Job Description

Title:  SCC Forest Health Partnerships Program Manager                      Date: 1/29/2021

Reports to: SCC Four Corners Director

Starting Salary: Grade C+, starting salary range $45-56K annually, DOE

Location: Durango, CO         

Status: Full-Time, Exempt    

Benefit Eligible: Full per Personnel Policies

Program Summary:

The Southwest Conservation Corps (SCC) is a program of the non-profit service organization, Conservation Legacy, that is built on the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) that operated from 1933 – 1942. SCC provides youth and young adults opportunities to complete conservation projects on public lands. While serving with SCC, members receive training on job skills, conflict resolution, leadership, teamwork, and environmental stewardship. Programs are developed using a step ladder approach to provide a progression of skill development based on a member’s needs. Members receive a weekly living allowance, training, and an AmeriCorps Education Award (for qualifying individuals).

Position Summary:

The grant funded Forest Health Partnerships Program Manager (FHPPM) position has two primary responsibilities: 1.) coordinate and oversee the American Forest Foundation (AFF) funded Forest Management Plans program and 2.) to connect and collaborate with SW Colorado Forest Health Partnerships to identify and create SCC AmeriCorps programming to meet existing and emerging workforce capacity needs as these partnerships push into implementation phases.  Funding is currently expected for 2 years for this position, which will likely evolve as related forest health and restoration work scales up in SW Colorado.

Specifically, for responsibility number 1, the FHPPM will stand up a new program funded by AFF & NRCS.  This will involve coordinating landowner outreach efforts with American Forest Foundation, Wildfire Adapted Partnership, the CO State Forest Service, NRCS and other area forest health partners; helping to select, orient, train and support a cadre of interns who will be visiting with landowners to create Forest Management Plans (FMPs); contracting with and coordinating FMPs with consulting foresters.

Responsibility number 2 will require engagement with the numerous forest health partnerships in SW Colorado and collaboration with key staff from those partnerships and with the land agencies who are engaging on these efforts (US Forest Service, CO State Forest Service, NRCS, BLM, NPS, municipal managers, etc.).  The main goal is to be informed enough on emerging forest health treatment implementation trends and needs to help position SCC programming to meet workforce capacity demands that align with SCC’s mission and ability to develop capacities.

Essential Responsibilities and Functions:

Development & Communication                                        

• Connect and collaborate with AFF’s Western Conservation Manager, implementing the AFF Forest Management Plans program as top priority, while also piloting new elements or initiatives through the program.
• Identify and develop project agreements with landowners with the objective of creating multi-year long-term agreements, starting with the development of individual landowner Forest Management Plans.
• Contract and manage working mentorship with consulting forester(s), who will oversee the technical requirements of each Forest Management Plan, including that the inventory process is done thoroughly and in line with best practices.
• Learn and retain all compliance aspects of Forest Management Plans and ensure that SCC’s Individual Placement team is complying with and learning through the process.
• Coordinate opportunities with forest health partners and develop a related forestry opportunities network for post program alumni opportunities for SCC IPs and other alumni.
• Work with agency staff, forest health partnerships and SCC team to coordinate and review innovative private and public funding streams to support the long-term objectives of a sustainable regional forest management program.
• Keep private landowners and public agencies informed of activities, needs, risks, and accomplishments on a timely basis.
• Pursue projects that create diverse, inclusive, and equitable forest management work with landowners, particularly those that have historically been ignored, to ensure the program advances natural resource diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
• Build and cultivate positive and trusting relationships with forest management partners and landowners, fostering inclusion of lower income landowners in the program, with a high sensitivity to past injustices some landowners have experienced.
• Manage continuous and effective communication, collaboration, and consensus building internally with SCC team and externally with forest management cooperative partners and landowners.
• Work with partners and SCC staff to identify and implement communication objectives to advance programs (Forest Management Plans and other SCC forest health programming) including marketing, press, branding, and social media with the ultimate goal of developing more a spectrum of forestry related crew and intern based programming.
• Create career pathway ladders from corps programming to public and private sector forestry careers, while focusing creating inclusive programming that includes participants from underrepresented populations within the forestry sector.
• Identify new related potential markets for SCC to collaborate to develop innovative new ways to develop capacities to move regional forest health partnership goals forward.
• Coordinate, develop and facilitate forestry and resource management lesson plans for SCC crews and IPs, beyond just those involved in FMPs and forest restoration.

