The Official Website of the Newport Aquarium Volunteer Divers

    The Newport Aquarium opened in May 1999.  The Volunteer Diver Program began in November 1999.  The program currently has over 100 divers, who are needed everyday of the week year round to assist the Aquarium’s husbandry staff with maintenance of the exhibits and feeding the fish.  Volunteers can literally “dive the world in a day” in the Indo-Pacific Coral Reef exhibit, the Amazon River exhibit, the California Kelp Forest exhibit, the Surrounded by Sharks exhibit, and many others.  Divers dedicate one day or more a month to scrubbing rockwork, wiping windows, hand-feeding small sharks and freshwater stingrays, and interacting with the public.

    The Dive Program consists of two job categories, Maintenance and D.I.V.E. Shows.

Maintenance: This requires 2 to 10 divers a day, every day of the week.  Duties include food prep, cleaning the   exhibits, and feeding exhibit animals.

D.I.V.E. (Diver Interactive Volunteer Education) Shows:

These presentations take place primarily in the Surrounded by Sharks exhibit Thursday-Sunday and require additional training.  Shows require at least 2 divers - one presenter on a com-mask and one or more safety divers.  Presenting is not required, but is a wonderful chance for divers to share their passion with the public.

Scuba Unlimited is the official dive center of the Newport Aquarium, assisting the dive program, as well as hosting the written/buoyancy assessments.

            If you are interested in becoming a volunteer diver for the Newport Aquarium, you must meet the following requirements:

                        • at least 18 years of age

                        • Advanced Open Water certification

                        • CPR and First Aid certified

                        • complete a written and buoyancy assessment

                        (conducted by Newport Aquarium dive staff)

                        • able to commit at least 1 day a month for an initial period of 6 consecutive months

    To learn more about what it’s like to be a Newport Aquarium volunteer diver, read this article written by diver Phil Napoli.

    To apply to the Newport Aquarium Volunteer Diver Program, click here to fill out an application.  Or call Jenny Yee-Greber, Manager of Volunteer Services at 859.815.1441 or email volunteer@newportaquarium.com. 

Mail your "scuba resume" and diver application to:

Newport Aquarium
Volunteer Services
One Aquarium Way
Newport, KY 41071

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