Excellence in Environmental Education from the Mountains to the Sea

Interpretive Ranger

The SCA’s NH Conservation Corps Program (March 27-October 19, 2023):

Have you ever wanted to live in a state park where you can explore thousands of acres of prime New England forest? Do you want to make life-long friends who are passionate about the environment and are from all over the United States? Does the chance to learn environmental education and leadership skills and start your career off with a one-of-a-kind experience sound exciting? If you said yes to any or all of these questions, then the New Hampshire Conservation Corps is the place for you!

The SCA NH Corps is a collaboration between the SCA, the New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, and AmeriCorps. Since 1994 the SCA NH Corps has provided over one million hours of service to the great little state of New Hampshire while training young adults to do valuable conservation work. Each year 27 young adult volunteers (18 Field Crew members and 9 Interpretive Rangers) contribute thousands of service hours, providing environmental education programs to the state’s residents and visitors and completing conservation service projects to improve and protect the state’s natural, cultural, and recreational resources from the Atlantic Coast to the White Mountains and beyond.

This program has been branded the Discover the Power of Parks (DPP) as a way to engage visitors with the natural, cultural, and recreational resources of New Hampshire State Parks. In this program you will connect residents and visitors through fun and engaging programs throughout your service term.

Training Season:

This season runs April - mid June. During this time you will be living at Bear Brook State Park with the other Interpretive Rangers and Field Crew Members. Throughout training you will learn from experienced staff and trainers as you engage in:

SCA, AmeriCorps, and NH State Park policies and protocols
Leadership development and teamwork discussions and scenarios
Leave No Trace 
Wilderness First Responder
Environmental education program and curriculum development, delivery, and evaluation
NH natural and cultural history
and Certified Interpretive Guide training 

During May you will work in groups to deliver outreach programs for our partners across NH. Programs may include a stand alone event or series of events. The programmatic structure may include field-days, hour long in person sessions outdoors, or shorter virtual programs. Partners include:

Elementary and middle school classes
Multi-age afterschool and programs
Libraries
Community centers
Other non-profits

Discover the Power of Parks Season:
This season runs from mid June-October. During this time members will serve in the field at one or more, but not all, state parks across NH. Parks members may serve at include:

Monadnock State Park - Jaffrey, NH
Greenfield State Park - Greenfield, NH
White Lake State Park - Tamworth, NH
Umbagog Lake State Park - Cambridge, NH
Pawtuckaway State Park - Nottingham, NH
Bear Brook State Park - Allenstown, NH
Crawford Notch State Park - Harts Location, NH
Franconia Notch State Park - Franconia/Lincoln, NH
And More!

During your time at your designated park you may serve individually or with one other member and will assist with visitor services and develop and deliver environmental, cultural, and recreational programs. From mid June - August you will create and staff educational drop-in tables or run 45 minute to hour long interactive programs for multi age groups.

After Labor Day until Columbus/Indigenous Peoples Day you will spend half your week delivering outreach programs for organizations based in the communities surrounding your park. The remainder of your week, mainly Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday, will be spent delivering programs or assisting with visitor services at your park(s).

For the last several weeks of the program, in October, everyone will return to the NH Corps site at Bear Brook. During this time folks will clean and return gear, complete facilities projects to get camp ready for winter, finish programmatic paperwork and reporting, and celebrate before everyone departs for their next adventure.

Through this 7 month commitment you will serve communities throughout New Hampshire while contributing as active members of the SCA NH AmeriCorps program. For more general information about this and other positions with the SCA NH Corps please visit, https://www.thesca.org/NHcorps.

POSITION BENEFITS:

Stipend $6,300 – $210/week
All food is provided – estimated value is $1500
Housing is provided – estimated value is $4,000
AmeriCorps Education Award $4,826.50, for qualifying educational expenses and loans, upon
completion of 1200 hours of service
Health Insurance – $375/month
Wilderness First Responder (WFR) $700 – includes CPR
Certified Interpretive Guide training – $400
Leave No Trace - Trainer Certification – $150
Hands-on experience in education, including program development, lesson and curriculum
planning, and evaluation
Opportunity to develop a network of professional contacts and great friends

Requirements in Order to Serve:

US citizenship is required.
Ability to pass required state and federal background checks.
Personal Vehicle

For further information and to apply, please copy and paste the following link into your web browser, https://www.thesca.org/serve/position/nh-conservation-corps-interpretive-ranger/po-00734497.

If you have any questions please contact the NH Corps Education Coordinator, Kate Banyas, at kbanyas@thesca.org.

Thank you and we look forward to speaking with you and reviewing your application soon.

Davis Brush
Student Conservation Association's NH Conservation Corps
dbrush@thesca.org