GEORGIA 4-H

President
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CONGRATULATIONS Congratulations! It's really an honor to be selected by your friends in 4-H to serve as a 4-H officer. With honors come certain responsibilities. As you assume your 4-H office, much of the responsibility for the success of your club will depend on you and the other officers.
  You are now a member of a team that includes the other officers and leaders of your club. This leadership team can make the difference between a "fantastic club" that everyone wants to be part of and a "hum-drum club" that most people could care less about! Which kind of club do you want? The choice is yours -- the success of the club depends on your leadership team.
GOOD OFFICERS ARE ... Enthusiastic, tactful, loyal, honest, friendly -- that's one way to describe good 4-H officers. They let the members of the club help decide what the club will do and give everyone a fair chance.
Officers of 4-H Clubs are representatives of the local club and of the entire 4-H program of the state. Can you answer "yes" to these questions?
_____ Do I know the duties of my office?
_____ Am I willing to improve myself so I can be a better officer?
_____ Am I friendly? Do I work well with other members of the club and they with me?
_____ Do I willingly accept responsibilities assigned to me?
_____ Do I enjoy doing more than just what is required of me?
_____ Am I willing to give credit to others for work well done?
_____ Am I prompt in arriving at meetings?
_____ Does my appearance inspire confidence and respect?
_____ Am I kind, tactful and courteous?
_____ Do I use "please" and "thank you" when I should?
_____ Am I always fair in my decisions?
_____ Do I appreciate my parents and 4-H volunteer leaders for their time, effort and devotion to club work?
_____ Will I attend a 4-H officers' workshop if it is offered for our club or county?
_____ Will I participate in a county 4-H council?
 
YOUR JOB AS
PRESIDENT 		As President, your job is to help everyone in the club work together. You do all you can to make each member feel comfortable with the group. Group discussions are important to the club's working together. You want everyone to participate. You will hesitate to put in your own ideas. You will watch, listen, and toss back to the group questions put to you. Ask questions and make the group think.

As President, you should ...
BEFORE THE MEETING
  • Plan business of the meeting with other officers and your club leader.
  • Arrange to have one of the vice presidents preside if you cannot attend.
  • See that the meeting room is ready. If acceptable with leader or school, check temperature for comfort and arrange chairs so everyone can participate. (Try a circle if you have a small club.)
  • Know parliamentary procedure to conduct an orderly meeting.
  • Assign responsibilities so every member has some job in the club at one time or another
DURING THE MEETING
  • Preside at meetings. Call the meeting to order on time and direct the business meeting.
  • Appoint a temporary secretary if the elected one is absent.
  • Appoint committees, unless otherwise decided by club action. (You may want to consult with your club leader before doing this.)
  • Decide points of order fairly. Guide the meeting in a courteous way.
  • Avoid talking too much. The meeting belongs to the 4-H'ers. The president is only the "pilot" and should avoid giving opinions.
  • Cast deciding vote in case of tie vote. Vote when voting by ballot or roll call.
  • Be courteous to guests. Introduce them to the club.
  IN ADDITION TO MEETINGS
 
  • Plan with officers and your volunteer leaders the program for the year.
  • Check frequently on progress of committees. Ask for a report from each chair person.
  • Approve payment of bills after action by the club.
  • Sign minutes after approval by the club.
  • Represent your club in the County 4-H Council.

TIPS TO THE
PRESIDENT

  • Don't talk too much. You are to lead, not to run the show.
  • Ask members to help. Don't tell them to help.
  • Make all members feel a part of the club.
  • Don't just call on friends to help.
  • Be courteous and help members who are new.
  • Always stand when opening a meeting.
  • Stay seated when secretary reads his/her report and calls roll, during program and committee reports.
  • Speak clearly and distinctly and loudly enough.
  • Do not say "I." Say "your president."
  • If you cannot be at a meeting, be sure to notify the Vice President in advance.
 
