Does inspiring and educating young people to treasure FMR’s unique ecosystem sound rewarding to you? If so, you’re in luck, FFMR is now accepting applications for the 2027 FFMR Volunteer Naturalist Training Class. Seats are limited so apply today! Applications will be accepted until 1 week prior to the first class or until all seats are filled, whichever happens first. The first class will begin in late January or early February. Check back here for updates. If you have any questions, please see below for more details or email us at volunteer@fitzgeraldreserve.org.
Note: You must be at least 18 years old and comfortable traversing FMR’s uneven and slippery terrain.
Why Volunteer at FFMR?
Volunteering at FMR is fun, rewarding, educational, social, and deeply meaningful. If you enjoy exploring the natural world and sharing it with others, this role is for you. In every tidepool, surge channel, and crevice, natural wonders await. We’ll train you to find amazing critters hidden in plain sight and teach your tour participants how to do the same. We’ll also train you in interpretive skills and impart deep knowledge so you can help guests marvel at what they are finding and understand how it fits into the larger ocean environment. By the end of a tour, your guests, who will often be students from Title I schools located in underprivileged communities, will be inspired to enjoy and care for our natural world.
In addition, FFMR will introduce you to a community of fellow naturalists, rangers, educators, and scientists that work together to protect this delicate ecosystem and gather frequently for continuing education and social events.
Why now?
By adding volunteer naturalists like you, FFMR will be able to accept more tour requests from schools and accommodate more children. For many of these students, this will be their only school field trip all year. For some, this will be the only time they get to visit the ocean all year. But this is not just about them. It is also about you. Why delay by another year giving yourself the joy of sharing this magical place with excited and appreciative students.
What roles are available?
Our flagship volunteer role is the FFMR Intertidal Naturalist. These are the folks who proudly wear our distinctive blue navy FFMR jackets and lead small groups (5-8) of students on interpretive tours of the reef. This is our most impactful role because most of these students would not be able to visit FMR on their own and their schools can only visit FMR if we have sufficient naturalists to support them.
FFMR’s other volunteer roles include our Seal Ambassadors and Visitor Hut naturalists. The Ambassadors are interpretive naturalists who set up our two spotting scopes at the top of the bluff to share up close views of our resident harbor seals with the public. The Visitor Hut naturalists open the visitor hut to the public, interpret our amazing collection (including our real humpback whale skeleton in the picnic area), and answer questions about FMR.
What training is provided?
To prepare you to lead tours on the reef, FFMR provides you with robust training on the intertidal zone, interpretive techniques, and how to lead a small group. Training will consist of class room sessions, field training, and mentoring. The classroom sessions will be taught by area experts in marine ecosystems, marine mammals, invertebrates (e.g., sea stars, anemones, octopuses, and sea slugs), and plankton and algae at the base of the food chain. At least one class will cover creative ways to engage children, and how to partner with teachers, chaperones, and rangers to ensure the most rewarding experience possible for you and your student guests. The training program varies slightly from year to year, but generally consists of 5-6, 4 hour, Saturday morning classes running from late January through mid-March. This is followed by practicing mock tours with your classmates and the assigned mentors. The training program will conclude with a graduation party for all the new naturalists.
Once the formal training is complete, FFMR will continue to support you with mentoring or by assigning another naturalist to co-lead tours with you until you decide you are ready to lead small group tours yourself.
What Commitment is Needed?
FFMR makes a considerable financial and time investment in training our volunteers so we ask that volunteers commit to lead 2-3 tours a month from November through May. Each tour is 2 hours long. Most tours are during school hours which are Monday through Friday, 10AM-3PM. You must be at least 18 years old and comfortable traversing FMR’s uneven and slippery terrain.
What if I don’t own a car?
FFMR maintains an interactive carpooling map to help volunteers coordinate rides and minimize our carbon footprint.
How to sign up?
FFMR is now accepting applications for the 2027 FFMR Volunteer Naturalist Training Class. Seats are limited so apply today! Applications will be accepted until 1 week prior to the first class or until all seats are filled, whichever happens first. The first class will begin in late January or early February.
Questions?
If you have any questions, please email us at volunteer@fitzgeraldreserve.org. A dedicated member of our volunteer team will respond within a few days.