4-H Volunteer Continuing Education Academy

Abstract

The 4-H Volunteer Continuing Education Academy was developed to provide 4-H club leaders a continuing education opportunity, to assist them in developing and enhancing the skills and knowledge necessary for their volunteer role, and to provide a means for 4-H livestock and horse club leaders to recertify. All participants reported satisfaction with the academy and indicated that they would attend again and would recruit other volunteers to participate. The academy can be replicated in many ways and introduced at any level to provide continuing education and volunteer support. This article describes the academy and provides information for those who may wish to implement a similar program.

Volunteer Engagement within Equine Assisted Services

“…In addition, volunteers expressed high satisfaction with their volunteerism. Again, the volunteer's sentiment echoes the literature about theoretical frameworks by focusing on commitment, connectedness, safety, and the collective experience [4][5][6]. The volunteers expressed how they found connection in their work with the riders, and for some, with the horses.…”

“…For example, the psychological contract framework is evidenced by the expressed commitment to the organization by the volunteer. The Social Cure theoretical framework could be used to explain the positive effects from participating in a group, expressed sense of shared identity, and connectedness [4][5][6].…”

“…Only five of the articles [4][5][6][7][8] specifically referenced EAS program volunteers as the participants of an empirical study. One article specifically focused on volunteers in youthserving organizations with animals [4], whereas Culp and Bullock [5] studied volunteer outcomes from a 4-H training program. Only one study focused on the experiences of volunteers [6].…”

“…An indirect outcome may be establishing evidence of the positive benefits of volunteering in EAS that further promote the sustainability of volunteerism and equine-welfare. The theoretical framework applied are psychological contract theory, the relationship between an organization and volunteer [9], and the "Social Cure", which suggests positive effects from participating in a group especially if doing so includes personal growth, social connectedness, self-rated health, and well-being [4][5][6].…”

Comparisons of Professional Development Approaches for Out-of-School Time Educators

“…However, OST educators-including professionals, adult volunteers, and teenage volunteers-vary widely in education, background, and experience (Bradshaw 2015;Donaldson et al 2019;Freeman et al 2009;Stedman and Rudd 2006). Thus, to help ensure high-quality programming, there is a need to advance the knowledge and skills of these educators through effective professional development (Culp and Bullock 2017;Dierking 2007;Garst et al 2014;Smith and Schmitt-McQuitty 2013;Worker and Smith 2014).…”