4-H Opportunities | Williamson County

Williamson County 4-H values students who make 4-H a priority and we want to reward those students through scholarship money to help youth achieve their goals and dreams in the future. Thanks to many local partners, businesses, 4-H Alumni, and friends of 4-H we are able to offer scholarship opportunities to our 4-H students as they graduate high school or take part in high-level 4-H activities.

High School Scholarships
Portfolio Scholarships
New Student Incentives

Williamson County 4-H wants to reward students who make learning, growing, and teaching life skills though 4-H a priority. The Williamson County 4-H program offers scholarships for varying amounts based on the number and quality of applicants. Williamson County 4-H Scholarships, once awarded, can be used in any way to assist youth as they work towards their post-high school goals. Williamson County 4-H Scholarships are awarded based on a culmination of your entire 4-H career involvement. Currently the highest amount awarded to an active student is $4,000.

Students may apply for the Williamson County scholarships in the spring of their 11th and 12th grade years. Scholarships will only be awarded once to a student, in either their 11th or 12th grade year of high school. If awarded, scholarship money will be paid out by December in the year awarded when the student submits the required payment forms. The Scholarship money can be paid directly to the students school (not taxed) or directly to the student (taxed). We are thankful for the partnership from many local partners, businesses, 4-H Alumni, and friends of 4-H to make this possible.

If you feel you are eligible to apply for the Williamson County TN 4-H Scholarships but are not active in our 4-H program during your 11th or 12th grade years of high school, please email us for the application. Applications are typically due March 1st each year. Please contact Doug Berny, dberny@utk.edu.

Our County Scholarship opportunities include:

Lee Company Scholarship
- Juniors and Seniors showing leadership and community service
Lloyd Duff Warren
- Juniors and Seniors in the Livestock or Poultry Project
Williamson County 4-H Foundation
- Seniors showing leadership and community service
Williamson County Cattleman’s Association/Ralph Meacham
- Seniors in the Livestock Project, specifically beef
Tim Johnson Memorial Horse Project
- Seniors in the Horse Project
Students Taking Ag Responsibility
- Seniors in Livestock or Poultry showing leadership and community service
Muvvala Family Communications
- Seniors active in Communications and Marketing Project
Ogilvie Family
- Seniors showing leadership and community service
STEM
- Juniors and Seniors in the STEM classes

High School Senior 4-H Members – As a Senior 4-H member and member of the class of 2024, you have the opportunity to apply tor scholarships that are available through Tennessee 4-H. There are a host of scholarship opportunities for you to review and determine if you are qualified to apply. Some of the scholarships in the 4-H Scholarship Listing 2024 are restricted to certain majors, universities and to certain 4-H experiences. Others are restricted to residency in certain counties. I would suggest that you print the list and highlight those for which you feel you are qualified and keep that list for your scheduled meeting with the Williamson County 4-H agents. You will not be permitted to apply for a scholarship for which you are not qualified. Scholarships are also offered to State 4-H Portfolio winners from TN 4-H through generous donors.

State 4-H Scholarships are available to Seniors graduating in 2024 who have been active in 4-H. There is a new application process and procedure this year. Applications completed on the old State 4-H website will not be accepted. Seniors who would like to apply for State 4-H Scholarship must complete 3 steps:

Complete the Interactive Scholarship Application Worksheet first and submit it to the Williamson County 4-H Office by April 1, 2024. This worksheet will help you collect all of the information you will need to complete your 4-H Scholarship Application. When you have completed your worksheet, email it to dberny@utk.edu and request a review.
Schedule an appointment with the Williamson County 4-H Agents to review your worksheet and identify the scholarships for which you are eligible to apply. These appointments are intended to help you have a strong application and make sure you haven’t missed something along the way. This meeting may be a zoom, in-person or if your information is complete, maybe just an email.
Complete and submit your scholarship application. Once you have had your worksheet reviewed, you will have all of the information in place to complete your Scholarship Application with the link that we provide to you. All Scholarship Applications should be completed by April 24^th. The final State deadline is May 1^st but we want you to be in the system before that deadline.

You have worked hard and many of you have had many 4-H accomplishments in your career. We want to be sure that you have every opportunity to be rewarded for your hard work. We look forward to working with you to help you. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Deadlines – Interactive Scholarship Application Worksheet is due on or before April 1st. Application deadline is April 24th.

This opportunity is open to youth who are currently involved in the Williamson County 4-H program and submit a complete 4-H Portfolio. Below are the current amounts awarded to students. This money does accumulate through middle and high school as a student stays involved and completes 4-H Portfolios.

$100 to 6th-8th Grade Portfolios who place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd at the Regional Level
$150 to 9th-12th Grade Portfolios who are selected as State Finalists and attend/compete at Congress and/or Roundup
$250 to 9th-12th Grade Portfolio State Winners from Congress or Roundup

To be eligible to receive Williamson County 4-H Portfolio Scholarships:

You must submit a complete 4-H Portfolio to Region and/or State (depending on grade level)
You must be an active Williamson County 4-H member through the 10th grade
You must attend and compete at the State Level if named a State Finalist (Congress or Roundup).
Scholarships will be awarded upon high school graduation and only when requested by the winner.

More information about 4-H Portfolios: https://4h.tennessee.edu/portfolios/

Questions about Portfolio or to get started: Doug Berny, Williamson Co 4-H Agent, dberny@utk.edu

The all-new Incentives Program is designed to encourage new 4-H students to explore all the different opportunities 4-H has to offer! By completing the activities listed and reporting them to us, students will receive payouts as detailed below.

