Youth Conservation Corps Lead Member Eldorado National Forest

YCC Crew Leader

Summary: American Conservation Experience a nonprofit Conservation Corps in partnership with the Eldorado National Forest is seeking one Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) Crew Leader.

The Crew Leaders will work on a variety of restoration projects including wilderness trail campsite restoration fuels reduction invasive species removal recreation site maintenance archeological surveys leadership and job readiness skills.

Start Date: June 1st 2026

End Date: August 7th 2026

Location: Placerville CA - Eldorado Supervisors Office

The Eldorado National Forest is located in the central Sierra Nevada region within California and encompasses a total of 798279 acres which includes 193027 acres of private ownership.

The Eldorado National Forest is bordered on the north by the Tahoe National Forest on the east by the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and the Humboldt-Toiyabe and to the south by the Stanislaus National Forest. The Eldorado is within 3 - 4 hours of the San Francisco Bay Area and about 1 - 1 1/2 hours from Sacramento. It ranges in elevation from 1000 feet in the foothills to more than 10000 feet above sea level along the Sierra crest. The mountainous topography is broken by the steep canyons of the Mokelumne Cosumnes American and Rubicon rivers. Plateaus of generally moderate relief are located between these steep canyons.

The forest is also home to 297 lakes and reservoirs (including both public and private acreage) which total 11994 surface acres. 11 large reservoirs account for 9000 acres. The rest are mostly small high mountain lakes. Both the rivers and lakes provide excellent fishing opportunities. The Eldorado National Forest provides diverse recreational opportunities to the public. The Forest offers every visitor the chance to enjoy nature and be addition to two popular wilderness areas (Desolation Wilderness and Mokelumne Wilderness) the forest offers more than 70-day use and overnight developed recreation facilities across the forest for the individual families and groups.

Position Overview

• Leading a crew of six YCC crew members
• Work on a variety of restoration projects including wilderness trail campsite restoration fuels reduction invasive species removal recreation site maintenance archeological surveys leadership and job readiness skills
• Contributing as a team member on all assigned projects
• Required to properly and effectively complete assigned projects
• Responsible for civil treatment of team members and safety of oneself and others
• Responsible to on-site projects leaders and lining out the crew on work assignments
• Responsible for understanding how to motivate individual personalities and how to work with youth
• Must perform as a role model and be able to communicate orally and in writing
• Provides advice and counsel to enrollees in work related problems
• Promotes environmental literacy and facilitates personal and professional development for enrollees.
• Resolves complaints and refers disciplinary problems to the next level supervisor
• Responsible for safely driving enrollees to a variety of daily work locations using government vehicles. Drives often include long distances windy mountain roads and some unpaved forest roads.

This individual placement is meant to facilitate professional development and promotes exposure to land management agencies and networking with professionals. This could include gaining experience in different conservation fields and shadowing different work groups.

Position Benefits

Living Allowance: The ACE Member is expected to contribute 40 hours/week and will receive a living allowance of $880/week to offset the costs of food and incidental expenses dispersed bi-weekly.

Housing: USFS shared housing may be an option depending on room availability. If USFS housing is not available the member will be responsible for finding their own housing. A housing reimbursement up to $100/week is available to help offset the cost of housing.

Travel Assistance: A reimbursable $500 allotment is available for costs related to relocating to the required project location

Public Land Corps Hiring Authority: Members serving under this agreement may be eligible for a federal hiring authority upon completion of their term of service and 640 hours of service. If the duration of a PLC-eligible term is not long enough for Members to accrue 640 hours of service (16 weeks) the total hours served at the completion of the term may be eligible to be combined with hours accrued from another PLC-eligible term to meet the 640 hours requirement. PLC projects also include specific eligibility requirements such as age (You must be between the ages of 16 and 30. Some agencies also interpret these guidelines to include veterans up to age 35) and citizenship. Please contact ACE staff with questions about eligibility or view general eligibility information on our website.

Qualifications

Required:

• Members must be US citizen or Permanent Resident as required to comply with U.S. government contracts
• Willing and able to represent ACE and the partner organization in a professional positive and enthusiastic manner.
• Ability to be both self-directed/work alone and be a positive contributing member of a group.
• A valid drivers license and an insurable driving record (documentation to be provided upon request).
• A valid drivers license and an insurable driving record (documentation to be provided upon request). Members must be 21 to drive due to ACEs insurance and liability requirements.
• Willing to undergo and must pass required criminal history checks.
• Ability to perform the essential duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodation.

Preferred Skills:

• Leadership skills and experience
• Members must have a high fitness level and be comfortable in various indoor and outdoor work environments and at times adverse weather conditions
• Must have strong communication skills
• Must be able to work alone and in small groups with minimal supervision and adhere to instructions procedure and use initiative in carrying out recurring assignments independently
• Competitive applicants for this position can hold or be pursuing a minimum of a bachelors degree and/or have relevant field experience working in a Recreation or Natural Resource Management capacity and/or youth development capacity.

To Apply: Please submit your resume a cover letter demonstrating your interest and experience and contact information for three professional/academic references to ACEs online application page for this position on our website. Early consideration will be given as resumes are received. This position may close at any time. If you have any questions regarding this position please feel free to contact ACE EPIC Associate Director Jack Hall at

If you meet at least 70 percent of the qualifications we want to hear from you!

ACE participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information when you are enrolled in a program to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.

EEO: Employment or Service with ACE is based upon ability qualifications attitude and job-related factors. Every qualified employee member or applicant has the same opportunity for recruitment hire training transfer promotion compensation demotion termination benefits employee activities and general treatment without regard to race color religion age sex creed national origin pregnancy ancestry citizenship status genetic information veteran or military status physical or mental disability sexual orientation medical condition marital or parental status political affiliation ethnicity hair texture or style arrest record caste hereditary status endogamy or any other classification protected by applicable local state or federal law.