4-H Volunteers bring a variety of interests and skills, spicing up the 4-H experience for our youth and allows the ability to offer more opportunities! Whether a volunteer’s experience is for one day, one week, a month, or ongoing evergreen involvement, volunteers are a key component to the success of 4-H programs in South Dakota.
Volunteers not only bring invaluable experience and care to the 4-H program, but volunteers seek out 4-H as an opportunity for personal growth and to give back to their communities and the youth they serve. In a 2024 study, the North Central Regional Volunteer Specialists found that volunteering with the 4-H program brings benefits to the community, the organization, and the individual volunteer. As a 4-H Volunteer, you can expect personal skill development through supporting youth and gaining technical skills transferable to professional work environments.
There is something for everyone as a 4-H volunteer with a variety of different levels of commitment and time. If you'd like to volunteer, even if you only have one day per year, browse the resources below or contact Jenae Hansen-Gross, SDSU Extension 4-H Volunteer Development and Civic Education Field Specialist, or your local 4-H professional to get started.
New volunteers interested in being a club leader, cloverbud leader, project leader, committee member or other local and state roles should complete this application.
Volunteers interested in chaperoning or coaching a team should complete this application.
Ways you can volunteer
- Help a youth member lead a club: Assist with organizing meetings, finding speakers and helping with other meeting logistics.
- Teach a skill: Share your skills by leading a club meeting, workshop or activity devoted to your area of specialty.
- Judge projects: Serve as a judge for 4-H exhibits, competitions or performances and provide youth with encouragement and suggestions for improvement.
- Plan or help at an event: Volunteer at a county or local event by helping with registration, set-up, clean-up or serving food.
- Assist with a specific project: Advise members in their project work to help identify goals, create and implement a plan and reflect on what they learned.
- Share your experience: Share with 4-H members about a passion, hobby or skill you have by being a speaker, inviting a 4-H member to shadow you or sharing a testimonial about your educational pathway.
- Share your expertise: Apply to coach a national 4-H team in their journey to a national contest.
- Apply to supervise an overnight experience for youth: 4-H camps, national trips, and other overnight experience are always in need of caring adult chaperones.
Volunteer Enrollment and Renewal Process
South Dakota 4-H volunteers serve one-year terms, renewable indefinitely, so as all parties (i.e., typically the volunteer and lead county 4-H professional) wish to continue the relationship. Re-enrollment is required through the 4-H Online system on a yearly basis after October 1st and must be completed before any volunteers are allowed to do any 4-H programming or events and before September 1st of the 4-H year. (4-H year runs October 1st – September 30th).
New Volunteers will need to complete additional steps outlined in the Becoming a 4-H Volunteer Checklist.
