• Topics: Family Youth and Community Sciences  | Cooperative Extension Volunteer Teacher series  |  Bolton, Elizabeth B 

Providing Recognition to the Extension Volunteer Teacher¹

This is one publication in the series The Cooperative Extension Volunteer Teacher. This volunteer teacher series addresses the need for guidelines to assist Extension county faculty in the important task of preparing the volunteer to teach.

Overview

Recognition is the means by which an institution shows a volunteer their services are appreciated. It is more than just saying "thank you" at the end of a service or task. Appropriate recognition acknowledges the work and contributions of a volunteer in a public way. Recognition is an important part of programs that utilize volunteers to deliver services, teach and carry out organizational tasks.

Many volunteers find the greatest satisfaction in helping others, and acknowledgement of this help is all they need. On the other hand, lack of formal recognition is often evidence of a poorly-managed program. Recognition can be done in many ways and each demands some commitment. A plan for recognition needs to be a part of the overall procedures for involving volunteers in the work of the local Extension office.

Behind every effective volunteer teacher is the Extension faculty member(s) who recruited, trained, and supervised the volunteer. The recognition system should also include a means of acknowledging the work of the Extension professional(s). This accomplishes several goals. It increases the motivation of the Extension professional to work with volunteers. Building recognition of the staff person into the system is a means of building and maintaining a team approach to the work of the Extension program. It reinforces the importance of the multiplier concept, which implies that programs and information multiply when volunteers are involved in their dissemination.

Below are some principles that can be used to guide the development of a system of recognition for a county Extension program that utilizes volunteers.

1. Recognition and acknowledgement of volunteer service is a necessary part of the program that utilizes their resources.

2. A systematic plan for recognition reinforces the motivation of volunteers to participate and to continue their participation.

3. A systematic plan for recognition can build on levels of achievement and degree of service that individual volunteers contribute.

4. A formal event for recognition can provide publicity for the individual and for the Extension program in which the volunteer participated. In other words, recognition for service is news.

5. A systematic plan for recognition should be broad enough to provide acknowledgement for many levels of accomplishment and service and thus reward many volunteers rather than just a few.

Recognition is most effective when it is tied to the reasons or motivations a person has for being involved in volunteer work. The reasons people volunteer are shown in Box 1 and each suggests a corresponding type of recognition (Bolton, 1985, p. 40).

Informal Recognition

Recognition strategies do not have to be formal and planned months in advance. There are some simple and inexpensive methods to show volunteers that their services are valuable and their time is appreciated. Following are some examples of informal recognition.

1. Pins or identification badges. Name badges or identification pins help the volunteers to identify with the agency or organization they serve. It also acknowledges that this person is important enough to have a special name plate or badge with his/her name. These can also be a symbol of status.

2. Including the volunteer in planning and evaluating the program.

3. Asking advice and giving praise, compliments and congratulations for performance.

4. Accepting volunteers as part of the team and treating them as peers.

5. Making volunteers aware of the relationship of the job they do to the overall objective of the program.

6. Making volunteers aware that they are needed and wanted. They are valuable human resources to an important community organization--County Cooperative Extension.

There are many small but significant ways to tell volunteers that they are appreciated.

Formal Recognition

Some of the more formal methods to give recognition include the following. They may or may not be tied to the motive for volunteering or the specific purpose of the organization.

1. A letter of commendation for accomplishments.

2. Put volunteer in charge of a project.

3. Have volunteer of the month with a special place to display picture and name.

4. Achievement day with attendance by influential people in the community.

5. Special awards for service, teaching or community outreach.

6. Certificates of achievement in a particular skill, subject, service project.

7. Utilize a recognition worksheet with professional staff and with volunteers to plan types and dates of recognition events.

8. Certificates of appreciation with the volunteer's name and the length of service.

References

Bolton, E.B. (1985). Volunteer Leadership Development: Document Results and Giving Recognition. Module V. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida, Cooperative Extension Service. (pp. 37-43.)

Boyd, B.L. (2004). Extension agents as administrators of volunteers: Competencies needed for the future. Journal of Extension [on line]. Available:

Mook, L., Sousa, J., Elgie, S., & Quaarter, J., ( 2005). Accounting for the value of volunteer contributions. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 15 (4), 401-415.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Millie Ferrer-Chancy, Interim Dean.

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