POSITION DETAILS
Position ID(s): 4350
Position Title: Biology Assistant - AmeriCorps
Conservation Legacy Program: Scientists in Parks, Stewards Individual Placements
Site Location: North Cascades National Park, North Coast and Cascades Network, Olympic National Park, Sedro Woolley WA, Washington
Number of positions available: 1
TERMS OF SERVICE
Duration: 52 Weeks (not flexible)
Flexible Start Date: Yes
Start Date: 05/11/2026
End Date: 05/10/2027
AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 hours - this is the minimum number of hours the selected candidate must serve throughout the duration of their position.
BENEFITS
- Segal AmeriCorps Education Award: $ 7,395.00 upon successful completion of position
- Weekly Living Allowance: $ 700.00 per week, fixed rate
- Relocation Allowance: $ 450.00 (distributed as a one-time lump sum with first paycheck)
- Student Loan Forbearance if applicable (administered by MyAmeriCorps, directly)
- Student Loan Interest Payments if applicable (administered through MyAmeriCorps, directly)
- For 52-week positions only:
- Free Healthcare Coverage (opt in)
- Childcare Coverage (opt in)
APPLICATION TIMELINE
Preference given to applicants who submit applications before Sunday, February 15, 2026. Applications will be reviewed after the application deadline passes. Positions will close after receiving 60 complete applications, or at 11:59 p.m. EST on February 15, 2026, whichever occurs first.
KEYWORDS: data science, long-term monitoring, subalpine vegetation, trend analysis
PURPOSE
This Biology Assistant is an AmeriCorps position. This service will advance science for management in three large Washington National Parks. The mountain meadows in these parks are intersections of park management and conservation: rare plants and sensitive wildlife encounter many enthusiastic visitors in these areas. The parks involved invest in meadow restoration and management every year to improve disturbed areas. Understanding meadow communities, how these meadows are responding to environmental change, and how we may better monitor these systems is critical for efficient and informed management. These meadows are an important part of a NPS visit for millions of visitors annually in the parks, and this project will help to inform management and protect these resources for present and future generations.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Olympic, Mount Rainier, and North Cascades National Parks are home to vast montane meadows. These meadows are ecological variety high elevation refuges for many species and all are affected by changes in visitation and use, snow melt timing, changes in fire regimes, and tree encroachment. Long-term monitoring of these communities by the North Coast and Cascades Inventory & Monitoring Network (NCCN) is critical to supporting conservation in the parks with data-driven actions.
The SIP will collaborate closely with NCCN and park ecologists to support and advance monitoring of critical subalpine ecosystems. The position will involve a combination of data science and data management, data analysis, and fieldwork. The SIP participant will: 1) clean, explore, and summarize vegetation community data using R; 2) analyze trends in subalpine vegetation communities; 3) monitor subalpine plots; 4) pilot modifications to monitoring methods in different national parks; and 5) publish code and data stories.
The SIP will conduct projects with ecologists to explore and analyze 15 years of monitoring data, developing visual and quantitative summaries of meadow vegetation community baselines. The SIP will conduct projects within park and plot trend analyses to detect change or stability in these lush, high elevation communities.
The SIP will also conduct monitoring with skilled staff in the field. Then they will conduct projects with supervisors and NPS staff to pilot adjustments to the protocols: dataset structural changes, modifications to protocols and explore analytical and statistical best practices to support those changes.
DELIVERABLES
• Cleaned data set from existing monitoring projects
• Subalpine baseline data summaries for NCCN and three participating parks
• Subalpine vegetation community trend analysis
• Subalpine vegetation monitoring data obtained through field effort
• Pilot protocol development documentation (with supervision and input by park and NCCN ecologists)
• Analytical code (in R)
QUALIFICATIONS
- 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
- Prior to starting the position, agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check for the employer of record, Conservation Legacy, and a separate government security background check for the host site.
- The applicant must be available to participate for the entire 52 Weeks in order to be considered and participate.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Analytical experience in R (preferred)
Data management experience
Experience using and interpreting biological data, especially botanical data
Interest in vascular plants, with ability to recognize and identify key Pacific Northwest species preferred
Experience with field data collection (preferred)
Experience in backcountry settings, able to projects in varied terrain at higher elevations
Ability to conducting projects independently and stay on task
Ability to persevere through challenging datasets and find creative solutions
ADDITIONAL POSITION AND COMMUNITY INFORMATION
POSITION SETTING
Projects will seasonally vary: spring, fall and winter data will primarily be in an office; summer will include fieldwork in front and backcountry settings. The office will be shared with other resource staff. Teleservice is also an option as long as the selected candidate resides within commuting distance of the park. Outdoor fieldwork will involve overnights away from home, camping, off-trail travel in all terrain and at elevations greater than 5000 feet, and collaborating on projects with staff from different parks. North Cascades National Park headquarters is located in the Skagit Valley in Sedro Woolley, WA and near the communities of Bellingham, WA (Western Washington University) and Mount Vernon, WA. Olympic National Park offices are in the city of Port Angeles on the Olympic Peninsula. All of these areas offer access to many services and many recreational opportunities.
VEHICLE AND DRIVERS LICENSE REQUIREMENTS
- Applicant must have a valid driver's license to drive a government vehicle.
- A personal vehicle is recommended for this position.
HOUSING
Park housing is NOT available. The selected candidate will be responsible for finding housing in the nearby area.
Housing may be available. SIP could be located at Port Angeles, WA at Olympic National Park or Sedro-Woolley, WA at North Cascades National Park. Shared park housing may be available at OLYM. Shared park housing may be available at North Cascades NP (in Marblemount, WA). Private housing is available in and around many communities at North Cascades NP and Olympic NP.
OUR COMMITMENT
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.
TIME REQUIREMENTS
- This position is expected to serve full time each week, but exact service schedules may vary based on project needs. Lunch breaks and days off will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service hours.
- 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 pertinent project and site training from host site throughout term
- Member will receive an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.
- Access to free professional development webinars led by Conservation Legacy staff
EVALUATION AND REPORTING REQUIREMENTS
As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of minimum AmeriCorps 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.
HOW TO APPLY
Apply online, all Scientists in Parks positions are listed at: https://conservation-legacy.breezy.hr/. Complete the application for this position, highlighting why you are interested in the position and how your background and experience will help you succeed in this position. Be prepared to upload your resume and unofficial transcript as part of completing the application questionnaire.
Once you begin applying for a position, the application must be completed in one sitting. You cannot save and return later to complete it. Applicants can apply for up to five Scientists in Parks positions per season. You need to complete a separate application for each position in order to be considered. You should receive a confirmation email after successfully submitting an application. Sometimes institutional email filters/settings can redirect, or block emails related to the application. We recommend watching spam, junk, and promotional email folders in case your service delivers messages there. Please visit How to Apply for additional resources and information about applying (i.e., learn what materials to have ready for applying, find a worksheet that previews application questions, etc.). Learn more about Scientists in Parks at: https://www.scientistsinparks.org/.
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 in partnership with the Scientists in Parks program will host the Biology Assistant at North Cascades National Park, North Coast and Cascades Network, Olympic National Park.
Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.
We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or reasonable accommodations due to a disability during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to Scientists in Parks using the email address at the base of the home page, under “Questions? Contact Us!”
