Volunteerism in Youth Development Programs: Editors' Note

Youth development programs are varied and diverse. Some rely on paid staff to deliver programming, but many rely on volunteers. While there is quite a bit of research on volunteers and volunteerism in general, there is little that goes in depth covering the nuances of volunteers in youth development organizations. The editors of this special issue introduce the articles, which cover themes of understanding the impacts of volunteers, volunteer competencies and skill development, support and motivation of volunteers, and evaluation of programs. In addition, a book review and a closing reflection are included. Finally, the editors close with their thoughts about exciting directions for the future of volunteer development research and practice

Effective Communication of 4-H Program Essentials to 4-H Families

Youths and parents in the California 4-H program have reported issues with communication and challenges in understanding the program. As a result, we developed a family handbook and other supporting documents to help youths and parents navigate the California 4-H program. This article addresses the development, dissemination, and reach of the handbook. Additionally, the article discusses future directions and implications for other Extension programs

Volunteer Outcomes and Impact: The Contributions and Consequences of Volunteering in 4-H

Youth development volunteers are relied upon by many youth organizations to deliver educational programming, and consequently, fulfill organizations’ missions. Our study explored the consequences of volunteering in youth services by focusing on volunteer outcomes (consequences of volunteering on the volunteer) and volunteer impacts (volunteers’ contributions to the organization). We collected 1,245 open-ended responses to 2 questions from adults who served as volunteers in the University of California 4-H Youth Development Program. We applied iterative inductive thematic analysis without a pre-existing coding scheme to each question independently. Volunteers described their impacts on 4-H as expanding and maintaining programs for children, providing support to and teaching youth, and helping to realize youth outcomes. By volunteering, adults reported outcomes including developing skills, improving well-being, and deepening connections with others

Addressing Retention in Youth Programs: A Survey for Understanding Families\u27 Experiences

Research on retention in the 4-H youth development program has consistently shown that one of the primary indicators for youths\u27 dropping out of 4-H is being a first-year member. Extension 4-H professionals from California, Idaho, Wyoming, and New Jersey formed a team to study this issue. Our team surveyed first-year members and their parents/guardians to better understand why youths were not reenrolling in 4-H after their first year. This article introduces the survey used to assess the first-year experience and intent to reenroll. We discuss the survey development process, survey testing, lessons learned, and conclusions related to its future use

A communal catalogue reveals Earth's multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world's importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth's microbial diversity.Peer reviewe

A communal catalogue reveals Earth’s multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world’s importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth’s microbial diversity