Adult 4-H Volunteer Leader Development

Adult volunteers are essential to the success of the 4-H Youth Development program in Valencia County. These leaders provide their knowledge and guidance to youth and aid in the development of the important life skills 4-H promotes. These leaders also provide support and guidance to the 4-H Agent. 4-H volunteer leaders must be recruited, screened, selected, oriented, trained, supervised, evaluated and recognized for a sustaining volunteer program. Increased retention of volunteers is a challenge.

Each year, potential new 4-H volunteer adult leaders complete the application and screening form for processing before being enrolled as a New Mexico 4-H Leader. New organizational club leaders are be offered an orientation, provided a copy of the “4-H Policies and Procedures Handbook” and the “Club Leaders’ Handbook”, information on the 4-H enrollment procedures for Valencia County, and the communication linkage to Valencia County Cooperative Extension Office and other 4-H volunteers. Adult 4-H volunteers are offered least one leader education program during the 4-H program year, as well as the opportunity to attend the annual New Mexico 4-H Forum for Adults.

Enrollment:
Eighteen adult volunteer leaders were recruited, completed the screening process and enrolled as new county leaders. Additionally, 71 adult volunteer leaders reenrolled in the program. Total enrollment for the current year was 89 adult volunteer leaders. The Agent is responsible for overseeing the entire program, its membership and volunteers.

Recruitment Efforts:
The Agent presented a New Parent Orientation for all first year parents. This orientation is held in conjunction with the first County-wide Welcome to NM 4-H Project meeting which all first year 4-H’ers must take. Adult participants received information on the Cooperative Extension Service, office staff, the leader enrollment process, opportunities for youth and adults, and information on helping their children make it through the first year of 4-H. One seasoned 4-H parent attended the orientation to provide their insight into the program. 22 new parents attended the training and 5 (22%) of those enrolled as leaders in the county.

The Agent contributes articles and information about the 4-H program to the bi-monthly Valencia County e-Newsletter. The agent uses this avenue to inform and recruit potential new volunteers to the program. This newsletter is distributed to a minimum of 250 Valencia County residents.

Leader Trainings:
Project Leader Training: The Agent presented one project leader training to new and returning project leaders in the county. 13 adult volunteer leaders attended the training. Participants in the training learned about their roles and responsibilities as a project leader which included signing up as the leader, getting started, how to hold project meetings, teaching techniques and activities to incorporate into the meetings, and ways to secure information and resources for projects, as well as information on getting the 4-H’ers motivated. The Agent created a booklet of the information presented for the attendees. The leaders that attended the training liked the information that was presented and felt the booklet was a useful guide for them to use in their meetings. One project leader attended this training for the third year in a row and expressed how she has learned something new every year from the trainings.

Club Organizational Leader Training: The Agent hosted two Club Organizational Leader Trainings at the County Extension Office. Sixteen current Club Leaders attended one of the two trainings where they received information on Effective 4-H Clubs, Roles of Club Leaders, Running Successful Clubs/Meetings, Planning Meeting Agendas, Tips for Effective Meetings, 4-H Policies and Procedures, New Fundraising Policies and Club Financial Management. Leaders who attended this training said it helped them better understand “the importance of meeting deadlines” and “the importance of passing down information from the Extension Office.”

County Club Reviews:
The Agent is responsible for making sure all 4-H Clubs are in compliance with 4-H Policies and Procedures and the Valencia County 4-H Council Bylaws. County Club Reviews were conducted by the Agent with all of the Organizational Club Leaders in Valencia County to evaluate the progress of their club over the previous 4-H year. This evaluation is used to help Club Leaders discuss issues the club may have and explore ways to improve communication, youth and parent involvement, and member retention. The Agent prepared and presented a guide for leaders to increase understanding and knowledge of expectations and deadlines for the year. The Agent also handed out and went over the current “4-H Policies and Procedures” manual.

Adult Volunteer Leader Programming
The need for increased adult volunteer leader development programming was identified by many leaders and parents of Rio Arriba County 4-H program during the first year of the agent’s tenure. In effort to meet the identified need of clientele, the agent introduced the Rio Arriba County Leaders Forum. High hopes were given to the innovative, two-day, one-night event. The goals and objectives set for the program included: providing adult volunteer leaders the opportunity to gain new ideas for club activities, learn new ways to effectively organize club activities, increase human resource management skills and increase overall involvement as a leader. In partnership with the State 4-H Specialist, the workshop topics of 2010 3rd Annual County Leaders Forum were: 4-H 201 – What you wanted to ask but Just didn’t know it, How to prevent Hum Drum Meetings, Youth Development Resources & Opportunities related to 4-H, Club meeting snack ideas, 4-H Participation and School Attendance and county leader networking. Nine adult leaders attended the event which was an increase in attendance from years prior. While overall participation has not been as high as hoped, adult volunteer leaders who have had the opportunity to attend the event, have given high regards in all aspects to the program. Written evaluations indicated that the material covered during the workshops were highly useful and practical to the needs of leaders. Participants noted activities to be very effective and presented at the right level. Increasing participation and attendance for the event is a main goal for the agent for the coming years.

VOLUNTEER LEADER DEVELOPMENT
The success of Sandoval County 4-H is due to the dedication and support of the volunteers. These volunteers serve in the capacity of organizational leaders, project leaders, superintendents and advisors. The 4-H Agent and County Extension Staff provide continued support to these leaders on a daily basis.

5 adult volunteer leaders completed the screening process and enrolled as leaders in Sandoval County.

2 volunteer leaders and 4-H Agents attended the 2011 WRLF. All Sandoval County participants reported an increase in knowledge and skills related to their clubs and the information presented was beneficial to make them better leaders for the youth they serve.
2 volunteer leaders attended the State 4-H Shooting Sports Leader Training and Certification.
30 adult volunteer leaders and parents attended workshops designed to assist adults become better project leaders and to better understand the goal and scope of the 4-H program. 100% of adults reported an increase in knowledge related to county, district and state 4-H programming.

Luna county has added 5 new leaders to the 4-H program. The agent went through a new leader training with the leader and helped them draft their by-laws for their clubs. By the end of the 4-H year the leaders were able to to conduct club duties without help from the agent. From the 5 leaders 2 new clubs were formed each club had at least 5 new members by the end of the year. 4-H member and leader enrollment continue to grow in Luna County.

Volunteer Leadership:
Four volunteer leaders attended the organizational leader meeting, in order to bring them up-to-date with various 4-H policies in New Mexico. It also served as a great question and answer session, so that the agent to better identify needs of the clubs. Three organizational leaders attended volunteer related training. One leader attended the Shooting Sports Leaders Certification training, so he could properly provide instruction for 4-H members in the archery discipline. Seeking a need to renew and discover ideas related to club programming, two leaders attended the Western Regional Leaders Forum in Alaska.