Youth Conservation Corps hiring 15- to 18-year-olds
Central Oregon Youth Conservation Corps is now open to 15-year-olds! This is a great opportunity for youth ages 15 to 18 years old to gain job skills and learn more about natural resources, while improving public lands and reducing the threat of wildfires in our community.
Nearly 100 local youth will be selected for this competitive summer program and earn $10.75 an hour, working 36 hours a week. Hands-on projects in Central Oregon’s beautiful forests and high deserts include building trails, maintaining fences, piling hazardous fuels, restoring campgrounds, and improving wildlife habitat on the Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests and the Crooked River National Grassland.
The program runs from June 25 th through August 16 th . Youth will work 9 hours a day Monday through Thursday. Youth crews meet daily in Bend, Redmond, Sisters, Prineville, La Pine, Crescent, Madras, and Warm Springs.
“This program is a really good way to get a foot in the door with all kinds of jobs that I didn’t even know existed,” said Kevin Perez, who now works for Wildland Fire and is a two-time graduate of Heart of Oregon’s COYCC summer program.
Heart of Oregon Corps operates the Central Oregon Youth Conservation Corps program in partnership with the US Forest Service and Central Oregon Intergovernmental Council.
Funding for the 2018 program secured thus far includes support and grant awards from the Deschutes National Forest, the Ochoco National Forest, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, Wells Fargo Bank, The Bill Healy Foundation, Oregon State Weed Board, The Gordon Elwood Foundation, The Autzen Foundation, and United Way of Deschutes County. State funding from the Oregon Youth Conservation Corps is currently pending.
Applications must be received by May 1st and are available online at www.heartoforegon.org. For more information, contact Summer Program Coordinator Yancy Wilkenfeldt at (541) 633-7834 or Forest Service YCC Coordinator Paul Smith at (541) 416-6431.
About Heart of Oregon Corps
Heart of Oregon Corps trains tomorrow’s workforce today. Heart of Oregon is a nonprofit organization invested in inspiring and empowering change in the lives of Central Oregon youth through jobs, education, and stewardship. Their programming creates pathways out of poverty while stimulating regional economic growth. Heart of Oregon’s “work-earn-learn” model invests in local young people, many of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds, to prepare them for the workforce and to encourage their self-sufficiency. Heart of Oregon Corps’ six regional programs hire, train, and serve 300 local youth each year. Youth can apply at www.heartoforegon.org
