By Ed Rozier

 The program began in It is a great volunteering opportunity for kids currently in 5 th grade and up and it continues to the summer after high school. The JZK program is a good fit for students who are looking for experience working with people, learning leadership and time-management skills, and getting some quality time with animals.  They have informational meetings starting this year on March 5 th, 6 th, or 8 th from 7:00pm to 8:00pm at Miller Park Zoo in Bloomington, IL. Pick the meeting you can attend. Attendance is necessary in order to receive application materials. At that meeting they will give you application forms, and they will also tell you about what you’ll do, and the stages of which you’ll go through as you progress over each year. Shannon Reedy is the director of the JZK program at Miller Park Zoo and will do the speaking at the meeting. She is very enthusiastic about the program and makes it interesting.

 The JZK program goes through different levels. Beginner JZK: You will have a one-week summer camp. During this level you will basically learn about procedures and learn about different species of animals at the zoo. You’ll also get to meet some of the animals at the zoo up close and personal. Intermediate JZK: You will meet at the zoo one Saturday class each month October – April and one – Week Summer Camp. Here in IJZK you learn about volunteering and you’ll have a lot of fun because of the activities like training rats, feeding the animals, and scavenger hunts around the zoo. At this stage you’ll learn about animal handling and guest services, in which you will hold animals for guest to come by and pet.

Advanced JZK: You will meet two Saturday classes each month October – April during the school year and then Summer Volunteering. You will learn a lot more details about the animals in the zoo. (Example the Class for the Galapagos Tortoise is the Reptilia class, their range is from the Galapagos Islands, their diet and details on the names and ages of the animals the zoo has) Also in the Advanced JZK program the volunteering starts. You have sign up times you can volunteer for. Master JZK: You meet on Saturday class each month October-April during school & summer volunteering. The Master JZK which is the highest stage in which you can do a lot of things not available to other JZKs. You will help out a lot more with camps and volunteering. If you successfully complete this stage then you have an opportunity to go on a trip outside of the United States. JZKS have to apply for a JZK position at each level. You have to be responsible and have good behavior and have a serious interest in learning more about helping at the zoo.

Friends you’ll meet Animals at the Zoo of which you will handle include skinks, cockatoos, armadillos, Madagascan hissing cockroaches, opossums, tortoises, rabbits, hedge hogs, beaded lizards and rats. Every once and a while the zoo will obtain a new handling animal and list might continue. You’ll some times get to do stuff like give the wolfs enrichment which is something to get their brain working like toys or new items, feed the otter and fish, give frozen meat to the singing dogs, or do the same for the eagles. Later in the program animal observations will occur in which you either pick an animal or are assigned one to observe for a maximum of 45 minutes but a minimum of 15 minutes. At this time you really learn about your animal and how it acts along with its personality. After I did my observation I became particularly attached to that specific animal. One of my favorite animals to handle is Indigo the Skink because of how laid back she is. This helps so that she won’t scare a guest or move around a lot while handling which could make her fall and hurt herself. So as you can see this program will help you to meet some amazing animals.

Mother & Joey Walleroo Come in and get up close…

Can’t touch these…

Keda the bobcat Ozzie the otter Female white tailed trogan

Rolo Candy the Sun Bear

Volunteering duties Volunteering choices includes: Watching and cleaning the petting zoo Holding animals for guest to meet Doing animal observations Working in zoo kitchen Cleaning up poop Helping out with events at the zoo Assisting guests Cleaning windows Sweeping floors

Tests While in classroom meetings once and a while you will take fairly easy tests. The tests are based off of emergency protocol, details about animal species, opening and closing times, feeding times, and names of animals at the zoo. The tests give you points which will tell if you are ready to move on to the next stage. Like I said before these tests are easy, so you probably won’t have much trouble with them. You will get pages about species of animals specifically at the zoo that list unique qualities, names, weight, height, population, class, and number of that animal at the zoo. These pages are good study sources and help me a lot.

Points You earn points in the program for doing things like bringing your stuff to meetings, volunteering, participating, and tests. These points will determine whether you are ready to go to the next class of JZK. In summer camp you will get points based a lot on behavior and social skills with other JZKs and guests alike. Points also determine if you will be able to volunteer.

THE TRIP When you get to be an MJZK you will have the opportunity to take a trip to Costa Rica with your JZK class mates. You will camp out in the rainforest and explore and examine plants and animals. Parents can come too with their children and enjoy the scenery. This takes place towards the end of your time in the JZK program. A majority of the animals at the zoo are from Costa Rica so this is a great way to study them in their natural habitat. This doesn’t just take place in the rainforest but will also take place climbing mountains. This trip is a major goal of most people in the program and is said to be fun by those who have gone on the trip. In order to go to the trip you have to serve for four years and be sophomores in high school. Students you will know if they are accepted for the trip 18 months in advance. I can already tell that this is going to be a real fun and educational experience and I can’t wait to go!!

JZK has provided me with a fun way to do good and I hope to pass on my experience to others.