AmeriCorps Field Crews

Crews work outdoors mid-February though mid-December and complete resource restoration and emergency response work. 

Corpsmembers receive a monthly living allowance, health insurance, student loan forbearance, paid training and 9 paid days off. Upon completing the program year with 1700 hours of service, members are eligible for an AmeriCorps post-service education award of $4,725, which can be used to pay college or qualified student loan expenses. 

Members receive hands-on training working on habitat-restoration projects with natural resource professionals. Also, members typically receive formal training in tool and equipment use, wildland fire fighting, First Aid/CPR, defensive driving, leadership and communication, and other skills pertinent to their crew location and projects. Members are given a day to job shadow a mentor in their field of choice, and a week to work with their crew on a service project of their choosing.

Typical projects include surveying and restoring native habitats and forests, removing invasive species, fighting wildfires, conducting prescribed burning, improving trails and waterways, planting and GPS/GIS mapping. Some crews work with local schools and community groups providing environmental education and outdoor learning classrooms.

Corps members serve in four to five person crews and typically work 10-hour days including drive time, Monday through Thursday. Occasionally, projects require overnight and weekend travel and camping or hotel stays near the work site, at no expense to the corps member. Crew bases are located in:

Northwest Minnesota: Bemidji, Park Rapids, Brainerd, Fergus Falls
Northeast Minnesota: Grand Rapids, Eveleth, Tofte, Duluth, Moose Lake
Central Minnesota: Twin Cities metro, Hanover
Southern Minnesota: Rochester, Mankato, Windom, Marshall
Central Iowa: Ames

2010 PROGRAM SCHEDULE
Applications due: December 1*
Crew leader start: February 1
Crew member start: February 15
Program end: December 16

*Occasionally openings occur during the year.
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