ELIGIBILITY: 4th – 12th grade students that have never filled out a Section A form previously – including for Academic Conference, a Portfolio, or for Honor Club – are eligible for this program. A student can only participate in the incentives program once.

TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR AN INCENTIVE PAYOUT: Students must complete the following three activities AND report them using the Incentive Program Report Form to receive their First Payout.

1. Complete a 4-H Class and participate in the end-of-class project/competition

2. Compete in a County Communications contest – Public Speaking, Demonstration, Interactive Exhibit or Oral Reasons*

3. Complete 4 Hours of Community Service (see below)

Upon completion of the above three activities, students may complete an optional fourth activity AND report it in the Incentive Program Report Form to receive the Second Payout.

4. Completion of the Section A Form (see below)

PAYOUTS: Students must complete all three activities to receive their First Payout. Students may complete the extra fourth activity (once they’ve completed the previous three) to receive their Second Payout.

First Payout: $50

Second Payout: $25

See below for further details.

Class Projects or Contests are defined by the instructor.

For 4-H classes such as STEM Fun, Archery, Construction, etc., projects and competitions will only occur in series classes (not one-off) to let your student exercise what they learned and these will be discussed with your student in class.

Examples of eligible projects and contests for 4-H classes: LEGO Engineering Challenge, LEGO Robotics BattleBots, STEM Bowl, Construction Build, Video Game Programming Game, etc.

Eligible projects or contests for Animal Science, Poultry Science, and Equine Science are:

Judging Teams (Livestock, Meats, Dairy, Poultry, Horse, Wildlife, Forestry)
Skillathon (any)
Hippology
Horse Bowl

Communications contests are Public Speaking (January), Demonstration (March), and Interactive Exhibit (March). Dates will be announced very soon for this year’s communications contests! Information on each of these contests can be found below:

Public Speaking Contest

Demonstration Contest

Interactive Exhibit Contest

This requirement can also be satisfied by giving Oral Reasons during a Judging (Livestock, Meats, Dairy, Horse, Poultry, Wildlife, Forestry) competition.

Community Service must be significant and time-based (no food/clothing/etc. drives), done alongside an organization, church, or school and the student must include a description of the service and contact information of the service leader/organizer. Volunteer hours DO NOT have to be associated with 4-H to count for the New Student Incentive Program.

Examples of eligible community service opportunities: Cleaning up a local river with a “Friends of…” group, Packing lunches for The Well, Volunteering at your local library, Socializing animals at your local animal shelter, assisting with the Williamson County Fair, etc. Reach out to places you frequent and you may be surprised at the volunteering opportunities available!

Volunteering opportunities with 4-H are also sent out in our newsletter as they open!

The Section A form can be found here.

Make sure to download the form before beginning to fill it out. It acts as a record of the student’s activities in 4-H within the calendar year. It includes the creation of three SMART goals for the student to focus on that year, then allows the students to list activities they’ve done (Size and Scope), presentations and exhibits, and awards or recognition they’ve earned. Lastly, it allows the student to describe how they are progressing towards the SMART goals they listed at the beginning of the form.

Both of your 4-H agents, Kaitlyn Boughton and Doug Berny, are here to help you navigate questions related to the Section A form! Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us if you have questions.

Activities must be completed prior to the payout date to be considered for payout, and payouts will not be processed until the payout date. A student who completes two requirements by Jan 31 and the third after that date would be paid out on June 1.
Payout processing dates are Jan 31 and June 1 of each year.
Activities can only be reported if they have been completed from the program start date forward (9/10/24).
Students must utilize the self-report form linked above. Reporting will not be accepted in any other manner.

DONATE TO THE COUNTY SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM!

Your support can help a Williamson County 4-H member turn years of dedication, leadership, and personal growth into a stronger future.

Williamson County 4-H scholarships recognize juniors and seniors who have made learning, leadership, service, and life skills a priority throughout their 4-H careers. Scholarships can be used in whatever way best supports a recipient’s post-high school goals, helping make their next step more achievable.

These scholarships are made possible because local businesses, 4-H alumni, community partners, and friends of 4-H choose to invest in the next generation. As a donor, you can establish a scholarship as a one-time gift or create a recurring opportunity, and you can help determine the criteria used to award it.

You can make a lasting difference in the life of a young person. If you are interested in establishing or supporting a Williamson County 4-H scholarship, contact Doug Berny at dberny@utk.edu to learn how you can invest in the future of Williamson County youth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Williamson County begins awarding scholarship money for portfolios in 6th grade. The Portfolio scholarship money accumulates through high school. The Williamson County High School Scholarship Program awards money to students once, either spring of their junior or senior year. The State (Tennessee 4-H) usually awards scholarships during senior year. Please read the information above and follow links to TN 4-H scholarship program info.

Yes, anyone who has been in Williamson County TN 4-H can apply for the county scholarship program. Please keep in mind that the amount awarded is based on how active a student was in 4-H; so being active and remaining in 4-H will likely increase what you’re awarded. If you would like to apply, please contact us before March 1st in the year(s) you are in 11th or 12th grade. Contact: Doug Berny, dberny@utk.edu

For the Williamson County Portfolio and High School Scholarship programs, we currently send students the forms required for payment and they choose where the money is paid. After receiving the forms back, we submit them to the TN 4-H Foundation who will then mail a check to the student’s school or the student directly, whichever they decided.

Our understanding is that it is not taxed if a student has the money sent directly to a school account. If a student requests that the check be made out personally to the student, this money should be reported when filing taxes. We are not experts in this area, and you should always check with a tax professional to ensure you follow the correct procedures.

Have questions? Reach out!

Doug Berny

Extension Agent
4-H Youth Development