4-H LEADERSHIP TEAM As a 4-H officer, you are an important part of the 4-H Leadership Team. Let's see how the team shapes up.
President The 4-H President's job is to help everyone in the club work together. The president presides at meetings, assigns responsibilities to club members, and works closely with the other 4-H officers, volunteer leaders, and county extension agents.
Vice President Georgia 4-H Clubs have two Vice Presidents. The vice presidents alternate taking the place of the president if that member resigns or is not present. The vice presidents' biggest and most important job is acting as co-chairmen of the program committee that plans local 4-H educational meetings and events.
Secretary The 4-H Club Secretary is one of the most important officers in the club. The secretary is responsible for keeping a record of a 4-H club's membership, participation and meetings in the 4-H Secretary's Book. All correspondence of the club is the responsibility of the secretary.
Reporter The 4-H Club Reporter has the opportunity and responsibility of telling others about 4-H work. Writing announcements and reports for the local newspaper, keeping a scrapbook of club publicity, and serving as chairman of the publicity committee are important jobs for the reporter.
Parliamentarian
(Optional office)		 In any club organization, it is important that officers and leaders know some of the rules of conducting a meeting. The Parliamentarian advises the presiding officer on parliamentary procedures so meetings can be conducted in a fair and gracious manner.
Recreational Leader
(Optional office)		 No one likes to sit and listen during an entire 4-H meeting without even opening their mouths. The 4-H Recreational Leader gives each 4-H'er the opportunity to actively participate by leading a song or short recreational activity that is suitable for the club meeting place and available time.
Officers President ________________________________________
  Vice President ________________________________________
  Vice President ________________________________________
  Secretary ________________________________________
  Reporter ________________________________________
  Parliamentarian ________________________________________
  Recreation Leader ________________________________________
 
4-H MEETING OUTLINE The 4-H meeting program may vary with your individual club. You will work with the other 4-H officers, your 4-H club volunteer leader and your county extension agent to plan exciting 4-H meetings. Everyone with a part in the program should be notified and come well prepared. A well-planned 4-H meeting usually consists of these three main parts:
    Business: 5-20 minutes
    Education or Project Work: 20-60 minutes
    Recreation or Social Activities: 5-15 minutes
  The program content and time will depend on your club's traditions, meeting place and time. This outline will help you plan your meetings.
BUSINESS ...
Call to Order "The meeting of the __________ 4-H Club will please come to order."
Call for Minutes "The secretary will now read the minutes of the last meeting."
Secretary reads minutes.
Approval of Minutes "Are there any additions or corrections to the minutes?" (Pause) "If not, they stand approved as read."
Opening Ceremony "We will now have the pledges and thought for the day." Vice President or another 4-H member leads pledge to the American Flag, 4-H Pledge and thought for the day.
Introduction of Visitors "Our Vice President, __________, (or Reporter, __________) will now introduce our visitors." Officer introduces visitors.
Roll Call "Will the secretary please take the roll?" Secretary either calls roll or simply checks roll.
Committee Reports "We will now have the committee reports. Will the chairman of the __________ committee please report?" (Pause for report, then request other reports.)
Old Business "Is there any old business that needs to be discussed?" (Recognize members who have business to discuss and guide club in discussing and making a decision.)
"Is there any further old business?"
New Business "Is there any new business to be discussed?" (Allow time for discussion and voting if necessary.)
"Is there any further new business?"
Announcements "Are there any announcements?" (Leaders, agents or members may have announcements.)
PROGRAM ...
Introduce Program Chairman (Vice President) "I will now turn the meeting over to ______ to introduce our program." Vice President introduces program participants.
Thank Program Participants "Thank you, ______, for presenting such an interesting program." (Make comments appropriate for the program and thank vice presidents for coordinating program.
RECREATION (If time and facility permit) ...
Introduce Recreation Leader or
4-H Member		 "________, our recreation leader, will now lead us in a short period of recreation."
Recreation leader leads a game, song or activity.
ADJOURNMENT ...
Close Meeting Our next meeting will be [DATE] at [PLACE].
"Is there a motion that we adjourn?" (Handle motion.) "The meeting is adjourned."
 
4-H PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURE GUIDELINES It's easy to conduct good 4-H meetings when you understand parliamentary procedure. If you study these guidelines, you will do a super job. They are a simplified version of Robert's Rules of Order.
 
