The Student Conservation Association (SCA) is the largest provider of hands-on environmental conservation programs for youth and adults. Program participants protect and restore national parks, national forests, wildlife refuges, marine sanctuaries, cultural landmarks, community green spaces, and much more across the country.

The SCA NH Corps is a collaboration between the SCA, the New Hampshire Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR), and AmeriCorps. Since 1994 the SCA NH Corps has provided over 1.4 million hours of service to New Hampshire while training young adults to do valuable conservation work. Each year young adults, from diverse backgrounds and from across the US, contribute thousands of service hours. Interpretive Rangers provide environmental education programs to the state’s residents and visitors and Field Crew Members complete service projects to improve and protect the state’s natural, cultural, and recreational resources. Both positions serve throughout NH, from the Atlantic Coast to the White Mountains and beyond. 

Position Description: 

March 30th– October 29th, 2026 

Most of the Field Crew Member position is dedicated to hands-on, outdoor conservation projects ranging from trail construction and maintenance to habitat restoration and invasive plant species removal. Each service project period or hitch is 11-days in length requiring collaboration as part of a five or six-person crew. Each member will serve as a crew leader for at least one 11-day field project. Upon completion of each hitch, crews return to Bear Brook State Park for a three-day break between hitches. To prepare for field/hitch season members attend training, earning certifications, to learn the necessary skills needed for the service term. Additionally, communal living is a large component of this program with simple rustic accommodations at Bear Brook State Park and camping in tents while on hitch.  

What makes SCA NH Conservation Corps a unique program: 

• NHCC is the SCA’s oldest residential corps program, beginning in 1994. 
• Offers 11 weeks of skill development to ensure members are adequately trained! 
• Based out of a 40+ acre summer camp located in the largest developmed NH state park. 
• This is the only SCA corps program to serve with local, state, federal, and non-profit partners. 
• Only SCA program in the northeast serving with the U.S. Forest Service and in designated wilderness areas

Training Season: 

This season runs from the start of the position in March through mid-June. During the training season you will learn from experienced staff and instructors as you engage in a wide-ranging curriculum that covers the hard and soft skills needed for a career in outdoor conservation/recreation management. Orientation includes SCA, AmeriCorps, and NH State Parks policies and protocols, leadership development and teamwork discussions and scenarios, and a conflict resolution workshop. In preparation for the field season, members will participate in camp skills training, Leave No Trace (LNT), drivers training (large vans & trucks), and more. Technical skills are a large portion of training and include trail construction and maintenance, carpentry, chainsaw or rigging and griphoist use, and Wilderness First Responder.   

 Conservation Season: 

This season runs from mid-June through October. During this time members will serve in the field on “hitch” crews of their peers for periods of 11 days (10 service days with 1 day off). Hitches consist of high priority conservation projects with a focus on public lands access, visitor experience and safety, and recreation site protection. NH Corps crews use traditional trail and land management techniques, carpentry, and physical labor to complete an array of projects while camping for the duration of each project period. Service locations vary from frontcountry campgrounds to backcountry sites in the White Mountain National Forest (WMNF).  

The WMNF includes a variety of landscapes from mountainous hardwood forests to majestic alpine peaks, which includes the tallest mountain in the Northeast – Mount Washington.  Field Crew Members will have thE opportunity to serve on WMNF projects. By continuing to maintain and keep this valuable recreational resource safe, you will become part of the WMNF’s storied history. 

Beyond the WMNF, you will have the opportunity to serve at several of NH’s beautiful state parks.  These parks may include Monadnock (most hiked mountain in North America), White Lake, Franconia Notch, and Crawford Notch. In addition to federal and state partnerships, the NH Corps works with towns, counties, and non-profit organizations to assist with the management of their public lands. These partnerships allow NH Corps members to experience a variety of projects and settings while working alongside professionals representing a wide array of  missions and concentrations, from organizations focused on specific wildlife to towns that are striving to improve recreation opportunities for their residents.     

Some of the specific service tasks may include trail projects such as building bridges, building stone structures such as staircases and retaining walls, cruising trails to address maintenance needs, and building new trails. Carpentry work is another category during which crews may build Adirondack-style camping shelters, kiosks, and boardwalks. The final category of project work is habitat restoration and public land improvement with projects including invasive species removal, backcountry site assessment, and erosion control.  

NH Conservation Corps members will have an opportunity to learn many skills, volunteer with environmental and other local nonprofit organizations, and learn from one another. NHCC program partners work in a variety of fields. These career fields include land management/stewardship, land conservation, wildlife biology, outdoor recreation, outdoor science education, and forestry to name a few. Serving with and learning from these professionals is an invaluable experience that will jump-start your career. 

