Pictures of chickens, flowers, wheat, a boy looking through a magnifying glass, irrigation pipe, soybean pods, and fruits and vegetables.

Cooperative Extension Service

Search | Publications | Jobs | Personnel Directory | Links
County Offices | Departments

About Us

Find Us

For the Media

Agriculture

Business & Communities

Families & Consumers

Health & Nutrition

Home & Garden

Natural Resources

4-H Youth Development

4-H Programs
4-H State Policy Handbook
Kids Go-4-It
Youth Education
Volunteer Organizations
C. A. Vines 4-H Center

Life Skills Evaluation
Links
Newsletters

Public Policy Center

For Faculty & Staff

Giving

Dale Bumpers College
of Agricultural, Food &
Life Sciences

Division Home

Agricultural Experiment
      Station Home

Cooperative Extension
      Service Home

2002 Volunteer Leader Training Guide
This Is 4-H
Our 4-H Club Team - Who Belongs?
Handout 3

Who belongs to your 4-H club team?

Remember the Member!

The team begins with the 4-H members - youth who belong to your club. The entire 4-H program is designed to provide "experiences for learning" for 4-H members. Each 4-H member is the reason for 4-H to be!

Officers and Teen Leaders

The "stars" of your team are club officers and teen leaders; these teen leaders are "front and center." Officers conduct club meetings and participate in all planning for the club. They do much of the work of the club. Teen leaders are 4-H members 14 years of age or older who are learning to be leaders. They assist the officers, volunteer for leadership tasks and assist younger members to learn and do. They may assist with project leadership. 4-H encourages members to fill as many leadership roles as possible.

Adult volunteer leaders provide the kind of support system which makes it possible for youth leaders to do their jobs well.

Sharing Leadership With Youth

Adult leaders are on the scene to "walk with" and "walk beside" youth who have accepted leadership responsibilities. Adults are friends of youth who, over the long term, maintain the club structure. In whatever roles they serve, adult volunteers facili1ate "front and center" leadership by 4-H youth.

Volunteers - Very Important People!

Volunteers are the key to successful 4-H programs. They furnish much of the energy, skills and resources that keep 4-H moving forward. Many 4-H volunteers are involved directly with youth. They help them learn new skills and knowledge and develop into responsible, productive individuals. Other 4-H volunteers work with adults helping them understand the 4-H program and their responsibilities. Others are involved in the financial and program development areas of 4-H. Each volunteer role is important and makes a specific contribution to the total 4-H program.

Adult volunteers serve in several kinds of roles in the 4-H club. The principal ones are:

- 4-H Club Organization Leader
- Activity Leader
- Project Leader
- Parent Helper

4-H Club Organization Leader and Assistant Leaders coordinate the 4-H club leadership team, help the team arrange for all 4-H club programs and activities, maintain communications between the 4-H member and the county extension staff and the county 4-H program and interpret the 4-H club mission and program to the community.

Project Leaders function as a member of the club leadership team; work with a group of 4-H members enrolled in the project area to support and guide their learning of knowledge, skills and attitudes; establish relationships between the activities of the club project gr4up and similar county or state project activities.

Activity Leaders organize and work with the members of the club who participate in an activity. Each major activity will need an activity leader during the time members of the club are involved. Each activity will have its own set of requirements and its own job description. The 4-H system offers a range of activities. Each club must choose, from activities available through the county 4-H program, those in which it wishes to participate. Many clubs generate activities of their own.

Parent Helper - Other tasks which need adult volunteers will depend on the size of the club, the type of programs planned and the number of adults available. Parents who are involved in 4-H help with leadership and program tasks, many on a short-term basis. In addition parents provide the at-home guidance and support members need to carry out their 4-H responsibilities.

Who Belongs to Your Team?

Your 4-H club team is composed of youth and adults: 4-H members, 4-H officers and teen leaders, adult volunteer leaders and adult helpers. Youth are always "front and center." Adult leaders guide, facilitate and maintain the club structures, which make possible learning and leadership experiences for youth.

