image: Ruth Henderson McQueen was inducted on October 14 into the National 4-H Hall of Fame for her lifetime achievement and contributions to 4-H. McQueen (seated with award) is surrounded by the Tennessee Delegation at the 2024 conference of the National Association of Extension 4-H Youth Development Professionals (NAE4-HYD) in Boise, Idaho.
Credit: Photo courtesy UTIA.
Ruth Henderson McQueen was inducted into the National 4-H Hall of Fame for her lifetime achievement and contributions to 4-H, the national Extension youth development organization. Honored by the National Association of Extension 4-H Youth Development Professionals (NAE4-HYD), McQueen is one of fifteen inducted during a ceremony October 14 at the organization’s national conference in Boise, Idaho.
The National 4-H Hall of Fame laureates are nominated by their home states, National 4-H Council, the National Association of Extension 4-H Youth Development Professionals, or 4-H National Headquarters of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) – USDA based upon their exceptional leadership at the local, state, national and international levels.
Honorees were presented with a National 4-H Hall of Fame medallion, plaque, and memory book during the ceremony. The National 4-H Hall of Fame was established in 2002 as part of the Centennial Project of the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents in partnership with National 4-H Council and 4-H National Headquarters of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA. For more information about the National 4-H Hall of Fame event and past recipients, visit 4-h-hof.com.
“We are proud to honor and recognize the outstanding individuals who are the Class of 2024 Laureates for the National 4-H Hall of Fame. These individuals have touched the lives of many people, from 4-H staff and colleagues to thousands of 4-H volunteers and members throughout the nation,” said Pamela Van Horn, chair of the National 4-H Hall of Fame.
A Record of Service
In 2017, the University of Tennessee (UT) looked at its 370,000 alumni and selected 100 of the most accomplished graduates to be Distinguished Alumni. Ruth Henderson McQueen was one of those honored. In the opening sentence of her biography Ruth says, “I am a product of the land-grant university system.”
Her journey started in Philadelphia, Tennessee, as a 5th grade 4-H member. For a little girl growing up on a family farm with no indoor plumbing, television or telephone, the world literally opened when Ruth joined 4-H. The opportunities led to experiences in citizenship, leadership, parliamentary procedure, public speaking and project work. These opportunities gave Ruth the motivation to pursue a college degree, an advanced degree and a 26-year career in UT Extension. After taking early retirement in 2001, she continued to use her skills and resources to serve the university, UT Extension, her community, agriculture and especially 4-H.
McQueen began her career with UT Extension as an adult home economics and youth agent in Sequatchie County, Tennessee, serving from 1975-77. She then served as an associate professor for the statewide 4-H Youth Development Program office. Her primary focus was in adult volunteer leadership, staff development and training, and international programs. For more than 20 years, Tennessee families hosted more than 850 Japanese students for a summer program, dozens for a year of high school, and three Tennessee 4-H members who spent a year in Japan as interns. McQueen herself spent two summers in Japan, in 1983 and again in 1996, when she returned as the Chair of the 4-H Japanese Exchange Committee for the USA.
Her record boasts many firsts, including serving as the first female president of the UT chapter of Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture, and the first female chair of UTIA’s annual Ag Day.
McQueen is a charter member of the Tennessee 4-H Alumni and Friends, established in 1975. She has served that organization in numerous capacities including as a State 4-H advisor to the board, board member, and state president (2007-9). In 2022 she received the State 4-H Alumni Leadership Award. She has also served the Tennessee 4-H Foundation as a major donor, state board member, state president; Hall of Fame benefactor (2013); and member of the Hall of Fame Felix and Helen Knight Benefactors Society, 2015 (donor of one million or more). She is also a 23-year member and past president (2017- 2022) of the UT Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) Retirees Association. She serves on the UTIA Advancement Board; and she was presented the 2019 UTIA Meritorious Service Award.
As a testament to her dedication to community, McQueen currently serves on a dozen boards for cemetery associations, historical societies and county and city government, which includes serving as chair of the Loudon County Library Board of Trustees, Industrial Development Board, County Board of Equalization, Loudon Farm Bureau Board and past chair, United Way. She is an active member of her church congregation, serving as an ordained Elder, a voting delegate at the 2023 International General Assembly, a Sunday school teacher and more.
McQueen continues to use the skills she developed through 4-H daily, especially the communication skills. She is a popular speaker for organizations, civic clubs, agricultural groups and is also well known for her eulogies. She advocates for UTIA and authors articles for newsletters, magazines and editorials. McQueen says she was blessed to have effective mentors and likes to pass this blessing on by serving as a mentor to others, especially young adults. None of these accomplishments would have been possible without the guidance and support of others, she says, adding that the land-grant system must endure for future generations.
The University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture is comprised of the Herbert College of Agriculture, UT College of Veterinary Medicine, UT AgResearch, and UT Extension. Through its land-grant mission of teaching, research and outreach, the Institute touches lives and provides Real. Life. Solutions. to Tennesseans and beyond. utia.tennessee.edu.