CCNM – Crew Member – Fall 2024

Start Date: August 2024

End Date: December 2024 or March 2025

Status: 450-hour, 900-hr AmeriCorps Service Term

Stipend & Housing Allowance: $400/week living stipend and $200/week housing stipend ($600/week total)

Location: Las Cruces, New Mexico

Benefits: AmeriCorps Segal Education Award; Paid training; Food budget while on project; Employee Assistance Program

Program Summary                                               

Conservation Corps New Mexico (CCNM):

Conservation Corps New Mexico, a program of Conservation Legacy, aims to continue the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps of the 1930s. CCNM crews are based in Las Cruces, NM and project work will take place on public lands in New Mexico and western Texas.

Crew Models  CCNM’s Field Crew program engages motivated young adults, ages 18-30, to complete challenging and impactful conservation service projects throughout southern New Mexico and surrounding states.  We will be offering the following Fall Conservation Crews:   Gila National Forest Backcountry Crew:   Crews will primarily work with the Gila National Forest, working to maintain and re-establish the Whitewater Trail. Crews will work in an exclusively backcountry setting, spending 8 days in the field followed by 6 days off. Some pack support may be available, but crew members should expect to hike in ~4 miles to a backcountry campsite carrying all personal items as well as camp supplies and tools.     General Field Crews:  CCNM’s Field Crew program engages motivated young adults, ages 18-30 (35 veterans), to complete challenging and impactful conservation service projects throughout southern New Mexico and surrounding states. Crews work with a variety of land management agencies, spending up to 8 days in the field camping. Crews work with a variety of land management agencies, spending up to 8 days in the field camping. Projects can be front country or backcountry, with limited to no access to showers and running-water toilets. Backcountry projects involve carrying out all personal supplies (tent, sleeping bag, clothing) as well as group camp supplies (food, water, gear) to the campsite and worksite.   Fire Mitigation and Chainsaw Crew:   Crew will complete service projects focused on sustainable forestry, fuels reduction, or invasive species removal (with the potential to use herbicide). Crew members will receive USFS S-212 Chainsaw Training as well as USFS S-130/190 Basic Wildland Fire Training. Project will be completed in primarily front country settings.  

Field Crew Project Work:

CCNM AmeriCorps members serve a term of National Service in New Mexico and parts of western Texas on professionally supervised crews as they explore a variety of opportunities for careers in the outdoors, learn practical field skills, and develop confidence as emerging leaders in the field of conservation.  Members are provided opportunities to learn and train under the guidance of professional staff within Conservation Legacy, while gaining career perspectives working alongside agency staff from the US Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, or Municipal, State and Non-profit organizations that work on our nation’s public and tribal lands. CCNM Crews will become proficient in environmental stewardship practices, general worksite safety, Leave No Trace principles and outdoor living skills.  Most crews receive First Aid trainings.

 Project work may vary due to seasonality and environmental safety concerns.  Projects that crews typically work on may include, but are not limited to:

• Trail construction and maintenance
• Invasive species management, including pesticide application
• Habitation restoration
• Fence installation/repair
• Land Management Inventory and Mapping
• Fire fuels reduction
• National Disaster Relief
• Community Service
• Recreation and facilities maintenance and construction

Training:

Most AmeriCorps terms will begin with an orientation: crew members who attend the full orientation will receive training on First Aid (typically Wilderness First Aid), Leave No Trace, Outdoor Living, Crew Culture and Diversity, and goal setting.  Informal hands-on training will continue throughout the term with on- the- ground skills training.

Depending on the project needs, crews may receive specialized training in herbicide handling, crosscut saw, chainsaw, dry stone masonry or rigging. 

Schedule:

Generally, crews work an 8-day, 10-hours/day ‘hitch’ schedule, while camping in front and backcountry settings. Typically, members will have 5 days off in the town of the home base office.  Drive time to and from the work site from the home base office is typically included in the hitch schedule.  Applicants should expect the project schedule and type of work to vary. 

Workdays will start with a Job Hazard Analysis safety meeting followed by a 15-minute warm-up exercise and a 15-minute stretch.  Days will include two 15-minute breaks and one 30-minute lunch.

Responsibilities of an CCNM Corpsmember:

CCNM field crews operate on a set schedule throughout their season, typically 8 days on/6 days off. Adherence to this schedule is essential to the success of the program; exceptions can be made for emergencies.  

Members can expect to work long days and must successfully adapt to various climates and working conditions.  Workdays will contain strenuous labor in remote settings and all weather conditions.

