Recordkeeping
A standardized individual volunteer hour report sheet is provided by the MG Program Office for your convenience. However, it is NOT necessary to use the standard form. You may choose to use whatever format works best for your group as long as the pertinent information (number of volunteer hours in youth education, community education and support services, as well as continuing education) can be calculated. The standard form also includes a waiver request to allow individuals to request that their name not be included on mailing lists. This should be made available to all MGVs, whether it is by using the standard form, included on a customized form or offered as a separate document.
Individual MGVs should turn in their individual volunteer hour reports (timesheets) to the county UW-Extension office or another designated local recordkeeper by October 1 each year.Individuals should submit all hours they have accumulated by this date, even though they may have much more time to complete their volunteer service requirements for certification (one year from the end of the training class will likely NOT coincide with Oct 1). It is important to announce this deadline and remind your participants to encourage compliance. It is perfectly acceptable to have an earlier deadline for submission if you choose, but make sure the participants are aware of this. Individual hour reports should be kept on file in the local county Extension office. Do NOT send individual hour reports to the MG Program Office.
County (or association) volunteer reporting forms are sent from the MG Program Coordinator each year about a month before individual hour reports are due. The local recordkeeper is responsible for transcribing the totals on the individual hour records to this composite report. This report is due back to the Program Office by October 20 each year.
It is vital that these reports be submitted in a timely manner. The information is entered into a database and used to develop the statistical reports for inclusion in the annual accomplishment report which documents the importance of MGVs in their communities. If county reports are received too late, your county’s contributions may not make it into the report.
The MG Program Office maintains a statewide database that includes all Master Gardeners who have taken training since 2000 (before that records were kept locally and records for inactive MGs were generally not included in the statewide database). The database contains contact information and annual records of volunteer and continuing education hours. The data in the statewide database are used to calculate total volunteer hours for each county for inclusion in the WIMGA annual accomplishment report.
Under the Wisconsin Public Records Law, UW-Extension ordinarily must release lists in its custody to the public upon request. The contact information included in the database must be released to individuals, organizations or businesses that request it, except for those people who have requested confidentiality in writing. For convenience, the back of the timesheet includes a brief release form for MGVs to sign and date to withhold their personal information.
