Discover dinosaurs at Morrison Museum and indulge your passion for paleontology.

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Thank you for your interest in volunteering at the Morrison Natural History Museum. We are currently seeking dedicated individuals to join our team and assist with various museum operations, including education, paleontology lab work, and collections. As a museum volunteer, you will receive comprehensive training to ensure a meaningful experience for both you and our visitors. We welcome all applicants, whether a retired professional or simply curious, to take advantage of this opportunity and become part of our community. Bilingual speakers of Spanish/English are encouraged to apply. Please click the link to apply and start the conversation. We look forward to meeting you and working together to make a positive impact.

Age Guidelines:

• Age 14 without a parent or legal guardian volunteer.
• Under age 14 permitted when accompanied by a parent or guardian who is also a MNHM volunteer.
• Volunteers under age 18 must have written permission of parent or legal guardian.

Volunteer Roles: Museum Volunteer

Museum Volunteers greet visitors, answer questions, collect payments, maintain the museum shop, and perform light clerical work. Their professionalism ensures a positive experience for visitors. They're dedicated, detail-oriented, and committed to the museum's mission.

Museum Volunteers are offered an orientation and training at no cost. Volunteers are highly encouraged to attend our virtual 'Digging Deeper’ lecture series, in which the museum curator explores pertinent natural history topics, providing an excellent opportunity to deepen your knowledge in the field.

Museum Volunteers offer assistance with daily operations, which includes:

• Greeting and orienting visitors.
• Answering basic questions about the museum and the Morrison area.
• Collect admission and payments for gift shop merchandise.
• Help monitor and maintain the museum shop.
• Answer telephones and other light clerical work.

Our museum provides a certification program for volunteers specializing in fossil preparation and paleontology education. Sessions are available biannually from January to May, with a brief session in the autumn. The program equips volunteers with skills to excel in their areas of interest, benefitting both them and visitors.

Paleontology Lab:

Morrison Museum preparators receive comprehensive training in the safe extraction of fossils from rock, for both research and display purposes. Currently, our museum staff is focused on preparing local fossils, including species such as Apatosaurus and other Late Jurassic animals found in hard sandstone.

Our mandatory training/orientation is offered at no cost to ensure a high standard of safety and quality. We recommend a minimum commitment of twelve months, with a monthly requirement of at least 8 hours of service. Our training program, coupled with a mentorship process, takes place both online and in the paleontology lab, ensuring that our volunteers receive the best possible training.

Our program offers comprehensive training to volunteers on preparation theory, basic fossil identification, and the proper use of tools and equipment like manual, power, and pneumatic hand tools, as well as microscopes and chemicals for fossil consolidation. Moreover, volunteers can display their skills in fossil preparation techniques to visitors in the museum's open lab, providing a unique learning experience for all involved. Our aim is to equip our volunteers with the knowledge and expertise necessary to contribute to the field of paleontology while also engaging with the public in a professional setting.

Due to the demand for this volunteer position, qualified applicants may be placed on a wait list until a vacancy occurs.

Paleontology Interpreter:

Certified volunteer Paleontology Interpreters to lead interpretive programs on regional paleontology and geology. As primary educators in the exhibition, they offer informal science education for schoolchildren and visitors through unstructured, conversational programs and hands-on activities.

We are pleased to offer a mandatory training program that requires a minimum six-month commitment and a monthly service requirement of 8 hours, all at no cost. The training will be conducted at the museum and includes five sessions, as well as a mentorship period. Additionally, volunteers are highly encouraged to attend our virtual 'Digging Deeper’ lecture series, in which the museum curator explores pertinent natural history topics, providing an excellent opportunity to deepen your knowledge in the field.

While experience is preferred, it is not required, and those with museum interpretation experience can test out of training. Bilingual Spanish/English speakers are highly encouraged to apply. Join our team of dedicated interpreters today!