As a 4-H volunteer leader, you are in a unique position to play a key role in the life of young people. Did you ever wonder if you’re doing the right things with your 4-H club to help ensure that all of your members are having positive experiences? If you take the time to have fun and provide recognition and rewards, if you spend time planning and setting goals, and if you make sure that each group meeting provides an opportunity for learning, then you’re doing the right things! If you provide support, guidance, motivation and leadership, then you’re doing the right things! If your members learn and grow, then you’re doing the right things!

Just as 4-H programs and projects help young people expand their skills, 4-H provides opportunities for volunteers to increase their leadership skills. One of the things you’ll want to do as a 4-H volunteer leader is attend leader trainings or workshops held in your county or at Kettunen Center, Michigan 4-H’s leadership training center near Tustin. You can find a list of statewide 4-H workshops on the Michigan 4-H Web site at http://web1.msue.msu.edu/cyf/youth/4htrain.html. By continuing your own education, you’ll be better able to keep your members motivated and excited about learning!

This insert to “Michigan 4-H Today” is designed to help you succeed as a 4-H club volunteer. In it, you’ll find information on identifying the characteristics of strong 4-H clubs, planning effective meetings, managing club finances, following parliamentary procedure, supporting club officers and managing 4-H club charters. It also points you to sources of information on all of these topics if you want to learn more.

4-H provides flexibility to members and volunteer leaders as they work and learn together toward the goal of positive youth development. This flexibility provides young people with opportunities to explore and learn about themselves and their world with the guidance and support of caring adults. It’s not about rules and regulations and having to follow a specific plan. While there are some policies in place to guide our work, there is plenty of room for creativity – on the part of adults and young people – which will truly make the 4-H experience a success.

Effective 4-H club meetings are one of the ways you can have a significant impact on the members of your club. A successful 4-H club is one that meets regularly and has meetings that are both educational and fun. The most effective 4-H meetings are those that have a balance between educational programs such as presentations and special activities (40 to 60 minutes), business meetings (15 to 20 minutes) and recreation or social time (15 to 20 minutes). Not every meeting needs to contain all three parts or fit within the suggested time frame. Involving young people in planning and conducting meetings is an important part of both successful 4-H clubs and positive youth development.

Use the checklist in “Points to Look for in a Good 4-H Meeting” to evaluate your 4-H club meetings. Work toward being able to answer “yes” to all of the questions. The ones you answer with a “no” are the areas you will want to work on improving.

Points to Look for in a Good 4-H Meeting

Answer yes or no to these questions to help evaluate the effectiveness of your 4-H club meetings.