Hello, VMNs. Winter is here! Enjoy the crisp air and indoor gatherings. As you look ahead to spring and start planning your outdoor activities, don’t forget to catch up on the VMN Bi-weekly emails.
This email includes:
Re-enrollment for 2025
We have 11 days left in our Re-enrollment Period for 2025. We sent out reminders on Friday of last week and had a great response! We are up to 79% of VMNs having completed Re-enrollment. Getting closer every day! Reminders will continue to go out until January 31st.
If you can’t find your email with instructions or need a paper form, please email Tiffany at [email protected].
Being a VMN Volunteer - Debunking VMN myths
We have shared this in the past, but it seems we now have enough new VMNs that it is time to share it again. We want to debunk two VMN myths that seem to pop up every couple of years.
Myth #1 - You must complete and log 40 volunteer hours every year to stay enrolled in the VMN Program.
Status - FALSE
Explanation - To stay enrolled in the VMN Program, each volunteer must complete annual Re-enrollment and be an active member in their chapter in whatever capacity they are able. It is expected that all volunteers have an intention to do at least some service, but 40 hours of service is the requirement for earning Certified VMN status, not for staying enrolled.
Myth #2 - If a new volunteer does not complete the requirements for initial certification within one year of graduation from basic training, they can never certify.
Status - FALSE
Explanation - Any volunteer can achieve initial certification in any given calendar year by completing and logging 40 hours of volunteer service and 8 hours of CE between January 1 - December 31.
Risk Management and Civil Rights - training reminders
Beginning in February, the VMN State Office will begin sending monthly email reminders to volunteers whose Civil Rights and/or Risk Management trainings are about to expire. The State Office will also be reaching out with monthly emails to anyone who has not completed these trainings.
Continuing Education Opportunity
Monarch Larva Monitoring Project Training
Be a citizen scientist with the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project (MLMP)! The MLMP team from MJV and the UW-Madison Arboretum co-lead virtual one-day training on how to collect data that contributes to our knowledge about the monarch population. Participants learn about monarch biology, monitoring procedures, and data entry protocols and are able to ask monarch biologists their questions about monarchs and monitoring.
Southern Region Date: February 26, 2025
Time: 10am-3pm Central Time, with 1-hour break at noon
Course fee: $50
More information and registration: https://mlmp.org/get-started/in-person-training?blm_aid=590500865
VMN Sponsoring Agencies:
This email includes:
- Re-enrollment Reminder
- Being a VMN Volunteer - Debunking VMN myths
- Risk Management and Civil Rights - training reminders
- Continuing Education Opportunity
Re-enrollment for 2025
We have 11 days left in our Re-enrollment Period for 2025. We sent out reminders on Friday of last week and had a great response! We are up to 79% of VMNs having completed Re-enrollment. Getting closer every day! Reminders will continue to go out until January 31st.
If you can’t find your email with instructions or need a paper form, please email Tiffany at [email protected].
Being a VMN Volunteer - Debunking VMN myths
We have shared this in the past, but it seems we now have enough new VMNs that it is time to share it again. We want to debunk two VMN myths that seem to pop up every couple of years.
Myth #1 - You must complete and log 40 volunteer hours every year to stay enrolled in the VMN Program.
Status - FALSE
Explanation - To stay enrolled in the VMN Program, each volunteer must complete annual Re-enrollment and be an active member in their chapter in whatever capacity they are able. It is expected that all volunteers have an intention to do at least some service, but 40 hours of service is the requirement for earning Certified VMN status, not for staying enrolled.
Myth #2 - If a new volunteer does not complete the requirements for initial certification within one year of graduation from basic training, they can never certify.
Status - FALSE
Explanation - Any volunteer can achieve initial certification in any given calendar year by completing and logging 40 hours of volunteer service and 8 hours of CE between January 1 - December 31.
Risk Management and Civil Rights - training reminders
Beginning in February, the VMN State Office will begin sending monthly email reminders to volunteers whose Civil Rights and/or Risk Management trainings are about to expire. The State Office will also be reaching out with monthly emails to anyone who has not completed these trainings.
Continuing Education Opportunity
Monarch Larva Monitoring Project Training
Be a citizen scientist with the Monarch Larva Monitoring Project (MLMP)! The MLMP team from MJV and the UW-Madison Arboretum co-lead virtual one-day training on how to collect data that contributes to our knowledge about the monarch population. Participants learn about monarch biology, monitoring procedures, and data entry protocols and are able to ask monarch biologists their questions about monarchs and monitoring.
Southern Region Date: February 26, 2025
Time: 10am-3pm Central Time, with 1-hour break at noon
Course fee: $50
More information and registration: https://mlmp.org/get-started/in-person-training?blm_aid=590500865
VMN Sponsoring Agencies: