Volunteer Development and Management

In 4-H Youth Development, volunteer development is a priority. Volunteer development engages individuals in an ongoing educational process, designed to build capacities for service roles. Volunteer management is the utilization of volunteers to achieve organizational goals by individuals who manage programs, resources and inputs. Volunteer coordination is engaging volunteers and organizing volunteer efforts to accomplish desired goals.

A 4-H Youth Development volunteer offers their time, talent and/or resources to 4-H Youth Development educational program without monetary expectation. It is a privilege to serve as a volunteer for the 4-H Youth Development Program.

Log In In this section of the 4-H Youth Development web site, you will find some educator resources that are only available for UW Extension staff with a NetID and password. Please use your NetID and password to log in. Netid: Password: More information about your NetID "Dealing with Difficult Behavior" - Streaming audio from January 6, 2005 Youth Emphasis Wisline session. Presenters: Mike Hallenbeck, Employee Assistance, Melanie Miller, 4-H Youth Development Specialist, and Sue Pleskac, 4-H Volunteer Development Specialist. Addressing Volunteer Behavior (19 slides, 755 KB) - Power point presentation prepared by Melanie Miller, 4-H Youth Development Specialist, and Sue Pleskac, 4-H Volunteer Development Specialist, for the January 6, 2005 "Dealing with Difficult Behavior" Youth Emphasis Wisline. Volunteer Discipline and Dismissal Procedures (2 pages, 44 KB) - Document outlines the procedures for addressing volunteer misbehavior.

4-H Volunteer Leader Roles

In 4-H Community Clubs, volunteers contribute in a variety of ways. Many volunteers lead projects for a local year-round club or short-term 4-H committees and activities. There are many ways that volunteers get involved.

• 4-H Volunteer Leader Roles and Resources (2 pages, 43 KB) This document provides a listing and descriptions of volunteer opportunities within the 4-H Program.
• County 4-H Leader Organizations and the County 4-H Youth Development Professional (4 pages, 53 KB) - This paper describes the roles of the county 4-H leader organization and the 4-H Youth Development staff member.
• Sample Volunteer Role Descriptions This link to the Illinois 4-H site provides a variety of sample role descriptions that can be individualized for the local 4-H Youth Development program. The Volunteer Role Description template provides a useful tool for the local program or organization. Volunteer Role Description (1 page, 81 KB)

Volunteer Management

Working with volunteers to achieve organizational goals requires planning and education. A comprehensive volunteer system/program is critical. . The ISOTURE model of volunteer development is based on the Milton Boyce's (1971) research and work in the area of leadership. It provides a framework that supports the local volunteer system/program. ISOTURE stands for Identify, Select, Orient, Train, Utilize, Recognize and Evaluate. This model provides 4-H and other organizations a comprehensive system for working with volunteers.

The tools and resources that follow can be used as you put your local volunteer system/program in place. Watch for additions over the coming months. For additional information, please contact Sue Pleskac, 4-H Volunteer Leadership Specialist.

Educational Resources

Identify and Select - Identifying the organization's mission and the roles volunteers have to help fulfill the mission is the first step in volunteer management. Selecting volunteers that have the skills and desire to fill the needed roles starts with a targeted recruitment plan. Where do you start? Start with making sure you have a comprehensive volunteer system/program in place. Then begin with program needs. These must be in place before you begin to identify and select volunteers.

• Cycle of Volunteer Administration (1 page, 80 KB) Involving volunteer staff begins with identifying program needs and proceeds to identifying volunteer roles. Recruitment, placement, orientation and training are vital to insure volunteers fulfill their responsibilities. Providing ongoing support, evaluation and recognition are critical components for retention. This tool helps explain the volunteer staffing model.
• Community Assessments Relative to Volunteer Engagement
  • Civil Rights Education and Compliance Web site This web site is rich with resources for understanding the local community as well as gathering information through the Expansion and Review process. Specifically refer to the information under Demographics and the 4-H Profile Tool. The Race/Ethnic slides and maps are also helpful. A UW-Extension netid and password are required to access this site.
  • Community Tool Box This diverse web site has the mission of promoting community health and development by connecting people, ideas and resources. Move to the Table of Contents and explore the information and resources under Part B and Part D. Part B, Chapter 3 will assist you in identify community assets and resources.
  •  Building Community Toolkit   is a valuable resource in engaging youth and youth adult partnerships in assessing your community. You may have a copy on your bookshelf or it can be ordered from the Innovation Center.
  • Corporation for National and Community Service provides a variety of tools and research on the current trends in volunteering in America.
• Organizational Assessment Relative to Volunteer Engagement
  • What Are Your Volunteer Programming Needs? (2 pages, 87 KB) This tool provides critical questions that provide an assessment of the current and future organizational needs for the organization. It can be used by an individual or a board.
  • Organizational Assessment Tool (3 pages, 284 KB) The Organizational Assessment Tool is shared with permission from Achieving Success Through Volunteers by Michigan State University, 2005. This tool will identify areas that need improvement in your organization as you implement an effective volunteer program.
  • Developing a Volunteer Staffing Plan (3 pages, 73 KB) The Developing a Volunteer Staffing Plan is shared with permission from 4-H Volunteer Management by University of Illinois, 1997. This tool can assess the current roles of paid and volunteer staff and develop a future staffing plan.
• Volunteer Role Description (1 page, 81 KB) This template is helpful in the development of volunteer role descriptions, insuring that critical elements are included.
• Volunteer Interest Survey (1 page, 99 KB) The Volunteer Interest Survey provides information on a volunteers interests, skills, and areas they want to learn. It serves as a recruitment and placement tool.
• Inventory of Skills (1 page, 87 KB) The Inventory of Skills is a recruitment and placement tool for volunteers in the organization.
• Volunteer Recruitment Packets - This Journal Of Extension (Culp, et .al. 2006) article provides background to volunteer recruitment and ideas for developing recruitment packets to be used with a variety of audiences.

