Our mission is to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers who provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the State of Texas. The North Texas Chapter primarily serves Dallas, Rockwall, and Kaufman counties. Visit this link to find other chapters throughout the state.
Applications for the 2026 Training Class will open September 14, 2025 and will close on October 14, 2025. You are always welcome to attend a chapter meeting, either in person or via Zoom. Meetings are the first Wednesday of each month beginning at 7:00 pm.
Click here for a sample application.
Click here for tips to know when completing your application.
Master Naturalists enjoying a hike
Why become a Master Naturalist?
Educate, Connect and Engage with Nature and People
- Be part of a group of like-minded people that enjoy nature and the outdoors
- Learn more about our natural environment in the North Texas area from experts in their fields
- Work with people from North Texas with varied individual interests, experience, and talent
- Help others love and value our natural environment
- Learn about and support great nature organizations and their work
- Protect and restore our natural resources
- Make new friends and discover many wonderful prairies, forests, aquatic areas, nature centers, and parks you don’t even know exist
Quick Views of our Chapter:
Check out these short videos to see more about us!
The NTMN Class Experience (3 minutes)
I’m a Texas Master Naturalist (2 minute video)
Some 2026 classes will be held online and some in person at Brookhaven College. We will have small-group, in-person experiences – nature walks, field trips, meet-ups to see Master Naturalist Projects and places to volunteer, and also for you to meet and get to know fellow Master Naturalists.
Learn. Volunteer. Repeat.
How do I become a certified Master Naturalist?
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- Submit the application for the class and pass the mandatory background check to be accepted into the program. To become a Master Naturalist, you must be at least 18 years of age.
- Complete the training program: 40 classroom hours (in person and online), 3 field trips (1 each for Aquatic, Prairie, and Forest ecosystems), homework, and class project.
- Obtain a minimum of 8 hours of approved advanced training and complete a minimum of 40 hours of chapter-approved volunteer service within the same calendar year.
Master Naturalists maintain certification by completing 8 hours of advanced training and 40 hours of volunteer service each year.
The next class will start on Tuesday, January 27, 2026 and run through April 28, 2026.
Preference will be given to applicants who express a commitment to stewardship of our natural resources, a willingness and availability to contribute time to volunteer service, a desire to complete the coursework, homework, and field trips, and those already volunteering.
This is a selective process and applicants will be notified of acceptance status by end of November following the application period each year.
Cost
The registration fee for the 2026 class is $200.00, which includes the membership payment for 2026, textbook, and other supplies. Please pay only AFTER you receive an acceptance notice. Detailed instructions will be given at that time. Acceptance notices will be e-mailed no later than December 1, 2025. Some partial scholarships are available. Send an e-mail to ne******@**mn.org to request a scholarship application.
If you have received an email notifying you that you have been accepted in the Class of 2026, a tuition invoice will be emailed to you from “North Texas Master Naturalists <qu********@*****************it.com>”. You can securely pay your tuition by clicking the “Pay Invoice” button or by sending a check made out to “North Texas Master Naturalist” to the AgriLife office using the address below. Payment is due by December 10, 2025.
NORTH TEXAS MASTER NATURALISTS
C/O TEXAS A&M AGRILIFE EXTENSION SERVICES
6820 LYNDON B JOHNSON FWY STE 3200
DALLAS TX 75240-6580
| 2025 Class Schedule | ||
| Date | Unit | Topic |
| 28-Jan | Unit 5 | Introduction to Texas Master Naturalists |
| and Ecosystem Concepts | ||
| 4-Feb | Unit 4 | Ecological Regions of Texas & VMS Info. |
| 11-Feb | Units 14, 18 | Aquatic Ecology and Ichthyology |
| 18-Feb | Unit 6 | Ecosystem Management |
| Unit 21 | and Urban Ecosystems | |
| 25-Feb | Unit 17 | Forest Ecology and Management |
| 4-Mar | Unit 20 | Prairie Ecology and Management |
| 18-Mar | Unit 15 | Herpetology – Amphibians |
| Snakes | ||
| 25-Mar | Units 10 | Taxonomy |
| Unit 16 | Mammalogy | |
| 1-Apr | Unit 7 | Geology |
| Unit 8 | Effects of Weather and Climate | |
| 8-Apr | Unit 13 | Entomology |
| 15-Apr | Unit 12 | Ornithology |
| 22-Apr | Units 24,22 | Citizen Science/ Laws/ Ethics |
| Unit 23 | Outreach and Interfacing with the Community | |
| 29-Apr | Unit 11 | Botany |
Field Trip topics and locations: To obtain certification, each Trainee must attend one field trip in each category: Forest, Prairie, and Wetlands. Field trips take place on weekends. Several options will be available for each category. The locations and dates for the Field Trips have not been finalized. These are some examples of possible locations for the trips.
