Honor Club | Tennessee 4-H Youth Development

The Tennessee 4-H Honor Club is organized statewide and provides recognition, primarily within counties, for members in grades 6–12 who have demonstrated leadership, dedication, and service in their clubs and communities. Honor Club is the next step beyond regular 4-H activities and is the first of three recognition levels a member may achieve during their 4-H career. Membership is granted to those who have demonstrated strong project work, consistent leadership, and a willingness to share their knowledge with others as junior or teen leaders.

The purpose of the Honor Club is to provide 4-H members with more opportunities to lead and be recognized in their local community. Members can take on leadership roles in their county, build confidence through public speaking, and participate in service projects that make a real difference in their communities.

Become A Member!

You don’t have to have won a lot of awards to be an Honor Club member…just be an active participant in your local 4-H club. You don’t win membership in the Honor Club isn’t something you join automatically — you earn it! Members collect points for the things they do in 4-H, and participation is what counts most.

To qualify, you’ll need to:

Participate: complete projects, give presentations, prepare exhibits, and attend 4-H events
Lead: help younger 4-H’ers, serve in leadership roles, or promote 4-H in your community
Serve: take part in community service and citizenship activities
Reflect: write a short paragraph about your most rewarding experience as a junior or teen leader

When you’re ready, fill out an application (available from your 4-H agent or on this website). Submit your completed form to your local 4-H agent, who will review it before sending it to the State 4-H Office. If you’ve earned enough points, you’ll join more than 2,400 Tennessee youth who are already proud Honor Club members.

Accepted members receive an official 4-H Honor Club certificate and an Honor Club key to celebrate their achievement.

Are you in sixth grade or higher? Have you been active in 4-H? Do you enjoy leadership and service? If so, you may be ready to join the Tennessee 4-H Honor Club!

Honor Club is open to 4-H members in grades 6–12 who are active in their local clubs. Membership is based on a point system — and earning points is easy. You get credit for the things you already do in 4-H, like completing projects, attending events, giving presentations, helping others, and volunteering in your community. You even earn points just for being a member!

Anyone who participates can qualify for Honor Club. Why not start your application today? Contact your county 4-H agent for details or download the form online.

View the Application

Earning Honor Club membership is just the beginning — that’s when the fun really starts! You’ll join other active 4-H members who enjoy working together, building friendships, and taking part in new experiences.

In most counties, Honor Club meets monthly or quarterly as a countywide group. Members participate in educational, recreational, and community service activities, such as assisting with fairs and workshops, leading projects, creating displays, volunteering in the community, or enjoying camps, trips, and social gatherings. A favorite activity is exchange trips, where members get the chance to visit 4-H’ers in other states.

Honor Club is what you make it. Leadership, service, and project work are at the heart of the program, but there’s plenty of room to shape your own experience and explore what excites you most. Each year, new members are recognized at the county level for their dedication and involvement.

And Honor Club is just the first step. Senior members who continue their service can advance to All Stars, and the highest honor in Tennessee 4-H is Vol State. Every step begins with Honor Club.

The tables below denote the number of new 4-H Honor Club members each county has initiated in the given year.