SECC & GRSM - Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Monitoring Intern

Title: Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Monitoring Intern
Reports to: Becky Nichols; Entomologist, Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Location: Based in Gatlinburg, TN                
Status: Seasonal, Full-time, Exempt; 450-hour AmeriCorps Service Term
Stipend: $600/week – paid bi-weekly  
Other Benefits: No Housing Provided, uniform shirts, protective equipment, trainings. Other development opportunities as available. $1,824.07 Segal AmeriCorps Education Award upon successful completion of service term.
Start/end date:  05/20/24 - 08/09/24 (12-weeks)
Positions available: 1
Position open until filled.
 
Southeast Conservation Corps: 
SECC empowering young adults to cultivate compassion, responsibility, and grit through community service, hard work, and environmental stewardship. Southeast Conservation Corps (SECC) empowers young people to attain compassion, responsibility and grit through community service, hard work and environmental stewardship. SECC is a local, non-profit, AmeriCorps affiliated organization based out of Chattanooga, TN. SECC selects young adults to complete conservation work projects on public, private and municipal lands throughout the Southeast. SECC fosters the personal development of corpsmembers through environmental stewardship projects and experiential learning. Through community partnerships, SECC provides hands-on job training opportunities to young adults while simultaneously meeting natural resource needs throughout the Southeast. 
 
Position Description:
The primary mission of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s Inventory & Monitoring
Branch within the Resource Management and Science Division is to determine the status and trends of natural resources by conducting activities such as inventories, monitoring of key indicators, or vital signs, and restoration. Ultimately, data and analyses from these activities inform park policy, the public, and the park management team as to the condition of natura lresources within the park so that sound stewardship and management decisions can be made. Great Smoky Mountains National Park's Inventory and Monitoring Branch conducts various types of inventories and monitoring activities during the summer season, including long-term monitoring of aquatic macroinvertebrates. The intern that is needed for this program will assist with organization of data over time. They will also handle the specimens that have been collected over the years. All data collected and analyzed will inform park policy, assist to educate park visitors, and provide information for park management efforts to make sound stewardship decisions and protect important natural resources throughout the park. 

Position Responsibilities: (Training will be provided in each area.)
A. Organize aquatic macroinvertebrate long-term data sets.
• Gather and centralize data from all previous long-term sampling efforts.
• Develop protocols for species list formatting, making sure all years are in the same format.
• Rectify discrepancies in the species data by checking identifications in the lab.
• Enter data and perform QA/QC as necessary.
B. Organize aquatic macroinvertebrate specimens.
• Develop full listing of the un-accessioned samples stored in ethanol from the long-term program.
• Work with supervisor and curator to develop a plan for retention of certain samples and dispose of samples when necessary.
C. Assist with various natural resource outreach activities.
• Become well-versed on the major entomological topics in the Smokies (i.e., fireflies, pollinators, aquatic insects, etc.)
• Participate in the firefly event, which involves educating, directing, and overseeing the safety of large groups of people.
• Assist with and lead tours of the natural history collection and education sessions using the video microscope.
• Assist with stream-based aquatic education sessions for high school interns and various other school groups.
D. Collect aquatic macroinvertebrates at a few specific sites.
• Plan field days, pack equipment and navigate to sites using maps and GPS.
• Collect abiotic data and aquatic macroinvertebrate samples.
• Enter data and perform data QA/QC as necessary.

Minimum Qualifications:
• Applicants should be self-motivated, highly organized, and able to follow detailed instructions.
• Must be able to hike with a backpack in mountainous terrain, sometimes for long
distances, in inclement weather conditions, both on and off trail, and traverse streams
wearing waders.
• Intern will be a part of a team that operates safely and always communicates
effectively.
 
Preferred Qualifications:
• Education in entomology, natural resources, or aquatic sciences, and experience in
sampling methods, orienteering with GPS, computer programs including Excel and
various databases, and insect ID using technical keys.
 
AmeriCorps Qualifications: 
To qualify, you must be between the ages of 18 and 30 and a US citizen that has received a high school diploma or GED. All offers of employment are conditional upon completion of an acceptable check of the National Sex Offender Public Registry and federal criminal background check. Must be eligible to receive an AmeriCorps Education Award.  

Trainings May Include:
Field techniques for aquatic collections, use of GPS and navigation, backcountry safety, and data management. Instruction on following the key and which morphological characters to observe will be provided as often as necessary, depending on the interns' level of experience. Talking points for collection tours will be provided, training sessions will be held on firefly biology and the firefly event procedures (Incident Command System).

Compensation:
Interns earn a living stipend of $600 ($1,200 dispersed bi-weekly before taxes) via direct
deposit. Upon successful completion of their term, interns will receive a $1,824.07 Segal
AmeriCorps education award for tuition at Title IV accredited learning institutions, AmeriCorps approved non-traditional continued education or paying off student loans.
 
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 always represent the Program and AmeriCorps to the public and project
partners. 

Safety and Judgment:
• 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 of 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.
 
Environmental Ethics:
Learn and practice ‘Leave no Trace’ techniques

Outdoor Skills and Fitness (where appropriate):
• Learn and safely perform fundamental outdoor living/travel and work skills as
appropriate to the project. Additionally, remain adequately hydrated, fed, and properly
dressed so as to remain generally 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/or trying weather. The remoteness is such that it may require at
a minimum one hour, but perhaps up to 12 hours, to reach the nearest advanced medical care.
 
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.
 
Additional Notes:
All applicants must pass a criminal background check prior to hiring.
 
This program is available to all, without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender identity or expression, political affiliation, marital or parental status, genetic information, and military service. Where a significant portion of the population eligible to be served needs services or information in a language other than English, the recipient shall take reasonable steps to provide written material of the type ordinarily available to the public in appropriate languages.
 
To Apply: 
Follow the SECC link and complete the application. Please include 3 references, resume, and copy of your transcripts (unofficial okay). You can put the references in a word doc and upload it alongside your resume. A cover letter is encouraged but not required.
 
If you have questions about the position, please contact:
Becky Nichols
Entomologist
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
(865) 436-1702
becky_nichols@nps.org
 
If you have questions about the application process, please contact:
Kahla Stewart
Intern Program Coordinator
Southeast Conservation Corps
(423) 402-6004
kstewart@conservationlegacy.org