Blog

Written by Evan Escamilla, SCA alum '10 and '11 and current SCA recruiter.

What an amazing couple of days it has been here in the Tetons! From Sunday, March 4th to Saturday, March 10th, a diverse group of students from all over the country descended upon Grand Teton National Park for the launch of the NPS Academy, a joint program by SCA and the National Park Service, aimed at building “a 21st century workforce for America’s national parks: highly motivated, contemporarily skilled and ethnically diverse.”

And what a week it was! The students were inspiring and inspired; The scenery was breath-taking; the wildlife awing…and a bit too close at times.NPS Deputy Director of Communications and Community Mickey Fern’s quote during one of the panel sessions captures how most people felt during the week, “Thank you for inviting me. It’s been the best four days of my life since I joined the park service.”

A group photo of NPS Academy 2012 members at Grand Teton National Park. This week marked the beginning of a personal and professional adventure for most of these students.

A bull elk at the National Elk Refuge from the horse drawn sleigh ride tour. The National Elk Refuge feed 5,000 - 7,000 elk at any given day this time of year. Elk come from as far as 70 miles away in Yellowstone to be fed. This controversial practices has been going on for 100 years as a way to manage the elk in search of food from coming into Jackson Hole. The elk have lost 75% of their habitat to humans.

Two bull elk engage in social clash of their antlers. As it is not yet mating season, there is no need for these elk to engage each other in a battle using up their energy. This bull elk were playfully wrestling with their antlers.

A heard of 50+ bison met us on the road after tubing. The students were all in the 3 vans behind me. I heard some bison even rubbed up against one of the vans! One students said he was almost moved to tears at the sight of this heard with the Tetons in the background. For everyone this was a highlight of the day. I rolled down my window and grabbed these from the driver seat of my vehicle. Most of us laughed slack jawed in amazement.

Snow tubing at Snow King in Jackson Hole after spending some time walking around town.

Would you believe the students all look this awake and enthusiastic at 10:00pm after a packed day of engaging activities.

NPS Academy facilitator and past NPS superintendent Gerard Baker wore his bear coat and coyote hat to the campfire at the Murie Center. He spoke of his family and the history of his native american people the Mandan-Hidatsa Indian. He was featured in the PBS special on National Parks - though he has since retired.

With a fire in the fireplace and wood stove, we all gathered around Burton Pretty on Top, Cultural Director of the Crow Tribe, huddled close on couches, chairs, and the floor as a family. Mr. Pretty on Top shared stories of serving your neighbors, treating others with respect, honoring your culture and ancestry and gave us the great honor of praying for each one of us individually.

The energy and emotion in the room was palpable. Members of the academy volunteered one by one to share their thoughts and feelings with the group. This group of strangers, just 5 days before, each experienced this week uniquely. One by one, as members volunteered to share their thoughts and feelings, I learned that for some this week represented an inspirational oasis from life's challenges. It brought altering or affirming emotions towards past decisions and future plans. Over and over I listened to stories of barriers being broken down as students stepped out of their comfort zone and into the camaraderie of their peers.

Reposted from the Sierra Club Blog

What's in your future? Whether you decide to spend the summer traveling, learning green job skills, or cultivating sustainable habits, the choices you make today could change the course of your life. This week, we've got tips to help you pave a path to a greener future.

Tip # 4: Take Refuge in Conservation

If you'd love to spend your summer protecting wildlife, restoring habitat, or building trails, just look for the nearest wildlife refuge. This year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hire 2,300 youth for summer jobs in 556 national wildlife refuges. You can find even more opportunities through the Student Conservation Association.

--photo courtesy of US Fish and Wildlife Service

From Theresa Conn on our I Heart Snow Photo Contest. She is an SCA Alumna from 2011.

"My time as an SCA intern last summer at Cape Cod National Seashore has opened up many doors for me- most recently, landing me an internship this winter at New Hampshire State Parks and Recreation as their Parks Blogger. I had the awesome experience of dogsledding up the Mount Washington Auto Road, something that has only been done a by a few mushers. I tagged along for a training run, and had an amazing time. Nothing like some 90 mph gusts to wake you up in the morning!"

View all the great photos and more on the NH State Parks Blog!

An SCA and Southwest Airlines Tour40 video was just submitted to the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship International Film Festival...and we'd love your vote!

