Position Title: GIS Cultural Resources Steward – AmeriCorps

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements

Site Location: Wrangell-St. Elias National Park & Preserve, PO Box 439, Mile 106.8 Richardson Highway, Copper Center, AK 99573

Application Timeline: Preference given to applicants that submit application by March 13, 2026

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: 06/01/2026
• End Date: 11/13/2026
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 675 Hours

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements (Stewards), a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with AmeriCorps service and career internship 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 NPS GIS office is hosting a cohort of GIS stewards.

Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve is the largest national park in the United States, encompassing over 13 million acres of high mountains, extensive glaciers, and remote wilderness. Managing resources across such an expansive and diverse landscape requires accurate, well-organized geospatial data to support scientific research, operational planning, and informed decision-making. This internship provides an opportunity to contribute to these efforts by supporting geospatial data management and analysis for one of the more complex park environments in the National Park System.

The GIS Intern will have the chance to contribute to projects that help manage and preserve this large, dynamic landscape while collaborating with passionate professionals dedicated to conservation and stewardship. The intern will assist with preparation for field projects in remote and aerial environments, support post-processing and analysis of collected data, and manage incoming requests for mapping and other GIS services from park staff. Duties will also include organizing and maintaining geospatial datasets, building a metadata catalog for easy data discovery, and coordinating with the Alaska Region GIS team to ensure compliance with NPS standards. By the end of the internship, the successful candidate will have developed core NPS GIS competencies, have a portfolio of GIS products, demonstrated interdisciplinary collaborative skills and strong problem-solving skills through working under real-world constraints.

The duty station will be at Park Headquarters in Copper Center where most work will be conducted in an indoor office environment, however, there may be opportunities and needs for field data acquisition where field work in a wilderness setting will be required.

Description of Duties:

Duties of the GIS Intern position may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Support field staff in preparing for data acquisition in remote and aerial environments.
• Post-process and analyze geospatial data to support annual reports and inform scientific inquiry and management decisions.
• Respond to geospatial support requests from park divisions, including map creation and related products.
• Organize and manage geospatial datasets; build and maintain a metadata catalog for easy data discovery.
• Coordinate with the Alaska Region GIS team to ensure data meets NPS standards and is properly archived.
• Develop skills in independent work management and workload prioritization for incoming requests.
• Collaborate with a mentor to co-create work plans, attend regular check-ins, and engage with NPS support staff to develop solutions to encountered problems.
• Maintain a positive, professional, and team-oriented approach to all tasks.
• If time or interest allows, contribute to creating basic guides, training materials, or user-friendly applications to streamline mapping workflows.
• Design and deliver a capstone presentation for the NPS GIS community at the conclusion of the internship.

Requirements:

• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• At least 18 years of age
• Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of elementary or 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
• Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

Preferred Qualifications

A successful candidate will have a strong foundation in GIS principles and data management practices, with demonstrated proficiency using Esri products. Candidates should be comfortable with geoprocessing tools, and geodatabase design principles. The position requires attention to detail, effective communication skills, and the ability to take initiative and work independently while collaborating with subject matter experts as needed.

Additional desired qualifications include:

• Demonstrated ability to be adaptive to unforeseen technological constraints.
• Background in remote sensing data analysis.
• Familiarity with field data collection tools (e.g., GPS, GNSS receivers, mobile GIS applications such as Collector or Survey123).
• Comfort working outdoors in wilderness areas.
• Experience in data analysis and database design preferred.
• Cartographic and presentation skills preferred.

Applicants must also be enrolled at an institution of higher education or within two years post-graduation. Applicants who have obtained or are pursuing a GIS degree or certificate and/or with GIS work experience are preferred. Prior to starting this position, a federal government security background clearance will be required.

Our Commitment:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full consideration of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential job functions. Physical requirements may include periodic overnight travel, non-traditional work 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. The ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.

Time Requirements:

• Typically, this position is expected to serve 40 hours per week, but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service
• 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 an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $2,817.14
• Living Allowance of $600 per week.
• Additional Benefit of $160 per week.
• Loan forbearance if Eligible
• Interest Payments if Eligible

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of 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.

Supervisor Name and Contact Information:

Program Contact information: stewardssupport@conservationlegacy.org

Service Site Contact Information: rlevine@nps.gov

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 the hiring manager.