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Temecula Valley Museum reports surge in school field trips, seeks docent capacity for growth
Summary
Museum staff told the Temecula Community Services District Commission that in-person field trips have rebounded since COVID and now average about 2,000 students a year, driving a need for more volunteer docents and accommodation options for schools with limited transportation.
The Temecula Valley Museum told the Temecula Community Services District Commission on an evening meeting that its school field trip program has rebounded strongly since the COVID-19 shutdowns and now draws far more students than before the pandemic.
"From 2022 through 2025, we almost averaged 2,000 students per year," Sergio Raya, community service manager for the museum, said during a presentation. Raya said that figure represents roughly a 61% increase over the museum's pre-pandemic average recorded from February 2005 through 2020.
Raya outlined how the museum runs field trips: groups of about 60 students are split into two cohorts that swap between the museum's indoor, era-based history galleries and an outdoor walking tour of Old Town Temecula. Tours are offered during typical field-trip hours, roughly 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., and are open to public, private and charter schools, homeschool groups and community organizations.
Raya said the museum relies heavily on volunteer docents to run the program. "We have about four docents on hand to use at any given time," he said, adding that the museum currently has nine people in docent training. He thanked longtime volunteers, including one docent identified as the wife of Commissioner Jeff Kingsburg, for sustaining the program.
Commissioners asked how many visiting students come from Temecula schools versus neighboring communities. "Prior to COVID our visitors were mostly Temecula schools," Raya said. "Coming out of COVID the surrounding cities jumped at the chance to find a local place where kids could have hands-on history."
Commissioner Jeff Kingsburg and Commissioner DeGraves asked about scheduling and access. Raya said the museum changed its regular public open days this month and generally will offer tours on Wednesdays and Thursdays; Tuesdays will be considered on an application basis if a school cannot visit on other days. He also said bus costs and school field-trip budgets remain a constraint for some schools.
On virtual access, Raya said the museum is exploring pre-recorded videos and a Temecula Valley Museum YouTube playlist that could serve as a virtual tour, but he did not describe any live-remote field-trip program.
The museum's data collection timeframe cited by staff runs from February 2005 through February 2025. Raya and commissioners emphasized recruiting and training docents as the primary near-term capacity challenge to sustain rising demand.
The museum presentation concluded with commissioners thanking staff and volunteers and inviting further outreach to schools and community groups.
