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Graduate Opportunities FMNP Volunteer Opportunity Announcement Organization: Big Cypress National Preserve Volunteer Coordinator's Name: Lisa Andrews Description of your opportunities/role of volunteers: Big Cypress National Preserve is 729,000 acres of swampland in south Florida. Part of the Everglades ecosystem, Big Cypress is a critical watershed for the Ten thousand Islands area to the southwest. It is home to many endangered species including the Florida Panther. Incredible wildlife viewing opportunities, canoeing, hiking and biking are just some of the activities available during the winter months in the swamp. From Nov. 1st through March Big Cypress provides an Environmental Education Program for 6th graders in Collier County and has the need for volunteers to assist with this program. Duties: Volunteers will work with the S.W.A.M.P., Swamp Water and Me Program, a curriculum based program with the 6th grade students and their teachers from the Collier County School System. Volunteers will either assist rangers or lead their own groups depending on staffing during the field trip. This involves hiking into a cypress strand, prairie and pineland with the students and helping them with field experiments, data gathering and other activities such as radio telemetry, dip netting and water quality testing. While the hiking is not long in distance it can be very physically demanding as it involves walking through knee to thigh deep water, heat and humidity, mosquitoes, uneven footing and other swamp creatures besides the 6th graders! A normal Environmental Education day: 9:00 - 10:00 load equipment, prepare for students, work on projects if time allows. 10:00 students arrive. 10:30-2:30 in the field with program, 3:00-4:00 clean up equipment and get ready for next day, and work on projects. Programs are run Monday through Friday with holidays off. Skills: Must enjoy working with children. Have knowledge of natural science. Good communication skills. Flexibility. Good physical condition. Must have enthusiasm!!! Location: Big Cypress is located in South Florida on Highway 41 just thirty miles east of Naples and seventy miles west of Miami. There is no housing available. Types of volunteer opportunities: Environmental Education Filed Trips Training Program: A week of training is provided in October before the classes begin. For those coming on board after October training will be on the job. Contact Lisa (see above) to join up! |
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