There is an internship and 2 Americorps positions this coming summer with the DeKalb County Forest Preserve District. We would love to have NIU students fill these positions. We currently have 2 NIU alum on staff, Damon Lubkeman and Cole Heyden, who were summer interns for us and are now full time employees. Feel free to share the attached job description and have any interested students e-mail me. We will be setting up interviews for April.
The Americorps positions are coordinated by Ann at Severson Dells. At this point the positions haven't been posted but students in that program receive a stipend and student loan waivers for 500 hours of work starting in May and going into August. We have also arranged for our Americorps volunteers to be housed at New Hall if needed. Housing would be a benefit the Forest Preserve would pay for. The duties for this position are essentially the same as the internship.
2023 Student Intern Opportunities in Restoration Ecology
DeKalb County Forest Preserve District
The DeKalb County Forest Preserve District carries out a broad range of ecological restoration activities related to our core mission: “preserve, protect and restore the flora, fauna and natural beauties of our lands, as near as may be, in their natural state and condition, for the education and recreation of our citizens”. This position will be from approx. mid-May to mid-August. Wage rate is $14.00/hour.
Primary duties and activities:
Invasive species control, including spraying (back-pack or vehicle mounted) or wicking herbicides, weed-eater operation, mowing, and hand-pulling.
Native plant community restoration and reconstruction, including propagation, planting, seeding, watering, weeding, barrier construction and predation control.
Seed collection, and assisting volunteers during seed collection activities.
Inventory and assessment activities including plant and animal identification, data collection, mapping and report preparation.
Assist with monitoring and inventory of rare or endangered species. This may include the use of telemetry and GIS equipment, and frequent wading in steams, marshes or ponds.
Maintain a daily log, including activities and, as directed by the supervisor, species lists. The log will be reviewed periodically by the Natural Resources Manager.
Other tasks. Occasionally, interns will assist staff with other related tasks.
Requirements:
College student or recent graduate with education or background in biological sciences, forestry, ecology, botany, horticulture, environmental sciences or similar disciplines.
Ability to carry out physically demanding tasks on a routine basis, while tolerating exposure to heat, humidity, insects, poison plants, and allergens. In other words, working outdoors in native plant communities in Northern Illinois during the summer, all day long.
Obtain an Illinois Pesticide Operator’s License through the Illinois Dept. of Agriculture. This must be obtained as soon as possible after work begins, preferably before.
Valid Driver’s license.
Applicants should submit a resume and contact information for two references by May 5th, 2022 to:
DeKalb County Forest Preserve District
200 N. Main Street
Sycamore IL 6017 thannan@dekalbcounty.org (815) 895-7191
