By Vanessa Weidman
Registration for the Coastal Prairie Chapter’s Fall 2026 training course took place in early July, and for the second year in a row the class filled in record time — about five hours! We approached registration a little differently this year, capping the number of enrollees at 27 to avoid a waiting list. While we would love to accept everyone who wants to apply, the unfortunate reality is we can only accommodate so many people per class. Anyone who sat elbow to elbow with their neighbor in the Brazos Bend State Park classroom can appreciate why we limit enrollment.
Like many past classes, this year’s cohort will be overwhelmingly female (92%), but also quite a bit younger, with an average age of 46 years compared to 54 years over the past three classes. Not surprisingly, the fall course with its weekday sessions held in the evenings tends to attract more working adults than in the spring. This makes the role of our wonderful team of mentors even more important, as many of these trainees will need to juggle family and work obligations to complete their initial certification.
Something else that sets the Fall 2026 class apart from prior years will be our first-ever training session held at Hesed House in Wharton. Hesed House is a non-profit community space that aims to support underserved residents of Wharton County. They offer services like free GED classes, programs that address health and food insecurity, and are partnering with the Texas Master Naturalist Coastal Prairie Chapter’s new Junior Master Naturalist Program. We are excited to work together with Hesed House to host Junior Master Naturalist training and hope to expand the Coastal Prairie Chapter’s presence within Wharton County.
To find out more about upcoming classes and increase the chances of getting into a class, we strongly recommend visiting the Texas Master Naturalist Coastal Prairie Chapter website at coastalprairie.org. Once on the Chapter website, complete and submit a training interest form. This form feeds into a private “Contact List” to receive monthly email updates about our training program enrollment process and key dates. Completing a training interest form also generates a sneak preview link for early registration ahead of the general public.
As we look forward to a fun and rewarding Fall 2026 training course, we are also looking ahead to Spring 2027 training. Can you believe it? We are already seeking an enthusiastic and organized Texas Master Naturalist volunteer to begin planning the Spring 2027 training class. If you are interested in becoming part of the training team or a training class Director, please contact Coastal Prairie Chapter member and Fall 2026 Training Director Vanessa Weidman.