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Community Volunteer Ambassador, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area – AmeriCorps

Stewards Individual Placement Program
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PLEASE NOTE: Applicants will need to apply here: https://form.jotform.com/StewardsIPP/cva-member-application-2026 Application form requires a resume, cover letter, professional references.

Position Title: Community Volunteer Ambassador, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area – AmeriCorps

Conservation Legacy Program: Stewards Individual Placements Program

Site Location: Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area

1978 River Road, Bushkill, PA 18324

 

Terms of Service:

  • Start Date: 2/23/2026
  • End Date: 2/5/2027
  • AmeriCorps Slot Classification: 1700 Hour Slot

 

Purpose:

Stewards Individual Placements, a program of Conservation Legacy, provides individuals with service and career opportunities to strengthen communities and preserve our natural resources. The Community Volunteer Ambassador (CVA) Program combines the strength of a national leader in conservation service with the National Park Service to train emerging leaders to assist park units in building lasting connections to communities.

In 2024, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area was the 20th most visited National Park Unit, consistently welcoming over 4 million visitors annually. The park consists of 70,000 acres, 30 miles of the Delaware River, over 100 miles of hiking trails, and the largest waterfalls in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. With such high visitation and limited staffing, visitor services and resource protection are at times stretched to capacity. Volunteers support the park and serve a multitude of roles including working at events, programs, demos, and front-line visitor services, maintaining trails, cataloging artifacts, and performing search and rescues.

The CVA will play a key role in strengthening and sustaining DEWA’s valued volunteer partner groups, which support the park through historic preservation, public tours, educational programming, research assistance, and museum curation. The CVA will collaborate closely with partner organizations to increase membership, enhance visibility, expand online presence, and support recruitment and outreach efforts—particularly among younger audiences.

In addition, the CVA will assess park needs to identify where volunteer engagement can expand capacity, develop creative strategies for new volunteer involvement, and coordinate with staff across all divisions to target areas that would benefit from additional support. The CVA will represent the park at community and partner events, providing outreach that promotes volunteer opportunities and strengthens public connections.

As a fully integrated member of the team, the CVA will contribute to park-wide planning, support special events and demonstrations, and receive tailored professional development. This includes mentorship, training aligned with personal career goals, opportunities to shadow staff in various divisions, and hands-on leadership experience working with volunteer groups.

 
Description of Duties:

·       The CVA’s responsibilities will include:

·       Supporting volunteer recruitment, event planning, and the logistical and operational setup of service-learning projects, events, and programs

·       Working with park partners and volunteers to digitally review and submit required documentation such as applications, service agreements, and position descriptions

·       Developing and leading trainings for volunteers and volunteer supervisors with the assistance of park staff

·       Highlighting the work of our partner volunteer groups through social media and parkwide newsletter

·       Creating a consistent, volunteer-focused social media posting schedule for park partners

·       Exploring ways to connect long-standing volunteer and partner groups with younger generations

·       Working with park staff and individual placements to plan and organize the annual volunteer appreciation dinner

·       Collaborating with neighboring NPS units, such as Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River and Steam town National Historic Site, for skills-based trainings and orientations

 


Qualifications:

  • An ideal candidate would value conscientiousness and consistently demonstrate
  • resourcefulness and adaptability.
  • Curiosity and a willingness to experiment are essential, as the position involves planned tasks and those that will evolve based on project needs, community engagement, and emerging opportunities.
  • Strong sense of responsibility and self-direction
  • Flexibility and openness to new experiences, including taking on unfamiliar tasks
  • Comfort with experimentation and creative problem-solving
  • Commitment to self-reflection, with a willingness to continue developing self-awareness
  • Genuine interest in learning, growth, and embracing new opportunities
  • United States citizen, United States national, or a lawful permanent resident alien
  • At least 17 years of age
  • Has received a high school diploma or equivalency certificate; or has not dropped out of elementary or secondary school to enroll as an AmeriCorps participant, and agrees to obtain a high school diploma or its equivalent prior to using the education award
  • Agrees to provide information to establish eligibility and to complete a National Service Criminal History Check.

Preferred Qualifications:

·       Because of the strong demand for programs in Spanish, fluency in Spanish would be outstanding.

·       A general background in the natural sciences would be helpful to support effective communication of resource-based concepts.

·       Fluency in Spanish

·       Public Speaking and Graphic Design Experience

·       Detail Oriented

·       Previous Volunteer Experiences

 

Our Commitment:

Conservation Legacy is committed to the full consideration of all qualified individuals and will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations to perform essential job functions. Physical requirements may include periodic overnight travel, non-traditional work hours, ability to move across varied terrain, use program-specific tools and a range of technology on an infrequent or frequent basis. Exerting up to 25 pounds of force occasionally to lift, carry, push, pull, or otherwise move objects. The ability to safely drive an organizational vehicle may also be required for some positions. If you need assistance and/or reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.  

 

Time Requirements:

  • Typically, this position is expected to serve 40 hours per week, but exact service schedules may vary. A half hour lunch break will not be counted towards AmeriCorps service
  • Member may be required to participate in national, state, or local service projects or events as part of their service term. 

 

Orientation and Training:

  • Member will receive an orientation that includes training on AmeriCorps prohibited and unallowable activities.
  • Week-long, in-person training on NPS volunteer program management and leadership skills
  • Year-long continuum of learning supporting professional development
  •  $750.00 in Professional Development Funds for travel and training

 

Additional Position and Community Information:

CVA will need a personal vehicle. EMS/SAR experience would be a bonus!

NPS housing is provided at no cost to the CVA.

 

 

Benefits:

  • Segal AmeriCorps Education Award of $7,395.00
  • Living Allowance of $600.00 per week.
  • Additional Benefit of $150.00 per week if housing is NOT provided by NPS host site at no cost to the participant.
  • Healthcare Coverage if Eligible
  • Childcare Coverage if Eligible
  • Loan forbearance if Eligible
  • Interest Payments if Eligible
  • 10 Federal Holidays, 13 days Personal Leave, 13 days Sick Leave

 

Evaluation and Reporting:

As an AmeriCorps member, performance will be evaluated on whether the member has completed the required number of hours, the member has satisfactorily completed assignments, and if the member has met other performance criteria that were clearly communicated at the beginning of the term of service.

Reporting requirements include, but are not limited to, bi-weekly timesheets and accomplishment tracking.

 

How to Apply
Please visit Community Volunteer Ambassador (cvainternships.org) to review “Member Positions” by region and find instructions on how to apply.

 

The CVA position will start on Monday, February 23, 2026 and run for 50 weeks until Friday, February 5, 2027.

 

PLEASE NOTE: Applicants will need to apply here: https://form.jotform.com/StewardsIPP/cva-member-application-2026

Application form requires a resume, cover letter, professional references.

 

Please ensure your cover letter addresses how your experience aligns with the CVA program, your experience working with different populations, and position details for this park/position. You may submit one application for multiple positions by selecting all sites you are interested in.

 

 

 

Application Timeline: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Final deadline is Friday, January 9, 2026.

 

 

For Application Questions:

Please contact James Gasaway, Program Director at jgasaway@conservationlegacy.org

 

 

Conservation Legacy is an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, age, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.  

We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. If you need assistance and/or reasonable accommodations due to a disability during the application or recruiting process, please send a request to the hiring manager.