While serving a term of National Service, CCNM crews are expected to work in diverse team settings.  Respect for all members of the program, our partners, the public and the land they are visiting is expected. 

CCNM expects all members to represent the program in a professional manner at all times.  Crew life will include our corps values of challenge, stewardship, dedication, community, integrity and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).  Members are expected to be timely, hardworking, flexible and complete all functions of the tasks assigned, including tough physical labor and hiking several miles to remote locations under adverse weather conditions.

Members will be responsible for working under our Environmental Ethics: 

• Learn and practice ‘Leave no Trace’ techniques at all times
• Outdoor Skills and Fitness
• Learn and safely perform fundamental outdoor living, travel, and work skills as appropriate to the project. Additionally, practice self-care by staying adequately hydrated, fed, and properly dressed, so as to remain healthy and safe, avoiding environmental injuries.
• Live in a physically demanding, possibly remote environment for an uninterrupted period of up to several weeks. Conditions of this environment may vary significantly and may include severe and challenging weather conditions. These remote locations may require up to 12 hours to reach the nearest advanced medical care.

The crew member must supply his/her/their own personal outdoor gear 

What We Provide:       

• Tools and Personal Protective Equipment
• Transportation from office to projects
• Budget for meals is provided while in the field
• Field uniform shirts & First aid kits

 You Provide:

• Transportation from home to the office
• Camping gear, such as a tent, sleeping bag, and sleeping pad
• Work pants and boots over the ankle
• Day pack and multiday pack
• Rain gear

CCNM is an independent, non-residential program. All members and staff are responsible for finding housing while not on project.

Qualifications:

• Be between the ages of 18 and 25, there is some flexibility to accept members up to age 30.
• Have US Citizenship or Legal Permanent Residency status.
• Have a high school diploma or GED
• All offers of positions are conditional upon completion of an acceptable:
  • A nationwide check of the National Sex Offender Public website;
  • A fingerprint-based check of FBI criminal history record; and
  • A check of the State criminal history record repository for the individual’s State of residence AND State of service,
• Must be eligible to receive an AmeriCorps Education Award

Physical, Emotional, and Mental Safety:

Proper safety procedures must be observed in all tasks, including the repair and use of hand and power tools used on projects.

• Effectively communicate danger to others in the form of either a warning of danger others may be encountering or a notification of personal distress, injury or need for assistance. You must be able to do so at a distance up to 50 meters and in conditions with limited visibility or loud background noise such as darkness or high winds.
• Effectively perceive, understand, and follow direction by others so that you will be able to successfully execute appropriate and perhaps unfamiliar techniques to manage hazards. These directions may be given before the hazard is encountered or may need to be given during exposure to the hazard.
• Stay alert and focused for several hours at a time while traveling and working in varied weather conditions
• Perceive and comprehend significant and apparent hazards, including those hazards previously identified by others.
• Respond appropriately to stress or crises.
• If taking prescription medications, participants must be able to maintain proper dosage by self-medicating without assistance from others.

Participant Essential Eligibility Requirements:

Essential eligibility requirements for the program must be met. If you are unable to meet certain requirements, we may be able to provide some accommodations, excepting that which alters the fundamental nature of the program, compromises the health and safety of participants or staff, or places an undue financial or administrative burden on the organization. These requirements are written the same for all positions and therefore may not apply directly to your particular position. 

Participation and Expedition Behavior:

• Work effectively as a member of a team despite potentially stressful and difficult conditions. This may require problem solving on an interpersonal or group level as well as a willingness to accept differences.
• Contribute to a safe learning environment: no harassment of others for any reason.
• Willingness and ability to complete all aspects of the program including conservation projects, education, training and National Service.  Members must commit to participating in all crew/team activities, including service days in local communities where applicable.
• Effectively communicate ideas and concerns as they arise directly to supervisors, colleagues and organization staff.
• Have the cognitive ability to learn necessary skills and apply them to effectively carry out the service work requirements
• Appropriately represent the program and AmeriCorps to the public and project partners at all times

Compensation and Benefits:

• On-the-ground conservation work experience
• Technical trainings and work skills development
• Exposure to potential employers
• Teamwork and leadership skills development
• AmeriCorps Education Award and a weekly stipend.

Substance Free:

In accordance with a drug free workplace, alcohol and drugs are prohibited while participating in AmeriCorps and program activities and while on organization property. CCNM is a drug-free organization; alcohol and illegal substances are prohibited.

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. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, political affiliation, protected veteran status, disability status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, 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 a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.