The 4-H System

A Cooperative Effort

4-H is the youth development program of the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service. It is a cooperative effort of your county extension service, the University of Arkansas, the United States Department of Agriculture and the National 4-H Council. There are many 4-H clubs in your county and in the state of Arkansas. 4-H is found in every state of the United States and in Puerto Rico and Guam. Similar clubs have been formed in more than 80 countries around the world.

Community

Local communities support 4-H Clubs in many ways. Many persons are eager to share their interests, vocation or hobbies with your 4-H members. The media will carry announcements of 4-H events and help to interpret 4-H activities to the community. Other youth agencies may work with you in areas of common concern, such as camping or bicycle safety. Your public school may allow you to recruit members through elementary classrooms or may sponsor 4-H short-term interest groups after school. Local businessmen help advertise 4-H by providing display space or help to finance awards and special programs. As a leader, you will want to utilize this support and help maintain the good image of 4-H in your community.

Your County Extension Service

The county extension office and staff will be the primary source of help for your 4-H club. The county will supply materials for enrollment, project books and leaders' manuals and will keep you informed of 4-H happenings in your state and county.

Your county extension office and staff coordinate the overall planning for 4-H in your county and maintains relationships with groups such as the county extension committee and the other community organizations. Your agent(s) arrange for 4-H events such as the county O-Rama or teen leader retreats, plan and conduct training for volunteer leaders and keep volunteer leaders informed of county and state 4-H happenings. Your agents may work with you and your club leadership team as you plan for your club, or a cluster of clubs may meet with your agents to plan for 4-H in your area.

Experienced 4-H leaders in your county offer support to new leaders. Adult volunteer leaders believe in 4-H and give many years of service to the 4-H youth of their community. They spend hours sharing and helping each other. Your county may have a "buddy system" through which an experienced leader will work with you during your first year. If not, ask your agent for the name of a person you could call when "bits of know-how" are needed.

Arkansas 4-H

Members of the state 4-H staff and subject matter specialists at the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service develop educational materials and provide leader training and consultation on projects and programs when requested. State and county 4-H staff work with statewide events such as the Arkansas State Fair, Arkansas 4-H Teen Leader Conference and others. The activities and event guide is developed each year for the state 4-H program. Volunteer leaders in Arkansas may join the Arkansas 4-H Adult Volunteer Leaders Association; membership is open to all adult volunteers associated with any aspect of Arkansas 4-H. The association sponsors Spring and Fall Leader Retreats annually.

National 4-H

4-H is supported nationally by the staff, Extension Service USDA/4-H and the National 4-H Council.

The Extension Service, of which 4-H youth development is a program area, is a branch of the United States Department of Agriculture. The Family, Youth and Nutrition staff of USDA/Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) work with 4-H project and program development, 4-H staff development, leadership development and national events.

National 4-H Council

National 4-H Council is the national, private sector non-profit partner of 4-H and the Cooperative Extension System. National 4-H Council manages the National 4-H Conference Center, a full-service conference facility in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and the National 4-H Supply Service, the authorized agent for items bearing the 4-H name and emblem. National 4-H Council partners with 4-H at all levels - national, state and local - providing training and support, curriculum development, fostering innovative programming and facilitating meetings and connections within the 4-H partnership.

Council is governed by its own Board of Trustees, made up of youth, representatives from 4-H/Extension/land-grant universities, corporate executives and other private citizens from a wide array of backgrounds.

National 4-H Council is located at 7100 Connecticut Avenue, Chevy Chase, MD 20815.

Does the 4-H System Work for You?

"YES" if you:

- Utilize the resources available in your local community.
- Utilize printed project books and leader guides.
- Attend leader training events.
- Participate in county activities and county achievement events.
- Ask your county agent for a special bit of help.
- Send a representative of your club to the county 4-H Council.
- Encourage your older members to participate in Teen Leader Conference or other state events.
- Attend a National or Regional Leader Forum.

Back to 2002 Volunteer Leader Training Guide