December 11, 2017 - The UC Merced Vernal Pools and Grassland Preserve, the Merced County UC Cooperative Extension Office, and the Upper Merced River Watershed Council are sponsoring the California Naturalist Program at UC Merced from February 15, 2018 - April 26, 2018.  Students in the California Naturalist Program will become part of a committed corps of volunteer naturalists and citizen scientists, equipped with the skills needed to take an active role in local natural resource conservation, restoration and environmental education.  Students will attend 10 Thursday evening classes and 4 Saturday field trips.  The Watershed Council is providing a limited number of partial scholarships provided by the Dr. George Chynoweth Fund. 

Applications for scholarships must be received by Thursday, January 25, 2018.

Please visit cemerced.ucanr.edu to obtain information about the UC Merced CalNat Program including contact information and registration/scholarship application forms.  To obtain information about the Watershed Council, please visit Merced-River.org.