Leadership & Management                         

• Help screen, select, orient, train and support the cadre of SCC interns conducting landowner FMP visits.
• Mentor and support the learning experience of SCC FMP IPs.
• Review (with consulting forester as needed) all draft FMPs and ensure the meet standards before they are finalized.
• Lead, coordinate and facilitate local workforce development efforts with forest health and other community and regional partners.
• Advocate locally and regionally for the inclusion of corps within workforce capacity development planning, creating more local opportunities for young men and women to engage in national service within the forestry sector.
• Coordinate and share best practices with other peers and colleagues at Conservation Legacy; share information to help other programs develop similar programming.
• Be accountable for corps’ internal communication and feedback, ensuring it is received, shared, and retained utilizing communication channels such as staff meetings, direct report check-ins, MS Teams, All Staff meetings, e-mail, surveys, etc.

Fundraising              

• Coordinate with existing partners and SCC team to develop match to support this position.
• Develop collaborative fundraising strategy with forest health partners to support this position as well as related capacity development for SCC and other partners to build out and implement needed workforce development and labor programs for implementation of forest health prescriptions.

Finance & Reporting           

• Record, maintain, and monitor project data and records.
• Prepare landowner project budgets and agreements.
• Review and monitor program, IP and crew expenses to ensure responsible budget management.
• Complete timely project reporting to support invoicing and agreement requirements in compliance with Conservation Legacy policies and procedures.
• Oversee collection of project accomplishments and create timely reports with the information for funders, partners, and landowners.

Other Duties

• Successfully engages, leads and supports an inclusive work environment for those of underrepresented populations within the organization and the communities we serve.
• Leads and/or participates in organizational-wide teams, projects and initiatives that support the work of the Strategic Plans goals.
• Cultivate a positive environment in the SCC FMP IP program, in which members feel supported in achieving their personal and professional goals and gain both technical and interpersonal skills.

• Work in a dynamic, rapidly changing, and challenging environment that requires flexibility, adaptability and willingness to work a varying schedule.

Physical Requirements:

Periodic overnight travel and non-traditional work hours, inclusive of weekend and evening hours. To successfully perform essential functions this position is required to sit, stand, walk, speak and hear. This position may be required to climb, balance, stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl on an infrequent basis. They must be able to operate office equipment, telephone, and computer. The ability to drive an organizational vehicle is also required. Reasonable accommodations may be made for qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Exhibits the ability to effectively work on diverse teams or with a variety of populations, including those underrepresented at our organization and those of BIPOC communities.
• Minimum of 2 years of experience in youth development/education, conservation corps and/or forestry field(s).
• Strong desire to mentor young men and women in natural resources management.
• Experience with influencing diverse groups of employees to achieve common goals.
• Strong verbal, writing and interpersonal communication skills.
• Flexibility, adaptability and capacity to work in a fluid, changing work environment.
• The ability to carry out assigned work independently or with minimal supervision.
• The ability to communicate effectively, manage complexity, cultivate innovation, drive and influence results of oneself and others.
• Ability to work well with others and to seek assistance when needed to carry out assignments.
• Proficient in all Microsoft Office Suite applications and ability to manage information in organizational databases.
• Ability to keep others, in remote locations, accountable to expectations and organizational policies while creating and fostering a culture of safety.
• Must be able to pass the organization’s criminal history background check requirements.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Previous collaborative working experience with federal/state land management agency partners.
• Prior corps program development and administration experience.
• Previous leadership and management experience.
• Bachelor’s Degree or higher strongly preferred with more emphasis placed on a degree in Forestry, Forest Management or similar field OR equivalent past directly relevant professional forestry programs management experience.
• Prior experience developing Forest Management Plans and/or completing forest inventory work.
• Prior working experience in and/or knowledge of forest ecotypes and fire ecology of southwestern Colorado.
• Prior collaborative and partner driven grant writing and management experience.
• Previous experience collaborating in forest health partnerships/coalitions.
• Recent corps specific, youth development and or forest health nonprofit management/leadership organizational
• Previous program and/or leadership experience with a conservation youth
• Certified Wilderness First Responder or willingness to pursue immediately.
• Ability to evaluate inputs in a rapidly changing work environment and make decisions that affect the safety and work of employees.
• Desire and experience with public outreach and education regarding fire mitigation and management, as well as other forest management operations
• Sense of humor and desire to make a positive difference in people and on the land.

How to Apply

Job Categories: Equal Opportunities. Job Types: Full-Time. Salaries: 40,000 - 60,000.

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