Docent Program

Pursue Your Interests
  • If you are interested in American Indian cultures and are curious about their history.
  • If you are fascinated with Indian jewelry, pottery, baskets, or carvings and would like to know the traditions they represent.
  • And, if you are interested in helping others discover those interests, you should consider becoming a docent at the Heard Museum.
Take the Las Guias Docent Class

Guild members may enroll in a comprehensive training program that begins each October and is taught by the Museum Education Services Manager. There is no prerequisite beyond interest, but a fee is charged. Students in the class, which meets for one half-day each week for seven months, gain a thorough knowledge of the history, culture, and art of the American Indians of the Southwest. They also receive special training on how to address the common perceptions people have about Indians. Finally, they practice their skills in presenting what they have learned to a group of Museum visitors. Those who have an interest in and are curious about native cultures are delighted with what they learn.

Experience the Satisfaction

Upon graduation, the new docents become members of Las Guias (Spanish for “The Guides”). Las Guias members are required to conduct tours at the Museum at least two half days per month. Once they begin touring, they find sharing their information to be a very satisfying experience. In important ways, Las Guias docents shape visitors’ perceptions of the Museum and American Indian cultures and can make a visit to the Heard Museum the highlight of a vacation trip to Phoenix and the Southwest.

For further information, please contact: Las Guias Course Facilitators