Officer roles and responsibilities in a 4-H club
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EmailYouth experience greater success in a leadership role when they understand their responsibilities as an officer.
Michigan State University Extension 4-H Youth Development offers teens an opportunity to develop leadership skills while preparing them for using these skills as adults. Club officer positions provide an opportunity to practice real leadership roles that impact the success of a group. The following describes the four essential officer positions their responsibilities and supporting materials to help officers be successful.
President
The president of a club presides over meetings, builds the meeting agenda, assures that the meeting runs in an orderly manner and strives to make sure all members’ opinions are heard. If committees are needed, presidents appoint committee members. Since the president is responsible for creating the meeting agenda, it is important they are familiar with the order of business. A typical meeting agenda would consist of:
- Call to order
- Pledges
- Roll call
- Secretary’s report
- Treasurer’s report
- Old business
- New business
- Announcements/leaders report
- Adjournment
Vice president
Vice presidents fill in for the president and presides over the meeting if the president is absent, therefore, the vice president must understand the roles and responsibilities of the president listed above. Additional responsibilities to consider giving the vice president includes following-up with any committees to make sure they stay on task, having them responsible for the learning portion of the meeting and serve in the role of introducing presenters or guests.
Secretary
The secretary records all of the business of the meeting and a record of each member’s attendance. Secretaries provide a report at each meeting by presenting the minutes from the previous meeting. This can be done by providing a handout or by reading the minutes aloud, and must be approved by the entire group. Once minutes are approved, they become the official record of the business that was conducted at the meeting. Secretaries should record full minutes as soon as possible after the conclusion of the meeting so that the discussion is fresh in their mind. Keep all meeting minutes in one safe place so they can be referenced as needed.
Treasurer
Treasurers are responsible for keeping track of and reporting the income and expenses for the club. Treasurers are responsible for writing checks for expenses, making any deposits into the club account, balancing the club check book, and preparing and reporting a treasurer’s report to the 4-H club. A treasury report must include previous balance from the last report, a summary of income and expenses since the last meeting. The treasurer should be prepared to answer specific questions regarding income, expenses and current balance. Managing Money Wisely is a full financial manual for 4-H treasurers.
For more information regarding roles and responsibilities of officers in clubs Michigan State University has excellent resources to assist each of the officers as well as a publication “Helping You Help Officers and Committees,” which assists volunteers in supporting officers in their roles.