Orient and Train - Orientation provides volunteers with an understanding of the organization's mission as well as the responsibilities and expectations of volunteers. Training is important to prepare the volunteer for their specific role.

• 4-H Community Club Central - A variety of topical lesson plans and additional resources are available for training 4-H Community Club volunteers.

Utilize - Proper placement of volunteers helps in retention. Providing ongoing support and open communication is important for volunteers and for the organization.

• What Motivates You:  Volunteer Job Selection and Recognition Guide (1 page, 81KB) This tool helps in the recruitment, placement and utilization of volunteers in the organization. It helps in brainstorming potential volunteers to fill needed roles. It can be used with the following document, What Motivates You.
• What Motivates You (1 page, 82 KB) When considering the right volunteer for the right role, consider what motivates them. It is also a guide to recognition and support to provide volunteers, critical to volunteer recognition.
• Volunteer Retention - Providing some background information, this Minnesota 4-H article includes strategies for improving volunteer retention.

Recognize - Providing formal and informal favorable attention to a volunteer gives the needed sense of appreciation, security and belonging.

• 139 Ways to Say Thank You - This article by Culp, Schwartz and Campbell discusses the research behind volunteer recognition and provides a list of 139 ways to say thank you.
• Recognizing Adult Volunteer 4-H Leaders - Research article by Culp and Schwartz (1998) in the Journal of Extension.

Evaluate - Providing a two-way dialogue with volunteers on their role and responsibilities is important to assist volunteers in doing the best they can. It provides the organization with ideas for opportunities for training and improves how they are delivering educational programs.

• Volunteer Evaluation - Article by Steve McCurley providing background, preparation and hints for volunteer evaluation.
• Measurement of Volunteer Impact
  • Volunteer's Program Evaluation (2 pages, 168 KB) The Volunteer's Program Evaluation is shared with permission from Achieving Success Through Volunteers by Michigan State University, 2005. This tool gathers evaluation from volunteers in the organization.
  • Evaluate Performance of Volunteers (20 pages, 349 KB) From the University of Illinois, 4-H Volunteer Management (1997), this chapter provides critical information on why we evaluate volunteer performance, document successes and make recommendations for change and future direction in the program.
  • Review the Volunteer Staffing Plan (12 pages, 2 MB) Reviewing the volunteer staffing plan and making changes that meet organizational and community needs is critical. This chapter is from the University of Illinois, 4-H Volunteer Management, (1997).
• Giving and Providing Feedback (1 page, 40 KB) - Handout on giving and providing feedback developed by Mike Hallenbeck, Employee Assistance. The handout is referenced in the January 6, 2005 "Dealing With Difficult Behavior" Youth Emphasis Teleconference.

Additional Resources

• Volunteer Development Reference Guide (2 pages, 91.5 KB ) This guide provides a listing of research, statistics, resources, books, and curriculum to be used in volunteer development and management. Web links are provided.
• 4-H Volunteers USA - The Web site provides news and information for 4-H Youth Development Volunteers. A variety of tools and educational resources, including materials in Spanish, are available for staff and volunteers.
• Community Tool Box - The goal of the Community Tool Box is to provide for community health and development. It provides practical skill-building tools and information. Enter "volunteers" into the search function on the page. A comprehensive list of information, resources, and tools are available for a variety of areas in volunteer management and development.
• Volunteer Research Knowledge Competency (4 pages, 250.70 KB) - The VRKC taxonomy identifies the competencies volunteers will need in order to effectively deliver 4-H Youth Development programs and activities in the next decade. It is based on a comprehensive study of paid staff and volunteers in 21 states covering all four Extension regions. Research and design team members include: Ken Culp III, Ph. D. University of Kentucky; Renee K. McKee, Ph. D. Purdue University; Patrick Nestor, Ed. D. West Virginia University. This is the most current draft. The document is presently at National 4-H Headquarters in Washington D. C. for final approval and distribution.