The Center for Corporate Citizenship’s annual Film Festival provides companies with an opportunity to demonstrate how they have utilized video as a communication tool. Last year over 25,000 employees and partners viewed the videos in the 2011 Film Festival and voted for their favorite. Public voting will take place on this website from February 14 - March 3, 2012 to narrow the field to ten finalists. The ten finalists will be reviewed by a panel of judges to choose the winner. The winner of the Film Festival will be announced during the 2012 International Corporate Citizenship Conference, March 25-27, in Phoenix. All ten finalists will be available for viewing and showcased before the 600 corporate citizenship professionals in attendance.

Watch the video and vote online!

Written by Lauren Freedman Whittlesey, SCA '10 alum, Alternative Spring Break in the Grand Canyon. Lauren turned her internship into a green job with SCA working in various capacities for the Marketing and Advancement teams. She is now the Corporate Events Coordinator.

As most young job-seekers have learned, simply having an education is not enough to get a job, let alone a great, green job these days. Whether you’re looking for a job with a corporation, a non-profit, or the government, chances are you’ll need to get some real world experience as an intern before you can land your dream job.

Interns not only learn how their academic curriculum can be applied in a modern workplace, but they also gain the critical workplace skills that employers are looking for. These include working as part of a team, meeting deadlines, managing multiple projects, creative thinking, and problem solving. Internships also help students learn about job opportunities available to recent graduates and provide real workplace references.

Lauren Freedman Whittlesey during her SCA Alternative Spring Break program.

Student Conservation Association alum Todd Nelson is now the Volunteer Resource Program Coordinator at Grand Canyon National Park. After his three-month SCA internship at Saguaro National Park, Todd knew that he had found his career path. “My SCA internship got me into the Park Service. Once I had my foot in the door, I was able to find my niche there,” Todd says.

Todd advises interns to diversify their experience to make themselves more marketable. “While you’re an intern, make sure you take any training that is offered. Even if it’s outside of the field you are working in, you can get a bigger picture of your agency and learn from new opportunities. Learning new skills can open the door for jobs you didn’t even know existed.”

Paul Loesch was one of the first 10 interns to take part in the SCA and ARAMARK Environmental Sustainability Internship program. Working with ARAMARK at Baylor University in Texas, Paul organized Baylor’s Energy Awareness Month, which included an energy conservation competition. He also developed energy awareness materials that addressed energy efficiency standards and procedures. Paul, an SCA alumnus, is a LEED accredited professional and also worked on certifying high performance green buildings on campus. “This internship taught me a huge amount about the practical application of sustainability initiatives in facilities management. I had a chance to learn a lot about automation systems, commercial HVAC, and general facilities management processes,” Paul says.

Paul Loesch monitors energy consumption at Balyor University as an SCA-Aramark environmental sustainability intern.

Paul points out that he had an opportunity to affect change in a big way, while also gaining skills that he was able to leverage into a full-time job in environmental compliance with ARAMARK. “Many graduates have a strong desire to be involved in something meaningful and get good experience, and the internship program does a fine job of providing these opportunities. The interns get quality training, and ARAMARK and its clients get a fresh set of eyes, hungry for environmentally positive results. I had superb support from ARAMARK’s corporate sustainability folks, and Baylor’s forward thinking approach created an environment where I really felt like my work was inspiring positive change.”

An internship can provide you with a foot in the door and the experience you need to start your career in conservation. It’ll prove to your potential employer that you are truly dedicated to the field. Here are a few tips to keep in mind to help you leverage your internship into a great job:

• Be open to considering internships outside of your field of study. Students often find exciting new career paths by exploring new opportunities.
• Use your network! Keep in touch with your internship supervisor and other professional contacts you make while interning, as well as while you’re in school. Tell them about your successes and let them know when you are looking for a job.
• When applying for jobs, be open-minded. Marketable skills can be gained in any position, and those skills are what will set you apart from other applicants as you move through your career.
• Smaller parks and corporations can be great places to gain exposure to a variety of job responsibilities and try on many “hats”. If you are willing to help out in areas outside your position, you can learn valuable skills and add critical experience to your resume.
• Once you’ve landed a job at the company you really want to work for, go the extra mile to prove your skills while keeping your eyes open for other opportunities that will advance your career.

Are you ready to find the right internship to launch your career in conservation? SCA is posting new internships daily at http://www.thesca.org/serve/internships.