JOB OUTREACH NOTICE and ANNOUNCEMENT
TEMPORARY POSITION
Visitor Services Information Assistant (GS-1001-05)
USDA Forest Service
- Eastern Region
Midewin National
Tallgrass Prairie
Wilmington, Illinois 60481
The
Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie will soon be advertising to fill three TEMPORARY GS-1001-5 Visitor
Services Information Assistant position. The official duty station is
Wilmington, Illinois located about 45 miles southwest of Chicago. Midewin was
established in 1996 as the first national tallgrass prairie in the country and
in the National Forest System. It is also the largest open space in the
six-county Chicago metropolitan area.
This
temporary positions hours worked is not to exceed 1039 hours per year.
The
official duty station is Wilmington, Illinois.
The General
Scheduled Pay Scale in this area for a GS-05 starts around $16.75 per hour
If you are
Interested in this Position: I am certain you
will find a refreshing approach to leadership in natural resource management.
If you are looking for an opportunity to do ground-breaking, nationally
recognized work please respond to this outreach using the following method:
Please respond by using the Web-based Response Form located at:
1) Once at the site find you should see the title “Current and Upcoming
Forest Service Jobs Opportunities”
2) Under that title locate a subsection titled “Duty Station Search”
3) Under that title locate the words that say “Within City, State” then
Click on the circle to the left of that statement
4) A box will appear to the right of the Within City, State statement
you selected
5) Then in that box type in Wilmington, IL
6) Then find the “Perform Search” tab in the bottom left “Current
and Upcoming Forest Service Jobs Opportunities” and click on it.
7) The link to the outreach notice will appear below that tab
8) Click on the link that says “VSTR SRVCS INFO ASST” (Grade 05) and the information
requested will be presented to you
9) Then Click on the “Respond” tab at the bottom right and
provide the information requested
10)
NOTE be sure to Click on the “Submit Response” tab when you are
done with entering your information
*NOTE: By doing this you are only showing that you
are interested in the position. This
DOES NOT COUNT AS APPLYING for the position.
We will forward you the usajobs.gov link to apply for the position.
For additional
information:
Summary of Position
Duties:
Assists
in developing specific objectives for interpretive programs and displays,
providing input to the annual plan of work.
Inventories and prepares reports on the annual volumes of use, trends in
public information needs, and public response to existing information output. Makes regular visits to the various public
schools and social groups. Makes
presentations on subjects such as fire safety, environmental awareness,
recreation activities, and litter prevention.
Maintains inventory of existing publications for public use. Prepares or assists in the preparation of
informational exhibits which include photos, maps, etc. Maintains the Forest video, film, and slide
library and audio-visual equipment. Meets
visitors and independently replies, either verbally or in writing, to phone and
mail inquiries requesting general information about Forest Service activities,
programs, and policies. Responds to a
variety of questions covering all services that the forest/district may offer. Coordinates forest service presence with
local and community special events, including parades, holiday activities,
fairs, shows, and celebrations. Monitors
local newspapers for articles related to the Forest Service. Clips and routes articles to the appropriate
staffs. Responsible as the
forest/district collection officer for the sale of forest maps, passes and
product permits. Maintains accurate
records of sales to account for monies collected; prepares bill for
collections, and transfers funds in a timely and accurate manner to lockbox. May work with the public affairs staff to
develop informational publications, including information regarding the various
forest permits (firewood, Christmas trees, etc), special events, recreational
opportunities, travel management information.
May develop, revise and update recreation opportunity guides using the
latest technology to make information user friendly and timely.
Midewin National
Tallgrass Prairie Area
Midewin
National Tallgrass Prairie was established in 1996 as part of the peace time
conversion of the former Joliet Army Ammunition Plant and is administered by
the USDA Forest Service. It is also the
largest open space in the six-county Chicago metropolitan area. Midewin is
implementing its first Land and Resource Management Plan to accomplish the four
purposes outlined in the establishing legislation:
·
To
manage the land and water resources to conserve and enhance native populations
and habitats of fish, wildlife, and plants;
·
To
provide opportunities for scientific, environmental, and land use education and
research;
·
To
allow continued agricultural use under certain conditions; and
·
To
provide a variety of recreation opportunities.
Midewin
operates in an unusually integrated manner with a wide variety of
partners. It is the largest contiguous
open space, at approximately 19,000 acres in northeastern Illinois. Check out our website at http://www.fs.usda.gov/midewin
to gain an overview of what's current and planned at Midewin.
Midewin
is located 45 miles southwest of Chicago, the third largest metropolitan area
in the country; a rural atmosphere predominates throughout the small to
mid-sized farming communities that surround Midewin. There are numerous schools, hospitals,
doctors, churches, and communities to choose from and cultural opportunities
are nearly limitless.
Wilmington,
Illinois is a full service community with a population of 5,000 and is located
adjacent to the Kankakee River. Fishing
is quite popular along the Kankakee and throughout various other rivers and
small lakes that surround the area. The
climate in this area is defined by four distinct seasons. Summer temperatures can reach over the 90’s,
accompanied with, high humidity and heat index in the 100s or more. Spring and fall have average temperatures in
the 60’s and 70’s. Winter temperatures
will frequently dip below freezing and it is not unusual to see several inches
of snow covering the ground November through March.
The
Midewin headquarters is located along State Highway 53, two miles north of the
town of Wilmington, Illinois. Midewin team members live in many area
communities, ranging from the more urban Joliet, population 83,000, to smaller
communities tucked around the surrounding farm fields, like Essex, 500, or
nearby Elwood, 1,000 For more information on Wilmington, there is a community
website available at http://www.wilmington-il.com/ Many options for residing in
larger communities are available within an easy half hour commute. There is no
public transit available to the Midewin office. The closest Metra station
providing access to Chicago is in Joliet.
For
more information on Wilmington, there is a community website available at http://www.wilmington-il.com/ Many
options for residing in larger communities are available within an easy half
hour commute. There is no public transit
available to the Midewin office. The
closest Metra station providing access to Chicago is in Joliet.
Medical
facilities are plentiful, including easy access to nationally-recognized
institutions in Chicago. Cultural events
range from performances at the historic Rialto Square Theater in Joliet, to
playhouses at local universities, to a variety of festivals celebrating local
heritage, to the wide theater, restaurant, and museum options of Chicago.
That decision proved disastrous. According to one recent study, the Flint River water is naturally 19 times more corrosive than the Lake Huron water.
As recently as 2011 a study advised communities to employ anti-corrosive additives before using Flint River water. The State of Michigan could have had access to that study, but allegedly did not pursue it.
Unfortunately, Zeemering says, the vital public administration lessons that could be learned from Flint don’t capture the public interest or media attention as much as they should.
