HOURS OF OPERATION
Monday thru Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, 12:00 noon to 5:00 p.m.
Education Volunteer
Job Description
Help students discover and explore estuary ecology at the Anita C. Leight Estuary Center.
Volunteer Commitment
Lab Program Volunteers are asked to commit to specific dates as they become available. Volunteers are called as soon as dates are available. Volunteers are not required to assist with a specific number per year. Volunteers are provided with as much notice as possible. Volunteers have the ability to choose from available dates as they are scheduled and therefore, are able to work around their own schedule. Additional dates may become available on short notice and will also be offered to volunteers.
Minimum Qualifications
Program Volunteers must have the following qualifications.
- strong desire to work with students
- a background in science, natural history, and/or lab experience preferred
- strong interpersonal skills to interact positively with the public and students
- ability to follow direction
- basic public speaking skills
- strong communication skills
Sample Tasks
- arrive early to assist in set up
- stay late to assist in clean up
- Activities include fish seining, nature games, stream sampling, lab activities, mammal, reptile and amphibian monitoring, etc.
- in a positive and polite fashion, volunteers should assist students with any difficulties they may have
Training & Benefits
Volunteers will receive specific training on how to assist with this program. There are many benefits to becoming an *active volunteer at the Anita C. Leight Estuary Center, including seasonal volunteer appreciation trips, the annual volunteer dinner, skill and resume development, meeting new people, and let's not forget spending time in a natural place (to mention just a few). *Please note: Active volunteer status is reached when you volunteer at least 20 hours a year.
How to Become a Volunteer
First, fill out a volunteer interest form and return it to the Anita C. Leight Estuary Center located at 700 Otter Point Road, Abingdon, MD 21009 or by fax at 410-612-0819. Second, you will be contacted to set up an interview by the Volunteer Coordinator. The interview is designed to help determine which volunteer opportunities will best suit both your needs and the current openings at the Estuary Center. Please remember the needs of our volunteer programs change so we may not always have openings in all program areas.
Calendar of EventsView all
- Clams - Can You Dig It?08/24/2019 @ 10:00 am-12:00 pmClams are environmental heroes and gastronomical treats! Dig into the mud of Otter Point Creek to harvest clams, use those clams in a demonstration of their superhero filtering capacity, and then dig into the finer points of steaming and consuming clams!
- Tails and Tots08/25/2019 @ 2:00 pm-3:00 pmStory time with a natural twist! Listen to stories, learn new songs, and move like the animals.
- Build-a-Boat Float08/31/2019 @ 1:30 pm-3:00 pmSearch the forest and shoreline for the perfect materials to design and construct a rustic natural boat. How well will your boat float? Test it out along the shoreline of Otter Point Creek!
- Sunday Trail Running09/01/2019 @ 10:00 am-11:00 amLog your miles while enjoying some beautiful scenery and some fellow nature enthusiasts! All skill levels/paces welcome. The course is an out and back, single track, approx. 2 miles long (but you can run it more than once if you choose).
- Wild Rice Canoe09/07/2019 @ 1:00 pm-3:30 pmWander through the waving stalks of wild rice within the marsh. Taste what was once a staple of Native American diets and remains an important food source for migrating birds.
What's Happening
