Ostego Bay completes Florida Master Naturalist training
Twenty-one students graduated from a week-long accelerated course of the Florida Master Naturalist Training Program at the Ostego Bay Foundation, Inc. Marine Science Center. Local students as well as participants from as far away as England received awards for completing the 40-hour education extension program on Florida’s ecosystems (coastland systems course) which ran from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Jan. 11-15.
Instructor Joanne Semmer took her class on four field trips during the week. The classes, which are offered together with the University of Florida/Institute of Florida and the Agriculture Sciences with the University of Florida/Institute of Florida and the Agriculture Sciences, also included classroom instruction and practical interpretive experience related to the general ecology, habitats, vegetation types, wildlife and conservation issues. In addition, the program enhances naturalist interpretation skills and addresses environmental ethics.
“We’ve had so much fun,” said Semmer, who trained to be an instructor from the University of Florida system. “We’ve been to Mound Key with (Director of Cultural Resources) Theresa Schober. We went down to the commercial fishing docks, and we were able to talk to Grant Erickson and George Gala who own fishing fleets. We also went to Bowditch Point and Matanzas Pass Preserve with Jim Rodwell, who was one of my students last year.”
Semmer, who has to do a minimum of three field trips per class, not only teaches about the coastland systems, but has offered classes in the wetlands systems and upland systems for the past seven years.
“We finished the classroom studies this morning, then watched four videos and had a whole slew of power point presentations on different subjects,” she said. “The students received their graduating certificates afterwards. Students who completed all three courses received a plaque as a special designation.”
Semmer said students came from England, Sarasota, Kissimmee, Pine Island and other Florida towns and cities. She has taught students from all over the country and beyond including professors, entomologists, botanists and a retired bureauist from the Department of Defense General Council. Many retired people and housewives are also interested in the class for better knowledge of the environment, according to the course instructor.
“Students in this class included several eco-tour operators who are getting certified for their businesses as well as three ladies who work at Manatee Park and another from Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation,” said Semmer. “Teachers and other professional groups offer continued education hours. Some people do it for personal enrichment while others do it to help them get jobs. I’ve had several people get jobs as rangers who work in the environmental field for an agency.
At the end of the Friday class, everybody had to present something that involved the coastal system. Beach resident Jeff Werner was one of the 21 students to take the accelerated course.
“As the chair of the Marine Resources Task Force, I really wanted to get more knowledge and information about our coastal systems so we can protect them better here on the Town of Fort Myers Beach,” said Werner.
Program Coordinator Sandy Mickey of the University of Florida;s Immokalee campus was involved in the course. The program leader is Dr. Martin B. Main, who is the professor and wildlife ecologist at the University of Florida’s Immokalee campus.
“We make friendships that last forever,” said Semmer. “We’re also networking. If I have a question about manatees, I have three women who work for Manatee Park.”
For more information on future courses, call Semmer at 470-4993 or email jj37a@yahoo.com. To learn more about the subject, go to www.masternaturalist.org
The cost for the program is $225 and includes 40 contact hours of instruction, a comprehensive student reference workbook, registration in the UF FMNP database as a Coastal Naturalist, a certificate of achievement, an embroidered FMNP patch and an FMNP Coastal lapel pin.