UC Master Gardener Volunteer Application

✻ = Required

County ✻

Date of Application (mm/dd/year): ✻

Preferred First Name: ✻

Preferred Middle Name: ✻

Preferred Last Name: ✻

Legal First Name: ✻

Legal Middle Name: ✻

Legal Last Name: ✻

Mailing Address: ✻

City: ✻

State: ✻

Zip Code: ✻

Home Phone (with area code): ✻

Cell Phone (with area code): ✻

Email Address: ✻

Applicants selected for UC Master Gardener Program training must complete a criminal background check (required of all UC agents and volunteers) through California Department of Justice (DOJ). UC must notify the DOJ if prospective agents are recent residents of California. This information is not considered as part of your application package. How long have you been a resident of California? ✻

Please answer the following questions.

What excites you about being a UC Master Gardener?

How do you plan to use the information you learn in the UC Master Gardener Program to improve and strengthen California communities? ✻

Volunteer is the heart of the UC Master Gardener Program. What volunteer groups have you been involved in (e.g. schools, food banks, service clubs, youth groups, community organizations)? What types of activities have you done with these groups (e.g. food distribution, community organizing, translation services)? ✻

In order to reach all of Californians, the UC Master Gardener Program is working to improve the cultural competency of volunteers and to improve outreach to more communities. Please share any work that you have done, personally or professsionally, to make yourself or an organization more inclusive to others. ✻

Please describe any gardening, garden education, outdoor education, or online education experience or share why you are interested in gardening. ✻

UC Master Gardener Program volunteers are teachers and communicators. Please list your experience with any of these teachings/ communication methods: Public speaking, demonstrations, one-on-one consultations, and writing for print or social media. PLease be sure to include both online and in-person communcation experience. ✻

Please share any non-gardening skills you would bring to the program. Skills could include speaking and writing in languages other than English, experience with community organizing, graphic design or photography experience, and so on. ✻

Like many organizations, the UC Master Gardener Program relies on technology to deliver its mission. Please describe your proficinecy with technologies such as e-mail, video platforms (like Zoom), blogs, and so on. ✻

UC Master Gardener Program trainees are required to complete a training course. Training dates, times, length, and format (e.g. online, in-person, hybrid) differ by county. Will you commit to attend all sessions? Can you access the internet to complete your training or volunteer service? Folliwng the training, volunteers complete volunteer hours and continuing education hours annually (50 volunteer hours in the first year; 25 volunteer hours and 12 continuing education hours thereafter). Given your understanding of the program, how do you plan to meet these requirements? ✻

How did you learn about the UC Master Gardener Program? ✻

Demographic Information:

The UC Master Gardener Program is open to all. We collect the following demographic information to know if we are reaching all community members. This portion of the application is voluntary and will be used for reporting purposes. The categories listed are those required by UC and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Gender (Check one):

Woman Man Non-binary Gender not listed Decline to state

Ethnicity (check one):

Hispanic or Latino/a. : A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish-speaking culture or origin, regardless of race and/or a person of Latin American culture or origin Not Hispanic or Latino/a

Race (check all that apply):

American Indian or Alaskan Native: A person with origins among any of the orginal peoples of North and South America (including Central America) and who maintains a tribal affiliation or community attachment. Asian: A person with origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East Southeast Asia or the Indian subcontinent--including for example the peoples of Cambodia China India Japan Korea Malaysia Pakistan the Philippine Islands Thailand and Vietnam. Black or African American: A person with origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa. Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander: A person with origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii Guam Samoa or other Pacific Islands. White: A person with origins in any of the original peoples of Europe the Middle East or North Africa. Decline to state.

The Master Gardener Program is on a hybrid type of classes, meaning some classes with be online and others will be in-person. The specific dates are still to be determinded but will be in between Feburary - May 2025. Is there anything that might make it difficult for you to attend all classes, complete the Training Program requirements or fulfill the required volunteer and continuing education hours for the UC Master Gardener Program? ✻

Other than English, do you speak or write another language? If so, which one(s)? ✻

Trainees must have access to the internet to complete the required trainings and attend online portion of classes. In addition, UC Master Gardeners must regularly use the internet to access important program information and to find science-based information to answer quetsions that come to the Help Desk. Please describe your computer skills. ✻

I wish to be considered for acceptance into the UC Master Gardener training program offered by UC Cooperative Extension. I understand that if I am accepted, I will become a certified UC Master Gardener when I complete ~60+ weeks of classes and achieve a score of 70% on a written examination. Upon acceptance into the training program, I agree to sin the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) Adult Code of Conduct, adhere to the UC Master Gardener Program Policy Handbook, uphold the University of California's Non-discrimination commitment, and adhere to the highest ethical standards.

In exchange for the training made possible by the UC Master Gardener Program, I will: attend all required tarining classes, volunteer at least 50 hours with the UC Master Gardener Program within one calender year of my graduation, regularly submit volunteer hours, and follow all University policies and procedures.

UC Regents retains a non-exclusinve lcense to use images, video, and educational content created by UC Master Gardener volunteers while acting as agents of UC.

I understand that I will be required to submit to a criminal background and fingerprinting screening (California Department of Justice Live Scan) prior to the beginning of the training program.

Signature: ✻

Date: ✻

Please submit this application by November 11th, 2024. Late appplications will not be accepted.

Have you applied for a Master Gardener Training Program before? If so, when and where? ✻

How did you hear about this program? What about it made you want to sign up? ✻