Traditional Trades Advancement Program (TTAP) – Landscape Stewardship Corps – Andersonville National Historic Site

INTERNSHIP POSITION DETAILS: American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit dedicated to providing rewarding environmental service opportunities, seeks young adults interested in exploring the Traditional Trades in partnership with the National Park Service. Learn and advance your horticulture skills to become the next leaders in managing historic landscapes in our National Parks!

The Traditional Trades Advancement Program-Landscape Stewardship Corps intern will work alongside professional horticulturists and arborists at Andersonville National Historic Site to care for historic landscapes in Andersonville, GA., learning about plant and cultural landscape maintenance skills. No background or previous experience in horticulture or historic preservation is necessary. A 26-week commitment is required.

For more information about the National Park Service’s Traditional Trades Advancement Program (TTAP) – Landscape Stewardship Corps please visit: https://www.nps.gov/orgs/1098/learning-services.htm

For more information the American Conservation Experience please visit:  www.usaconservation.org

LOCATION: Located in rural southwest Georgia, Andersonville National Historic Site is rich in American history. As the Civil War’s most deadly prison camp, Andersonville preserves soldier’s stories and the National Cemetery that began as a result. Horticulturists, arborists, conservators, and masons Andersonville care for the trees, turf, monuments, and gravesites meant to honor and commemorate the thousands of veterans who were imprisoned and then buried in its hallowed ground. Andersonville National Cemetery continues active burial of veterans. Andersonville is approximately fifty miles from Macon, Georgia. For more information about Andersonville National Historic Site, please visit https://www.nps.gov/ande/index.htm.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES: Guided by the National Park Service’s National Cemetery Investment Initiative and by Andersonville NHS Horticulturist (certified arborist), the Intern will help rehabilitate the cultural landscape of Andersonville National Cemetery.  The intern will learn how to use Cultural Landscape Reports and the proper techniques for managing turf, shrubs, and trees, many of which are over 100 years old. During the internship the intern will be mentored by experience national park service staff and can expect to:  

• Work 40 hours a week, 8:00 am – 4:30 pm, with flexibility to include possible weekend and evening hours included in the 40 hours
• Conduct soil care – decompaction, amendments
• Install tree lightning protection
• Prune trees
• Propagate historic trees, including regenerating genetic stock
• Conserve historic landscape character
• Plant annuals/perennials/shrubs and trees

BENEFITS:

• A weekly stipend of $720
• $125/week in housing allowance
• $1,000 in professional development funds for training, networking, and/or conferences
• Training historic cultural landscape management and maintenance including plant care, pruning, vegetation identification, and other topics
• Week-long in-person training for full Landscape Stewardship Corps at NPS site with travel/meal expenses covered
• Professional networking opportunities
• Public Land Corps Hiring Authority

POSITION REQUIREMENTS: 

• Learn and work as part of a team in positive and productive ways
• Strictly adhere to NPS and ACE equipment training, certification, and safety protocols
• Have a strong interest in history, horticulture and/or the environment and working outdoors
• Participate in NPS’s Landscape Stewardship Corps’ week-long in-person training (June 2024)
• Be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident
• Be 18-30 years old at time of service (veterans up to 35 years old)
• Have a High School Diploma/GED
• Pass fingerprint-based FBI, state criminal, and a national sex offender check
• Be able to provide proof of a driver’s license and complete an MVR check
• Local candidates are encouraged to apply, but being local is not required
• To learn more about eligibility requirements, please visit our website https://www.usaconservation.org/epic/#eligibility-requirements.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: Caring for historic cultural landscapes in National Parks will require working outdoors for extended periods of time in possibly rough terrain, or in periods of heat or cold.  Insects may bite and wildlife is not always predictable.  Certain landscape tools require manual dexterity, and interns should be able to move 30 pounds frequently and up to 75 pounds.  National Parks are public spaces and positive visitor interaction is expected.