Position Title: Capacity Building Summer Associate – VISTA Summer Associate

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placement

Site Location:

Guardians of the West Fork Watershed

3450 Buckhannon Pike Mount Clare WV 26408-7274

Terms of Service:

• Start Date: 6/15/2026
• End Date: 8/23/2026
• AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 300 hours (Minimum-Time)

Purpose:

• While many West Virginia communities are working on tourism as a foundation for economic development, West Virginia has been widely identified as a good destination for retirement, and an increasing number of retirees are moving to West Virginia. Retiree expenditures have a multiplier effect of about 2.8, and do not require developing new jobs in the community for in-migrants. They particularly generate jobs in food services, health care, and retail trade. Identifying and developing watershed health and outdoor recreation programs will not only improve quality of life and physical and mental health for current residents, but make our watershed more attractive for retirees. Our VISTA’s work plan suports our larger capacity-building to educate and recruit support for identifying projects that will benefit our older population, resident as well as incoming retirees.
• We will also identify projects that will appeal to and expose youth to recreational and educational experiences in streams and the watershed that supports them. VISTA members working closely in communities can facilitate conversations with new partners to meet the needs of underserved youth and minorities by sharing opportunities. WVDEP SPP grants fund water festivals, rain gardens, fishing derbys, snorkeling, trout in the classroom and Project Water Education for Today (Project WET) curriculum in the schools. There are many more opportunities to explore such as art in parks, wildlife viewing, fishing, rafting, kayaking and hiking. We will follow work plans that will require identifying underserved youth and minorities as stakeholders in watershed protection and community development.
• Finally, remediating the historic environmental degradation and poorly maintained infrastructure which is degrading the streams in itself can be a source of employment and local business development. The VISTA’s work will support projects for nonpoint source pollution remediation and prevention, including possible local education and training programs.

Description of Duties:

The Summer Associate will focus on capacity-building activities that produce internal planning resources, documentation tools, and community engagement materials. Duties may include compiling labor market research summaries, developing workforce resource inventories, creating community asset maps, organizing environmental data sets, drafting partnership coordination frameworks, designing planning templates and resource guides, and assisting with public-facing informational workshops, outreach campaigns, or site observations. Activities are designed to strengthen host organizations’ capacity, guide long-term workforce and environmental program development, provide tangible connections between planning tools and community needs, and support measurable outcomes in workforce access, environmental stewardship, and community engagement.

Our objectives are to incorporate local government and business into the projects and watershed activities and to build cooperative relationships with other non-profits; to conduct outreach and engagement activities to recruit volunteers and participants for community initiatives, and; incorporate local government, business, schools, and nonprofits into the projects and watershed activities. The VISTA member will work with a WV READY Americorps member and Guardians to do outreach and education across all ages:

• planning, publicizing, recruiting groups for and leading water trail and trail cleanups;
• planning and leading social paddles
• fecal coliform water testing survey across the watershed, in conjunction with WVU Common Waters students and Jackson's Mill STEM program
• book and staff Guardians outreach and information tables and presentations at summer festivals and events

Qualifications:

• Car recommended;
• Desired education level: Some College
• Language requirement: English
• United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
• At least 17 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.

Physical Requirements:

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

Time Requirements:

• Typically, this position is expected to serve full-time, 35-40 hours per week, but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service
• Prohibits paid work outside of the sponsoring agency at any time

Orientation and Training:

• Member will receive an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.
• Member will receive a Virtual Member Orientation (VMO) from VISTA on their first day of service.

Benefits:

• Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $1, 565.08
• Living Allowance of $957.46 (taxable) every other week.
• Healthcare Coverage if Eligible
• Childcare Coverage if Eligible
• Loan forbearance if Eligible
• Interest Payments if Eligible
• Recreational Opportunities
• Professional Development Opportunities

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps VISTA Summer Associate, performance will be evaluated on whether the Summer Associate has completed the required number of hours, whether the Summer Associate has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the Summer Associate 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:

Erin Adams

eadams@conservationlegacy.org

330 Harper Park Drive

Beckley, WV 25801

(304) 860-0578

Host Organization Contact:

Lisa deGruyter
president@guardiansofthewestfork.org
(812) 212-4497

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.