AMERICORPS PROGRAM-Marin Conservation Corps

Youth in Environmental Service Crew (YES)

The Marin Conservation Corps develops youth and conserves natural resources for a strong, sustainable community by: providing a diverse group of youth and young adults with opportunities to transform their lives through education, employability, civic engagement, and leadership; caring for our environment by conserving and restoring natural resources, and by improving recreational areas; creating the environmental leaders of the future by teaching environmental ethics and behaviors to children, teens and adults; and by making communities safer by reducing fire and flood hazards and by responding to public emergencies and disasters.

Job Description: The Volunteers in Service to the Environment (VSE) AmeriCorps Program of the Marin Conservation Corps (MCC) will address the intersection of three critically important needs in Marin County: 1) The stewardship of Marina’s natural lands, habitats and ecosystems; 2) The encouragement of environmental stewardshipamong youth; 3) The engagement of the larger Marin population in environmental service and volunteer activities on public lands. The program is designed to offer AmeriCorps members an introduction to field research, ecological monitoring, sustainability, recycling and waste reduction, environmental education, civic engagement, leadership skills, and public outreach. 

 Integral to the program is member development and training.  AmeriCorps members gain hands-on professional experience at their placement sites,
and participate in site-specific training conducted by agency staff.  AmeriCorps members also participate in MCC trainings on a regular basis consisting of technical trainings, civic engagement lessons and projects, and corps to career training and counseling.  Several times during the service year members will participate in National Community Service Days including Make A Difference Day, California Coastal Clean-up Day, America Recycles Day, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Cesar E. Chavez Day, National Youth Service Day and National Volunteer Week, and Earth Day.  Members will plan and lead service projects and also recruit community volunteers on these days.

 The program is made up of 22 AmeriCorps members serving on either the Restoration and Environmental Management (REM) Crew or the Youth in Environmental Service (YES) Crew.  Members will be placed at sites ranging from agencies with wide responsibilities for land management such as the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, to grassroots youth and environmental groups such as Students and Teachers Restoring a Watershed
(STRAW), and to middle and high schools in underserved areas of Marin County.  All members will have roles aimed at generating volunteers to
participate in service programs at their placement sites.  In the summer, 10 YES members will play a leadership role in Project ReGeneration,
MCCs summer environmental service-learning program.   All 22 members will work together to meet the goals of the VSE program.  YES members will be paired with REM members to create a partnership between local schools and adjacent public lands to help meet our goals of bringing more youth out to serve the community on environmental service projects.

 YOUTH IN ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICE (YES) CREW: The 10 members on the YES Crew are charged with promoting environmental
service-learning and educating youth about the environment using hands-on experiential learning techniques.  The YES Crew provides a
well-rounded service experience for members interested in exploring the environmental education field, by providing a look at school-based education
activities, as well as outdoor and environmental education and docent programs.  For the remainder of the 2006-07 school year members will serve
in pairs in middle schools leading the following projects:

• Lead an afterschool Cesar Chavez Service-learning Club in a middle school, teaching about environmental and social justice issues, and leading youth in service projects such as school gardening, recycling, and habitat restoration.
• Presenting lessons on environmental topics in classrooms
• Leading youth in setting up recycling infrastructure on the school campus.

 
During the summer of 2007, YES members will lead teams of ten middle and/or high school youth in MCC’s Summer Youth Service and
Environmental Education Program Project ReGeneration.  Daily activities include field trips, environmental/outdoor experiential projects, environmental education and recreation.

 Job Duration: Fall, Winter, Summer

Qualifications: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• U.S. Citizen or Legal Resident, between the ages of 18 and 30 years

• Interest in career development, participation in job-training program and development of new skill

• Willingness to work a flexible weekly schedule: either Tuesday through Saturday schedule (and sometimes on Sunday), or Monday through Friday (and sometimes on Saturday); over 40 hours per week is required periodically for special events, retreats, and trainings

•  Applicants are limited to two AmeriCorps service terms. Applications will only be accepted by members that have served or attempted one or less AmeriCorps service terms

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

•  Interest in serving the community and the environment, and recruiting others to do the same;
• Interest in conservation, natural resources and land management, recycling and waste reduction, and education;
•  Effective communication and public speaking skills and the ability to lead/work with diverse people of all ages;
• Interest in engaging community members in environmental restoration efforts;
• Experience working with youth and ability to effectively lead groups of middle and high school students;
• Experience, interest, or education in science fields such as; natural resources management, ecology, wildlife or vegetation management, fisheries biology, watershed restoration, environmental education, and gardening.

Salary: $1200 stipend/month
Benefits: Medical, Training
Housing: Not Provided
Meals: Not Provided
Deadline for Application: Open until filled

Start Date / Position Duration:  Starting beginning of March and ending on August 31, 2007
Application Procedure: TO APPLY FOR THE VSE AMERICORPS PROGRAM, SUBMIT A COVER LETTER AND RESUME
Contact: Sandy Miles, AmeriCorps Program Coordinator
Address: 27 Larkspur Street
San Rafael, CA 94901
Phone(s): (415) 454-4554
Fax: (415) 454-4595
e-mail: recruiter@marincc.org
Website: www.marincc.org