Credit: Kati Purkett

Contact

315 Fourth Street
Havre, MT, 5950
406-4000-2333
https://www.montana.edu/extension/hill