Water Resources Steward - AmeriCorps

Position Title: Water Resources Steward - AmeriCorps

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements- BIA WaterCorps Program

Site Location: Remote work will be considered for applicants in Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas, with the potential to work from a local National Wildlife Refuge. An office location is also accessible in Albuquerque, NM.

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants that submit application by March 1st, 2025.

Position Openings: 2

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: Negotiable, between April – July 2025
• End Date: Depends on start date. Between October – January 2026
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 900 hour, 26 weeks

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards), a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with AmeriCorps service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. Participants serve with federal agencies, tribal governments, and nonprofits to provide institutional capacity, develop community relationships, and support ecosystem health. Stewards Individual Placements partners with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to facilitate the WaterCorps Program to provide opportunities to Tribal Members seeking to gain experience in the water resources field. This WaterCorps position will be hosted at the Water Resources Division of the Southwest Region of Fish and Wildlife Service.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages an unparalleled network of public lands and waters called the National Wildlife Refuge System. The mission of the National Wildlife Refuge System is to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation, management and, where appropriate, restoration of the fish, wildlife and plant resources and their habitats within the United States for the benefit of present and future generations of Americans. This system protects iconic species. The Southwest Region is centered in the desert Southwest landscapes, home to vibrant and rare plant communities that draw new life during the summer monsoon season. The Water Resources Steward is an AmeriCorps position that will assist the Water Resources Division of the Southwest Region in providing technical support to the 46 refuges throughout the states of Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. Support includes water monitoring, sustainability and resilience planning, and restoration efforts.

The Water Resources Steward will work on hydrologic, geomorphologic, and/or hydraulic engineering tasks to support the management of National Wildlife Refuges. The work will consist of primarily computer work including online data collection, investigations, report writing, and figure creation. The WaterCorps member could also focus on field work and data collection including surface and groundwater monitoring.

Description of Duties:

• Surface water and groundwater data collection and modeling using publicly available software such as HEC or ESRI products. ArcPro is a frequently used geospatial tool to synthesize available data and quantify surface water hydrology.
• Importing water quality and quantity data from monitoring stations into the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Water Information Systems by KISTERS (WISKI) database, performing quality control on the data, and conducting analyses and reports from these data. This provides the refuges greater understanding of water availability, usage, quality, and informs management decisions to support the habitat and species dependent on the critical resource.
• Work with water resources staff to learn watershed systems, refuge management and find solutions to the challenges related to water.
• Research refuge water rights and compile existing information into a database for ease of access. This will be used to improve understanding of refuge water rights and reporting needs.

Qualifications:

• You must be a member of a federally recognized Indian Tribe, Band, or Village; Alaska Native; or meet one of the following descriptions:
• • Persons who possess at least one-half degree Indian blood derived from Tribes Indigenous to the United States.
  • Descendants of Members of Federally-Recognized Indian Tribes, Bands or Communities who were residing on any Indian Reservation on June 1, 1934 – shown by completing BIA Form 4432
• Valid driver’s license.
• Experience with Microsoft Suite.
• Geospatial coursework or experience.
• Experience with ESRI products (ArcMap or ArcPro).
• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the education award.
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Proficient with ESRI products (ArcMap or ArcPro).
• Water Resources related coursework or experience.
• Environmental, Civil, or similar Engineering coursework or experience.
• Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) coursework or experience.
• Natural resources or conservation related coursework or experience.

Additional Position and Community Information:

• This position is either remote, or located in Albuquerque, NM. Housing is not provided.
• The member must have a personal vehicle for transport to site visits if working remote. If working at the Albuquerque office, the member must be able to have transport to the office location.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $3,697 upon successful completion of the position.
• Living Allowance of $600.00 per week.
• Additional Benefit of $100.00 per week.
• Professional Development fund of $2,255.00 for entire term.
• Option to choose Healthcare Coverage and Childcare Coverage
• Student Loan forbearance if Eligible (administered by MyAmeriCorps, directly)
• Interest Payments if Eligible (administered through MyAmeriCorps, directly)

How to Apply:

In addition to your resume, you must upload a copy of your Tribal ID proving you are enrolled in a federally recognized Tribe, Band, or village. Please also submit a one-page cover letter highlighting why you are interested in this position and how your background and experience will help you succeed in this position.

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants who submit applications by March 1st, 2025. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Position will close in April 2025.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

• Program Contact information: Morgan Ehmling (mehmling@conservationlegacy.org)
• Service Site Contact information: Kirsty Bramlett (Kirsty_Bramlett@fws.gov) and Marian Schwarz (Marian_Schwarz@fws.gov)

Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to hiring a breadth of diverse professionals and encourage members of diverse groups to apply. This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with AmeriCorps requirements. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Additional Details

Physical Requirements:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential functions. Some positions may require periodic overnight travel, non-traditional hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. Ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Time Requirements:

• This position is expected to serve full time each week, but exact service schedules may vary.
• Lunch breaks will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service.
• Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term.

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an orientation that includes program expectations and AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.
• Field skills and training opportunities will be provided, including surface water monitoring, groundwater monitoring, and water quality monitoring.
• The member would have the opportunity to learn the fundamentals GIS and hydrology, including how soils and vegetation result in losses to precipitation, watershed responses to rainfall, and the hydrological response to the arid southwest.

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service.

Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.