1. Texas 4-H 4H CONNECT ENROLLMENT
As you welcome new members and parents to your 4-H program, we need to make sure they know how to use 4-H Connect. Gone are the days that all enrollment and event registration is completed in the county office. Families can enroll and register for events at home, at a club meeting, in the office and even on their phone as long as they are connected to the web. Yea for technology when it works!
So let’s talk about Connect so that we understand and can share the enrollment process with new families and members.

2. Texas 4HConnect On-line County reviews and approves Enrollment system
Members
Volunteers
Registration system
Events
Validation (Horse and Dog)
County reviews and approves
4-H Connect is the official Texas 4-H Youth Development Program database for enrolled 4-H members and volunteers. The system is a secure database that is in compliance with the PCI Security Standards Council. Texas 4-H and 4HOnline works together to ensure the highest level of protection for the information on the system. We do not share or sell any of the personal information to third party vendors.
Each year on August 14th, all membership in Texas 4-H goes to inactive and all youth and volunteers must re-enroll. Youth members are required to pay a $20 participation fee if enrolled by October 31st. If they enroll after that, the fee is $25. Adults pay a $10 volunteer applicant fee. Youth and adults will need to enroll on 4HConnect and be active to be considered an official member of Texas 4-H. An active enrollment is required in order to register and participate in all 4-H activities and events.
Payment methods may vary between counties so once they get to the invoice/payment screen, members and volunteers will need to select the appropriate payment method. County check or credit card options could be available. Families should check with the county office before selecting the county check option. The credit card option is usually the best option since the process is completed quicker once submitting the information. We all need to remember that after the payment method has been selected and the enrollment submitted, the payment type cannot be changed. The Texas 4-H program does not accept any personal checks for participation fees, animal validations or event registrations.
After the family submits the information, the county office reviews and approves the enrollment or sends it back to the family for revision and to be resubmitted.

3. Overview of Enrollment Process - Youth submits enrollment - County reviews and approves enrollment (or sends back for corrections)
Credit Card payment
Credit Card charged
Active Profile
County/Club check
County creates transfer
County cuts check
County mails check
State office processes check
Active Profile
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

4. Enrollment How To: Step One
Log on through Texas 4-H –
using Mozilla Firefox
Click on 4HConnect at the top of the page
Create a family profile by selecting the I need to setup a profile radial button
Enter the basic information for the family
Click the Create Login button
Complete all the information for the family
Click the Continue button
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

5. Enrollment How To: Step Two
Select Youth from the Add New Family Member drop-down menu
Click the Add Member button
Enter all information on all screens
Click the Continue button to the invoice information screen
Review the invoice
Click Continue to move to the payment page
Click Add New Credit Card or select County/Club 4-H Check radial button
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

6. Enrollment How To: Step Two
Contact the Extension office to learn what payment method should be used
Add Credit Card if that method is best by choosing the Add Credit Card button and completing the requested information and selecting Save
If County/Club Check is the best option select the County/Club Check button
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

7. Enrollment How To: Step Two
Click the Select Payment Method button to confirm the payment
Click the Pay By Computer Terms and Conditions link and select the checkbox to agree if paying by credit card
Click the Submit Enrollment button
Enrollment is not complete until the Submit Enrollment button has been clicked
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

8. Enrollment for a Returning Member
Log on through Texas 4-H: using Mozilla Firefox
Click on 4HConnect at the top of the page
Select I have a profile or I forgot my password
Update family information as needed
Click Edit to the right of the inactive member’s profile
Update individual information as appropriate
Correct/update payment information as needed
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

9. Enrollment for a Returning Member
Click the Select Payment Method button to confirm the payment
Click the Pay By Computer Terms and Conditions link and select the checkbox to agree if paying by credit card
Click the Submit Enrollment button
Enrollment is not complete until the Submit Enrollment button has been clicked
Follow along with the information on the slide or go to 4HConnect and walk through the system as a show and tell type presentation.

10. Enrollment Reminders
Enrollment is pending until approved at the county level
Credit cards will not be charged until the enrollment has been approved
County/Club check payments take longer for processing
County must create transfer forms and use mail service when paying with check
There are several items that families need to remember when working through the enrollment process.
-Membership is pending until it is approved at the county level.
-If families choose to pay by credit card, they should realize that the card will not be charged until enrollment has been approved. The same is true in the registration process. So families should plan to make sure there is enough money on the card for several days (or even weeks when thinking about registration).
-As you saw earlier in the slides, it takes longer for enrollment to become active when paying by county/club check. If there is a rush because someone forgot about enrolling before needing to register for an event, I would encourage the credit card option because of timing issues.

11. Available Resources
Step by step enrollment instructions are available on the Texas 4-H webpage
Families
Extension personnel
There is no reason for people to get lost in the 4HConnect enrollment process. Step by step instructions are available on the Texas 4-H webpage and are not that difficult to follow. As it is with all technology, we sometimes have issues with the system. Nevertheless, no matter how you feel about it, it is here to stay. Encourage your people to get familiar with it and do things early so that they don’t get caught at the last minute which causes even greater frustration with the system.