Overview
Conservation Begins Here
The Student Conservation Association (SCA), Americas #1 conservation service organization seeks qualified applicants to lead, educate, and inspire students for the programs.
Training Dates: 6/12/23 6/20/23 (paid mandatory training)
Program Dates: 7/3/23 8/25/23 (8 weeks)
Schedule: Monday Friday 8:00 am 4:00 pm (40 hours/week)
Location (City and State): Landover Hills, MD
Primary Responsibilities:
As Crew Leader, you will guide and inspire a team of 3 high school Crew Members to complete field conservation projects in the Landover Hills community. This high school summer conservation crew will work alongside the Landover Hills Office of Public Works staff on a variety of projects. Members will work for 6 weeks. The leader will work for 8 weeks, which includes leader training and post-program wrap up tasks.
All four crew members will go through training by SCA and Office of Public Works staff to complete different field projects throughout the park including:
Installing check steps near school grounds
Tread and drainage trail maintenance
Stone path resurfacing
Invasive plant species control
Overgrown bush and vegetation removal
Supporting Office of Public Works with miscellaneous projects
The crew leader will work collaboratively and efficiently with their team to complete these projects by the deadline. Tool usage, safety, risk, and job hazard assessments will be part of training and daily briefings. Crew leaders will learn to work safely in outdoor environments while learning new skills alongside their crew members. Being open to new experiences is a huge advantage for crew leaders.
In addition to field work, crew leaders should expect to complete ~3-5 hours/weekly outside of work hours to complete crew leader administration tasks. These tasks may include coding expense receipts, uploading photos from the field, writing incident reports, or reviewing members time logs, among other things.
Specifically, the Crew Leader will:
Act as a Crew Supervisor, by facilitating teamwork, managing field-based tasks, and guiding crew dynamics
Serve as an Advisor, by training members in technical conservation work skills, mentoring personal and professional development, and teaching environmental stewardship
Act as a Project Manager, by communicating with agency park partners, ensuring successful and timely completion of work projects, and upholding a positive representation of SCA
Perform tasks as a Program Administrator, by organizing logistics, completing documentation, managing a budget, and communicating with SCA staff
Leader Qualifications:
Experience working with youth or young adults (18 years old+) teaching or environmental education a plus
Experience with conservation work skills or related skills preferred i.e., trail maintenance, trail construction, habitat restoration, chainsaw, carpentry, landscaping, and gardening
Ability to perform manual, physical labor for up to 8 hours per day, exposed to …
About Student Conservation Association
Today, SCA’s mission is to build the next generation of conservation leaders and inspire lifelong stewardship of the environment and communities by engaging young people in hands-on service to the land. Members participate in a variety of capacities and contexts. Beyond national parks, members work on marine sanctuaries, cultural landmarks, and community green spaces in our nation’s urban centers. Members do land management, habitat restoration, trail building, disaster rehabilitation or prevention work, environmental education, public outreach, and more.
