Position:  Stewardship Crew Member (AmeriCorps, ages 18 - 25)
Location: Saint Paul, MN
This is not a residential program; participants must secure housing preferably near the crew location

Service Term: 1200- or 900-hour AmeriCorps position; March/April – November/December
Benefits:

• Living Allowance: $1,610/month
• Housing Reimbursement: $100/month (reimbursable upon proof of payment)
• Education Award: $3,172.50 - $4,441.50, if eligible and upon successful completion of program
• Student loan forbearance (on qualifying student loans)
• Health insurance
• Childcare assistance
• Training, certifications, networking

About Conservation Corps Minnesota & Iowa: Conservation Corps Minnesota & Iowa, a nonprofit organization and AmeriCorps grantee, engages hundreds of youth and young adults each year in in meaningful service, leadership development, and environmental stewardship. Our vision is a world in which everyone has equitable access to nature, is equipped to succeed in career and life, and is empowered to make a difference in conserving natural resources. Our projects and programs embody our core values of safety, service, respect, equity, and community. In working toward our vision, we believe it is important to acknowledge that natural resources organizations, including Conservation Corps Minnesota & Iowa, have a legacy of supporting and benefiting from systems that have restricted access to public lands and careers for marginalized groups. To challenge this, we commit to using equity as a lens for the work we do and decisions we make, building a shared vision surrounding justice, equity, diversity, and Inclusion goals with our partnering organizations and communities and providing an equitable training environment and high-quality programming to all our participants

The Stewardship crew will serve outdoors restoring habitat, managing natural resources, and occasionally responding to natural disasters or community needs. The program prioritizes personal and professional growth while teaching hands-on conservation skills in the field. Members develop technical skills throughout their term while completing challenging and impactful conservation projects. Natural resources projects may include:

• Hoop house plant propagation, including seeding, transplanting, watering, seed collection, and seed cleaning.
• Habitat monitoring and plant identification, including bison forage sampling, monarch monitoring, bombus surveys, photo plots, small mammal counts, and other surveys.
• Volunteer management. Members will collaborate with staff to lead volunteer events to engage the public in natural resource conservation activities, including seed collection, habitat monitoring, and other public events.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Complete natural resources service projects in cooperation with fellow members safely, effectively and efficiently and to the satisfaction and specifications of the project host
• Lead and support volunteers and volunteer engagement events.
• Abide by Corps program safety regulations as well as applicable federal/state/municipal law and OSHA requirements; communicate any safety concerns and incidents
• Contribute actively to the team to complete projects, demonstrating a commitment to the Corps values of safety, service, respect, equity and community, as well as justice, diversity, and inclusion.
• Positive attitude, desire to learn new skills, interest in community service; represent Conservation Corps in positive manner in public
• Serve a minimum of 900 or 1200 hours and complete the entire service term per the start and end dates listed on the Member Service Agreement
• Complete and approve timecards and other required reports and paperwork in timely manner

Hours & Schedule

• Schedules can vary, depending on projects. Crew members should expect to be scheduled for at least 40 hours of service per week. A typical schedule is Monday – Thursday, 7:00 AM – 5:30 PM. Overnight travel (4 – 12 consecutive days) is often required for service projects. Some special assignments (including wildfire response and other emergency response assignments) may require members to deploy for several weeks at a time. 

Training & Development
The Corps provides orientation and skills training at the start of the program year, and additional region or project specific training throughout the service term that may include:

• AmeriCorps benefits

• Team building and conflict resolution
• Diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Safety and risk management
• Power and hand tool safety and maintenance
• S130 & S190 Firefighter training and red card certification training
• First Aid and CPR
• MN Safety Council defensive driving
• Trailer operation and safety
• Invasive species management/herbicide application
• Plant identification
• Leave No Trace principles.
• Volunteer engagement best practices
• Hoop house operations
• Plant propagation techniques
• Frog and toad call identification
• Small mammal identification
• Insect identification with a focus on pollinator groups

Qualifications

• Ability and desire to work well with others in a team setting, outdoors and in all weather conditions
• Commitment to upholding Corps values of safety, service, respect, equity, and community
• Dedication to complete the full term of AmeriCorps service
• Ability to perform the Essential Service Functions, which include but are not limited to:
  • Long (10 hour) days of shoveling, digging, and swinging heavy tools repetitively
  • Long (10 hour) days of chainsawing / brush sawing
  • Heavy lifting, bending, and carrying up to 50 pounds
  • Walking and working on steep or uneven terrain
  • Working in extremes of heat or cold 
• Flexible schedule to accommodate week-long out of town assignments and emergency response
• Must be a US Citizen, US National, or Lawful Permanent Resident Alien of the US
• Must pass a criminal history check consisting of a National Sex Offender Public Website check, a state criminal history check, and a fingerprint-based FBI check. Passing the criminal history check is defined as no positive hits on the NSOPW and no history of violent offenses on the state or FBI checks.
• High school degree, GED, or willingness to work towards obtaining a GED.
• Experience with plant identification preferred.

Other Information
In accordance with 45CFR 2520.65, AmeriCorps members may not perform prohibited service activities directly or indirectly by recruiting, training, or managing others for the primary purpose of engaging in the activities. Prohibited service activities are outlined in the Service Agreement section VII and AmeriCorps member manual.

Conservation Corps Minnesota & Iowa is an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to creating an inclusive environment that values the diversity of its staff and members and does not discriminate against anyone. Employment/placement decisions with Conservation Corps will be based on merit, qualifications, and abilities. Conservation Corps does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices based on race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, military service, union membership, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status with regards to public assistance, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law. Conservation Corps engages AmeriCorps members, ages 18-25, as defined under the American Conservation and Youth Service Corps Act, a subtitle of the National and Community Service Act of 1990. Reasonable accommodations available upon request.

Minorities are strongly encouraged to apply.
Women, BIPOC, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

CCMI is committed to providing a safe workplace. Vaccination is a vital tool to reduce the presence and severity of COVID-19 cases in the workplace, in communities, and in the nation. With that in mind, CCMI has adopted a policy on mandatory vaccination to safeguard the health of our AmeriCorps members and employees from the hazard of COVID-19. Our policy complies with OSHA’s Emergency Temporary Standard on Vaccination and Testing (29 CFR 1910.501).

Questions? Contact our recruitment team at recruit@conservationcorps.org