NOMINATIONS AND
ELECTIONS 		Nominations may be made by a committee or from the floor by a member. Even when a nominating committee is used, nominations may be made by members when the floor is open for further nominations.
To offer a nomination, after the floor is open for such, a member obtains the floor and states, "I nominate __________ for _________." The president then asks for further nominations. If there are none, nominations are closed and the vote is taken. Candidates are voted upon in the order in which they were nominated.
Closing nominations
Nominations may be closed by a two-thirds vote or by general consent. The motion to close nominations requires a second, is undebatable, and can be amended as to time only.
Making nominations and holding elections
  A second is not required to nominate. A majority vote is required to elect. After the president has asked for further nominations for an office and none are presented, a member may obtain the floor and state:
    Member: "I move that nominations cease."
    Member: "Mr./Madame President, I second the motion."
    President: "It has been moved and seconded that nominations cease. This motion is undebatable, amendable as to time only and requires a two-thirds vote. Are you ready for the question? Those supporting the motion that we close nominations, please rise. There being a two-thirds majority, the motion carried and nominations are closed." (Proceed to vote on the candidates in the same order they were nominated.)
  Reopening nominations
  The motion to reopen nominations requires a majority vote. A second is required. It is undebatable, can be amended as to time only, and only the negative vote can be reconsidered.
  Electing by acclamation
 

An error is sometimes made by offering a motion that "we close nominations and elect by acclamation." This is not correct, since it combines two motions requiring different votes into one motion. To close nominations requires a two-thirds vote, and to elect requires a majority vote. Nominations should first be closed either by vote or by general consent, then nominations voted upon.
MAKING A MOTION There are eight steps in making and carrying a motion.
  1. The member addresses the president. "Mister (or Madame) President."
  2. The president recognizes the member. "Yes, (member's name)."
  3. The member makes the motion. "I move that we ..."
  4. The motion is seconded. "I second the motion."
  5. The president states the motion. "The motion has been made and seconded that ..."
  6. The president calls for discussion. "Is there any discussion?"
  7. The president takes a vote on the motion. "All those in favor of ..."
  8. The president announces the result of the vote. "The motion to ______ passed (or failed)."
AMENDING A MOTION A motion may be amended if someone sees a change or addition that will make the proposal better for the club. You will think of changes that need to be made as the club discusses the motion.
  Make amendments after motions have been made and seconded and the discussion has shown changes that need to be made. Follow these five steps:
 
  1. Rise and address the president.
  2. The president recognizes the member by name.
  3. The member states the proposed amendment by saying, "I move to amend the motion by adding ______." Your motion might be to amend by striking out and adding or by substituting a word or sentence in a motion.
  4. Second the motion to amend.
  5. The president calls for discussion by saying, "It has been moved and seconded that the words _____ _____ _____ be added to the motion. Is there any discussion on the proposed amendment?"
  If the amendment carries, the president state the motion as it is amended, and the club proceeds to discuss and vote on that motion.
  If the amendment does not carry, the president takes up the original motion, completes the discussion, and takes the vote. A motion may be amended only one time.
IMPORTANT WORDS
TO KNOW
  • Motion - an official statement or proposal for members to vote on.
  • Second - another person wants the club to vote on the motion. Motions die if they do not get a second.
  • Amend - an adjustment in the wording of a motion.
  • Undebatable - no discussion is allowed.
  • Majority Vote - one more person than half of the members. Eleven is a majority in a club of 20 members.
  • Two-thirds Vote - two-thirds or more of the members' vote. If 30 members, 20 must agree for the motion to pass.
  • Committee - a group of people assigned a specific task. Committees are usually selected by the president in consultation with the volunteer leader.
  • Nomination - the official suggestion of a specific person for an office.
  • The Floor - the membership
  • Obtains the Floor - gets permission from the president to speak.
  • Acclamation - only one person is nominated for a specific office. The club votes to accept that person as the officer.
Special thanks to Pat Bell, Bill Edwards, Walter Reeves and Walker Robertson for Georgia 4-H publications that included ideas we used in these officer guides. Other ideas were gathered from publications from Oklahoma and Mississippi.
Originally developed by Glenda Gibson Ott, former Extension 4-H Leader
William R. Lambert
Associate Dean for Extension		 Roger C. (Bo) Ryles, Jr.
State Program Leader -- 4-H

G-OG-02/Reprinted September, 2000

The University of Georgia and Ft. Valley State University, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and counties of the state cooperating. The Cooperative Extension Service, the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences offers educational programs, assistance and materials to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, age, sex or disability.
An Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Organization Committed to a Diverse Work Force
Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and the U.S. Department of Agriculture cooperating.

Gale A. Buchanan, Dean and Director