Position Title: GIS Data Management Steward – AmeriCorps

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements

Site Location: Mesa Verde National Park, Cortez, CO 81330

Application Due: July 3, 2026

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: October 5, 2026
• End Date: January 22, 2027
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 450-Hour Slot

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.

Located in southwest Colorado, Mesa Verde National Park is dedicated to the preservation of the natural and cultural landscapes, homes and villages of the Ancestral Puebloan people who lived and farmed there for over 800 years. The park is 53,000 acres on a southern sloping cuesta of Pinyon-Juniper woodlands and mesa tops intersected by valleys and deep canyons. The Cultural Resources operation at Mesa Verde is seeking a GIS Steward to assist with GIS data management and workflows automated with Python scripting; along with other GIS related tasks such as GNSS data collection, metadata creation, and static and web-based cartography.

Description of Duties:

• Develop Python modules to process incoming geospatial data and update geodatabases.
• Develop and document efficient data editing workflows and best practices for data creation and field collection for data consistency and accuracy. Write Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for data management.
• Integrate existing geospatial data into established national and regional data standards.
• Assist GIS Specialist with a variety of other park-wide GIS tasks, including high-accuracy geospatial data collection and processing.
• Participate in the weekly NPS-GIS Steward Cohort meetings.
• Design a capstone project presentation to be presented to fellow GIS-Steward cohort and interested NPS personnel.

Requirements:

• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• Applicants must be between ages of 18-30 years old, or up to 35 for veteran, based on Public Land Corps Act of 1993 authorizing this AmeriCorps opportunity.
• 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

The candidate should have a good base of GIS skills and knowledge of ESRI applications including ArcPro, ArcGIS Online web-mapping applications, and data manipulation and processing via Python scripting. The candidate should have knowledge of geospatial data management, including working with geodatabases. Candidates should have a strong attention to detail, communication skills and demonstrate initiative. Most importantly the candidate should be eager to learn about and contribute to park operations and NPS GIS practices.

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 $1,956.35
• Living Allowance of $600 per week.
• Additional Benefit of $200 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: James Gasaway, jgasaway@conservationlegacy.org

Service Site Contact Information: Sheldon Baker, Sheldon_Baker@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.