Member Benefits:

• Living allowance amount - $9,300 for the term - $600 biweekly 
• AmeriCorps Education Award - $5,176.50 upon successful completion of the service term for qualifying educational expenses and loans. 
• All food is provided – estimated value of $1500 
• Housing is provided – estimated value is $4,300 for the service term 
• Onsite laundry - $200 value 

AmeriCorps Eligibility Requirements:

This position is part of a specialized SCA AmeriCorps program and if you are selected, you will be serving as an SCA AmeriCorps member. To be eligible for this position you must meet these basic AmeriCorps Eligibility Requirements:

• Being a citizen, permanent resident, or national of the United States;
• Being at least 18 years or older;
• Having a high school diploma or equivalent or actively working to complete;
•  Being willing to undergo National Service Criminal History Check, including criminal background, sex offender and FBI checks conducted after position is offered.

Member Qualifications and Essential Functions 

• Available for the duration of the entire service term - March 30th– October 29th, 2026 
• AmeriCorps service commitment is a minimum of 1200 hours 
• Willingness to try new things and learn new skills 
• Live in an intentional community of your peers sharing the living and working space 
• Interest in outdoor recreation and environmental conservation 
• Demonstrate a strong service ethic and desire to serve the community and the environment 
• Applicants should be in good physical condition and should enjoy hard work outdoors 

 Marginal Functions 

• If eligible, driving 12 passenger vehicles, large trucks, and pulling trailers 
• Program facilities maintenance 

Responsibilities:

Field Crew members are responsible for:

• Being on time and prepared for every training and hitch project throughout the service term
•  Being an active member of the NHCC community and of every hitch crew you serve on
• Being a peer leader for at least one hitch – create the food plan, ensure all tools and equipment is accounted for, and complete the project reporting upon completion of the hitch.
• Holding themselves and others accountable to meet NHCC and hitch crew expectations ensuring everything is completed well and on time
• Being flexible and willing to adjust activities, a dynamic and ever-changing service environment, on a regular basis

Schedule:

During the training period in April, members will serve Monday-Friday with Saturday and Sunday off. In May there is a spring hitch period that is 11 days in length and runs from Tuesday through the following Friday. During this period members have one rest day while in the field but serve for ten days helping prepare campgrounds and get state parks ready for the season. The remainder of the training is five days a week with traditional weekends off. 

Once hitch season begins in mid-June members are in the field for 11-days at a time, returning to Bear Brook State Park for a three-day weekend (Saturday-Monday) before heading back out for the next project period. There is a week off in the middle of the hitch season in mid-August. Members return after a well-deserved break for the last four hitch periods. Post hitch-season, the last three weeks of the program are based at the program’s homebase. During this time everyone completes tool maintenance, camp repairs, and winterization projects before a week of member recognition celebration events.  

Training and Leadership development

• Wilderness First Responder (WFR) and CPR Certification - $700 value 
• Conservation Work Skills (CWS) – Trail Construction & Maintenance Training - $450 value 
• *Chainsaw Certification - $500 value 
• *Rigging and Griphoist for Trail Work - $500 value 
• Carpentry Training - $400 value 
• Leave No Trace (LNT) Outdoor Ethics Training - $150 value  
• Camp Skills 
• Leadership Training  
• NH State Parks Season Pass

* Members will receive one of these specialty trainings

NH Conservation Corps members will have an opportunity to learn many skills, volunteer with environmental and other local nonprofit organizations, and learn from one another. NHCC program partners work in a variety of fields. These career fields include land management/stewardship, land conservation, wildlife biology, outdoor recreation, outdoor science education, and forestry to name a few. Serving with and learning from these professionals is an invaluable experience that will jump-start your career. 

Housing 

Housing varies based on time of year. During the training season (April – mid-June) members will be based out of Bear Brook State Park sharing rustic cabins that have woodstoves for heat. The main lodge has electricity, internet, furnaces for heat, the commercial kitchen, dining hall, living space, laundry, and bathrooms with showers.  There is quiet workspace in the office with internet access on an as needed basis. Some training and the spring hitch period in May require camping in tents with limited or no access to internet and cell phone service. 

From mid-June through the second week of October members will be camping in front and backcountry settings with limited or no access to internet or cell service for 11-day periods. After these hitch periods members return to Bear Brook State Park and have three days off before heading out for their next hitch period. For the last three weeks of the program everyone is based out of the programs homebase at Bear Brook State Park.

Equal Opportunity Employer Statement

This program is available to all, without discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, religion, age, national origin, genetic information, disability, military status, familial status, political affiliation, or any other characteristic protected by law. Upon request, reasonable accommodations will be provided to applicants during the selection process and to members during service.