In 4-H Youth Development, volunteer development is a priority. Creating a volunteer delivery system is critial to the succes for program delivery. A volunteer delivery system is a unified, orderly process for coordinating and overseeing the work of volunteers and their partnership with staff at all levels of the county program. It is a comprehensive system that develops the processes to put all aspects of staffing together.

Volunteer development engages individuals in an ongoing educational process, designed to build capacities for service roles. Volunteer management is the utilization of volunteers to achieve organizational goals by individuals who manage programs, resources and inputs. Volunteer coordination is engaging volunteers and organizing volunteer efforts to accomplish desired goals.

A 4-H Youth Development volunteer offers their time, talent and/or resources to 4-H Youth Development educational program without monetary expectation. It is a privilege to serve as a volunteer for the 4-H Youth Development Program.

The ISOTURE model of volunteer administration and development was developed by Dr. Robert Dolan, Professor or Adult Education at North Carolina State University in 1969. It was adapted by Dr. V. Milton Boyce, Program Leader for 4-H Youth Development, Extension Service, USDA in 1971 and introduced to County and Area 4-H Agents to be used in local 4-H Youth Development Programs