Position Title: Crew Leader
Dates: May/June 2024 - May/June 2025 (12 months / 1700 hours)
Schedule: Monday-Thursday: 8:30 am - 4:30 pm, Friday: 8:30 am - 3:00 pm
Total Living Allowance: $23,000 (pre-tax, paid bi-weekly)
Segal Education Award: $6,895.00 upon successful completion of AmeriCorps service term 

The Sustainability Institute’s Environmental Conservation Corps (ECC) program is an AmeriCorps-accredited workforce development and service-learning program for young adults. These opportunities offer desirable field skills and training for people pursuing careers in conservation and environmental fields.

Opportunity Youth Service Initiative (OYSI) positions are available to young adults aged 17-24 who are currently neither in school nor working full time (part-time/weekend jobs are permitted). OYSI positions offer: 

• Training: Build knowledge and skills in a diversity of conservation and sustainability jobs
• Certifications: Receive free professional certifications relevant to the field
• Compensation: Earn an end-of-service Segal Education Award
• Connections: Meet and work with a wide variety of governmental agencies and nonprofit organizations
• Teamwork: Experience working in a team of peers and within a nonprofit organization
• Leadership: Help lead critically important conservation projects to combat climate change

AmeriCorps Qualifications:

Program Hours: All Crew Members will be expected to participate during the program hours of 8:30am - 4:30pm Monday through Thursday, 8:30am - 3pm Friday. A 30-minute lunch break every day does not count towards service hours required. Some weekend dates might be required; advanced notice will be given.

Background Check: Program enrollment requires every member to successfully provide information to program staff for the completion of the CNCS (Corporation for National and Community Service) three-part criminal history check (NSOPW check, state of residence and/or state of service check, and FBI fingerprint check). Members must sign the NCHSC (CNCS - National Criminal History Service Check) at the time of the interview. CNCS has established requirements that may not allow a member to serve due to the member’s previous criminal history. 

Age: Crew Members must be at least 18 years of age at the time of enrollment and between the ages of 18-28 to qualify.

Education: A high school diploma or GED is required to serve with AmeriCorps. If a recruit has not earned his/her/their high school diploma, GED, or accredited equivalent prior to starting the ECC Program, they are required to obtain it within two years following their service term. In these instances, we require members to either attend or enroll in future GED training while in our program. SI staff will assist the member in arranging class and testing needs through local educational institutions. 

Minimum Qualifications:

• All Crew Members, Leaders, and SI Staff must be fully vaccinated per SI’s COVID‐19 policy
• Valid Driver’s License, and willingness to provide driving record document and to drive fellow crew members in a 12-passenger van and/or pickup truck

Preferred Qualifications:

• Prior crew member experience in an AmeriCorps program
• Prior experience leading a team or in a leadership role
• Prior experience working in habitat conservation

Physical Requirements: Due to the conditions and scope of work performed by the Environmental Conservation Corps, members must be physically able to perform all program work, fully and equally, as other Corps Members. This includes, but is not limited to, climbing, heavy lifting, bending, working from one’s knees or back, working in hot or cold conditions and/ or other work components deemed necessary by SI staff.

Position Description:

Crew Members will engage in habitat restoration activities in public parks, forests and waterways, including, but not limited to, activities such as restoring salt marshes and oyster reefs; planting native plants and trees; and performing water quality testing and monitoring. Crew Members may also engage in weatherization activities, including presenting energy efficiency workshops throughout the community and developing work scopes. 

Environmental Stewardship Work (95%):

• Freshwater and tidal saltwater quality monitoring (Year-round) 
  • Work includes monthly monitoring of four designated sites and performing water sampling, testing, data collection, and reporting. Training is provided.
  • Main program partner: SC Department of Health and Environmental Control (SC DHEC) and Clemson University’s Adopt-A-Stream program
•  Salt marsh and oyster restoration along the coast of South Carolina (March-August) 
  • In collaboration with the SC Department of Natural Resources SCORE (South Carolina Oyster Recycling and Enhancement) program, we will be performing:
    • Oyster shell pickup, recycling, and trash sorting
    • Oyster shell bagging and manufactured wire reef building
    • Building oyster reefs and oyster castles in the marsh
    • Marsh grass seed collection
    • Marsh grass seed planting and cultivating
    • Planting marsh grass in the marsh
  • Other program partners may include but are not limited to: Coastal Conservation League, The Nature Conservancy South Carolina, Charleston Waterkeeper, ACE Basin National Estuarine Research Reserve, and South Carolina Aquarium.
• Recreational trail building and maintenance projects, including vegetation work on trail corridors and building footbridges, walkways, and fencing (August-February)
  • Partners may include but are not limited to: U.S. Forest Service-Francis Marion District and Charleston County Parks and Recreation Commission. Training is provided.
• Constructing and maintaining native rain gardens, pollinator gardens, and urban vegetable gardens (September-March)
  • Partners may include but are not limited to: Clemson Extension Service, Charleston Parks Conservancy, Fields to Families, and Green Heart Project. Training is provided.

Energy and Water Efficiency Work (5%): 

• Facilitate energy efficiency community outreach and workshops throughout local counties.

Additional Responsibilities:

• Actively participate in weekly Crew Leader meetings with SI Staff
• Serve as a secondary point of contact behind SI Staff, and present as “front and center” on behalf of the crew during service site activities. This means that Crew Leaders will interface
  directly with project partners and will have important communication responsibilities
• Manage service project readiness. This includes preparing equipment, tools, and material needs and coordinating the readiness of these items and their deployment to our service project sites
• Manage crew readiness for service site work. This includes ensuring that crews are properly briefed about service projects in advance, know what to expect, and are prepared for the work
• Facilitate risk assessment at service site locations and lead group safety meetings before each project, ensuring that standardized safety protocols and procedures are being followed
• Lead and monitor service project work to ensure quality delivery and outcomes
• Take photographs of service work activities and upload to appropriate storage folders within 1 business day
• Record project outcome measurements within 1 business day. Keep track of this document for Mid-Year/Final reviews
• Provide communication to SI Staff on behalf of crew about all start and stop times of work at service sites, including arrival and departure times
• Oversee and perform daily monitoring of the maintenance of the ECC van, trailer, and tools/equipment. This includes keeping track of ECC monthly van/ trailer inspection forms
• Led and perform daily monitoring of the cleanliness and organization of SI’s offices and training room; schedule weekly tasks for upkeep of the office interior, kitchen, and storage units and monitor execution
• Maintain the Program’s inventory of equipment, supplies, and materials as up-to-date
• Participate and lead community outreach activities, including educational workshops, tabling events and presentations
• Drive the Environmental Conservation Corps van and/ or truck and pull trailer as needed 

Training Provided:

The Sustainability Institute is committed to strong member development and includes in its plan a comprehensive set of resources offered to Crew Members that are designed to ensure member retention, personal growth, and success. These include, but are not limited to, an assessment of skills and interests upon arrival, a strong orientation, soft skills training, team-building activities, and exposure to outside employment opportunities upon completion of service with the Program.

The ECC Program is dedicated to providing members with field-based certifications and conservation-based trainings during their time of service.

• Habitat Restoration
  • Adopt-A-Stream Freshwater and Tidal Saltwater monitoring
  • Living Shorelines
  • Wilderness First Aid
  • Clemson Extension Master Rain Gardener Certification Track
  • Recreation Trail Training
  • Chainsaw and chainsaw safety
• Worksite Safety
  • Jobsite and Tool
  • CPR/First Aid
• Professional Development/Soft Skills
  • Financial Literacy
  • Resume/Cover Letter 
  • Diversity and Inclusion