FOREST Field Trip Options
| Location | More Information |
| Ned and Genie Fritz Buckeye Trail7000 Bexar Street, Dallas |
https://trinityrivercorridor.com/recreation/texas-buckeye-trailA mile-long trail into the Great Trinity Forest that, at one point, borders the Trinity River. |
| Spring Creek Preserve1770 Holford Road, Garland |
https://springcreekforest.orgA 69-acre preserve that features old-growth bottomland forest, with 20-40 ft tall limestone cliffs cut by a spring water stream. Over 650 species of plants & animals have been observed, including Solomon’s seals, very rare for this area. |
| Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center1206 W. FM 1382 Cedar Hill, TX |
https://dogwood.audubon.org/Set at the mouth of a forested canyon, Dogwood Canyon is a 200-acre natural habitat with two miles of hiking trails. It is one of the few remaining places in Dallas County to observe native trees, grasses, wildflowers, etc.. The 3,000 acres greenbelt that surrounds DCAC is an important stopover for migrating birds and other species. |
PRAIRIE Field Trip Options
| Location | More Information |
| Clymer Meadow4318 FM 1562, Celeste, TX |
https://www.nature.org/en-us/get-involved/how-to-help/places-we-protect/clymer-meadow-preserve/ The 1,400-acre Clymer Meadow Preserve contains some of the largest and most diverse remnants of the Blackland Prairie, including imperiled plants such as little bluestem-Indiangrass and gamagrass-switchgrass. Owned by the Nature Conservancy of Texas, Clymer Meadow serves as a study center and is seldom open to the public. |
| Connemara PreserveOn the border of Allen and Plano just to the east of Alma Drive, north of Hedgcoxe Drive and just south of Bethany Drive. | https://connemaraconservancy.org/A 72-acre oasis of beauty and serenity in the midst of suburban sprawl. Owned by the Connemara Conservancy Foundation, it is rich in floral diversity that is reminiscent of the tall grass Blackland Prairie that once existed in north Texas. |
| Lake Lewisville Environmental Learning Area (LLELA)201 E. Jones St., (corner of Jones and Kealy streets), Lewisville, TX | https://www.llela.org/llela-homeA 2,000 acre property in Lewisville where the Blackland Prairies and the Eastern Cross Timbers meet, intersected by the Elm Fork of the Trinity River. |
WETLANDS Field Trip
*Note: JBS is the best place in town for wetlands education. There will be two trips to JBS on the calendar, and we are hoping that we can get 100% of trainees registered in one of these Saturday morning classes. Understanding that Saturday mornings may not work for everyone, I’ll work with those of you who can’t attend the JBS trips to try and schedule an alternative option.
| Location | More Information |
| John Bunker Sands Wetlands Center655 Martin Ln, Seagoville, TX |
https://www.wetlandcenter.com/Located in the middle of the 2,000-acre East Fork Wetland Project, the JBS provides education and research opportunities pertaining to water conservation, wetland systems and wildlife management. The Center serves as the hub of environmental and social interest of man-made wetland habitats on the Rosewood Seagoville Ranch property. This includes the North Texas Municipal Water District’s 2,000 acre East Fork Wetland Project, and an additional 1,200 acres of bottomland hardwood forest restoration as part of the Bunker Sands Mitigation Bank. |
Who can I contact for more information about the training program?
For more information on joining the North Texas Master Naturalist chapter, contact: Charlie Marshall or Erin Mollet, New Class Director at ne******@**mn.org
If you live in Collin, Denton, Ellis, or Tarrant County, consider your local chapter. The Texas Master Naturalist website provides a map and links for chapters across the state.
If you are a Trainee from another chapter, inquiring about a make up class or field trip, please email cl*********@**mn.org
Download our 2025 Member recruitment flyer in English here. The Spanish version of the flyer can be downloaded here.