POSITION DETAILS
Position ID(s): 4369
Position Title: Natural Resource Management Assistant - AmeriCorps
Conservation Legacy Program: Scientists in Parks, Stewards Individual Placements
Site Location: Pea Ridge National Military Park, Garfield, Arkansas
Number of positions available: 1
TERMS OF SERVICE
Duration: 12 Weeks (not flexible)
Flexible Start Date: Yes
Start Date: 05/18/2026
End Date: 08/10/2026
AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 450 hours - this is the minimum number of hours the selected candidate must serve throughout the duration of their position.
BENEFITS
- Segal AmeriCorps Education Award: $ 1,956.35 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)
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: Natural Resources, Following Instructions, Standardized Procedures, collect, Fiels Data
PURPOSE
This Natural Resource Management Assistant is an AmeriCorps position. The proposed project is focused on helping restore the park’s cultural landscape, following the guidelines in the Vegetation Management Plan/Environmental Analysis and the Cultural Landscape Report/Environmental Analysis. The overall goal is to help return the landscape to what it would have looked like in the 1860s.
As Northwest Arkansas continues to grow rapidly, more housing development is occurring around the park, and we are gradually becoming an urban park. Because of this, prescribed fire has become even more important—not only for restoring and maintaining natural ecosystems, but also for helping protect structures both inside and outside the park. Managing fuels effectively can save valuable time during emergencies.
Project funding will support project such as reintroducing fire to the landscape, thinning dense forest areas, controlling invasive species, and restoring native grasses. The SIP participant will assist crews with tasks such as preparing burn units for prescribed fires, participating during prescribed fire operations, helping apply chemical treatments before and after burns to limit invasive plant growth, and assisting with tree canopy thinning (timber stand improvement) using chemical injection methods. Chemical injection can be performed year-round and also benefits habitat for the Northern Long-Eared Bat by creating standing dead trees.
DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES
Implements established natural resource management projects. Following instructions and standardized procedures, collects and organizes field data. Ensures adequate quality control of data collected.
Performs routine and recurring testing of collected samples. Records all data collected and provides preliminary assessment and classification of the information. Seeks assistance for situations not covered by instructions or guidelines.
Makes field observations of natural resource conditions. Evaluates observed conditions and problems, and makes preliminary determinations on the cause of problems noted. Provides results to higher-level specialists for analysis.
Assists in the preparation of reports, plans, and guidelines. Draft project reports may include literature research, descriptions of methods, preparation of graphs and charts, and summary of findings.
Provides logistical support and area orientation for contract or cooperating scientists; provides technical information, ensures quality control, and solves logistical or operational problems within the scope of the incumbent's knowledge and authority.
Installs, operates, and maintains resource management equipment (e.g., tools, traps, and sampling, monitoring, photographic, and laboratory equipment). Inventories equipment, evaluates quality assurance compliance, and calibrates equipment as necessary. Orders replacement parts, new equipment, and supplies.
Utilizes a variety of computer programs to compile, reduce, store, retrieve, analyze, and report data and other resource management information, including natural science research and long-term monitoring projects. Maintains and organizes computer databases.
Provides information to other employees and visitors about the natural resource management program; refers unusual questions to the supervisor. May present related interpretive programs to the public.
DELIVERABLES
The primary objective of this project is to manage fuel loads and reduce the risk of fire within the WUI. Pre-established fire lines would also support wildfire and prescribed fire needs by reducing costs for line preparation times and personnel time. If the park can manage fuel loads within the target area along the WUI, it will allow PERI to expand and maintain fire on the landscape as a component of natural ecosystem processes. As a long-term management goal, the Park would like to maintain natural succession of grasslands and savanna ecosystems with prescribed fire to support the Veg Plan, CLR and enhance ecosystem function and health. Thinning in this area will also have the benefit of creating grassland habitat benefiting multiple species of wildlife.
A secondary objective is to restore vegetative structure and composition detailed in the Veg Plan. The current structure and composition is heavily departed from the historic structure and composition due to altered fire regimes which have excluded fire for many years. Fire will allow native warm season grasses to flourish. Grassland and savanna ecosystems are some of the most imperiled ecosystems in our country today and this effort will help to restore and manage these imperiled systems, all while reducing wildlife risk.
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 12 Weeks in order to be considered and participate.
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Basic understanding of how to properly identify vegetation. Basic skills with hand tool, and a willingness to learn.
ADDITIONAL POSITION AND COMMUNITY INFORMATION
POSITION SETTING
This position is partially sedentary with prolonged standing, walking, and bending often required. Heavy items (e.g., packs and equipment up to 50 pounds) must be lifted and carried on a routine basis. The position is performed in an office, laboratory, and in the field. Field projects include exposure to extreme weather conditions and terrain, pesticides, poisonous plants, biting insects, and wild animals. Laboratory projects may involve exposure to hazardous chemicals.
Pea Ridge National Military Park (PERI) is composed of 4,300.35 acres of land which encompasses a complex Civil War battlefield, a significant historic road corridor, remnant settlements, and a National Park Service (NPS) Mission 66 designed landscape in northwestern Arkansas.
PERI is situated in the rolling hills region known as the foothills of the Ozarks. Elkhorn Mountain is the highest point within the landscape with the rest of the park lying on a high plateau. The immediate vicinity consists of forests interspersed with fields.
VEHICLE AND DRIVERS LICENSE REQUIREMENTS
- Applicant must have a valid driver's license to drive a government vehicle.
- A personal vehicle is not required for this position.
HOUSING
Park housing is NOT available. The selected candidate will be responsible for finding housing in the nearby area.
The position doesn't have park housing available.
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 Natural Resource Management Assistant at Pea Ridge National Military 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!”
