Mosaics Internship: Night Skies Assistant - ONSITE - Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park

Start/End Dates: May 20th, 2024 - October 6th, 2024

Compensation: $640 per week

Application Due: Open until filled

Mosaics in Science seeks to engage ethnically and racially diverse young professionals in natural resource careers. 

MIS Intern 

• U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident (“green-card-holder”).
• Between the ages of 18 and 30 years old. Veterans may be up to 35 years old.
• Selected applicants must meet the qualifications for the position, and be able to pass a federal background check.

* A personal vehicle is REQUIRED for this position.

Position Description: 

The intern will assist with the development, training, and implementation of Dark Sky programming at the Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park. As a certified Dark Sky Park, LYJO has the equipment and audience ready for highly successful dark sky programs, and the incumbent in this position will provide the expert knowledge and skills needed by the interpretive staff to engage the visiting public. This internship will be composed of three phases:

Phase one: The intern will work closely with their supervisor to explore the possible programmatic opportunities in 2024 and beyond by developing a comprehensive Night Sky Interpretive Program Plan. This will expose the incumbent to the important planning process and solidify their understanding of the staff capacity for programs. This phase will then shift to developing the programs using sustainable documentation that meets the NPS standards for interpretation and leveraging their knowledge of the subject. As the on-site Subject Matter Expert, the incumbent will be expected to research additional astronomical information, familiarize themselves with emerging practices for astronomic exploration, and develop an expert understanding of how to use the equipment and technology that the park owns, which includes Dobsonian, solar, and Celestron telescopes.

Phase two: Phase two: The intern will leverage their expert knowledge on the technology and content to develop a training program for the LYJO interpretive staff on using the astronomy technology. This training program will be developed under close supervision by their supervisor, who will remain available for support as much as is needed. After the training program is developed, it will be implemented for all interested staff, and mandated for all LYJO interpretive staff.

Phase three: The intern will finish off their time at LYJO by implementing the programs alongside LYJO interpretive staff, kicking off the Night Sky Interpretive Program Plan. They will demonstrate the technology and assist LYJO interpretive staff in continuing to develop understanding and ownership of the technology and technical information. Additionally, LYJO staff will work closely with interested Astronomy clubs and communities in the Texas Hill Country and the Austin metropolitan area. The intern will be an advocate and use the programs as a way of encouraging visitors to participate in the protection and preservation of dark skies as a natural resource for everyone to enjoy.

This position will also be shared with the sister park, WACO. As an urban park, WACO has the unique opportunity to reach a broader audience of local community members. The time at WACO will be a consolidated and truncated form of the above work schedule, with a more focused intent on training the Waco City Parks and Recreation staff on the technical components involved. This will help further the partnership between the NPS and the partners at WACO.

Responsibilities:

• The annual Night Sky Interpretive Program Plan
• Development of a Body of Knowledge for future interpretive staff to use to help create their own Night Sky programs, such as;
•  List of books/literature to read.
•  Training that can be attended or viewed online.
• Manuals for equipment and where to find them.
• Night Sky Training Program and relevant SOPs for equipment use.
• A unique Night Sky interpretive program plan that the intern will develop with guidance from their supervisor.

Qualifications:

• Desired candidates will be those who are comfortable working in diverse environments, communicating with different team members. 
• Capable of working in teams or alone, depending on project needs as priorities shift from time to time. 
• Have working knowledge of astronomy technology, astronomy technical knowledge.
• Capable of conveying this information in simple and accessible language.

Public Land Corps Non-Competitive Hiring Authority (PLC)
The Public Land Corps Non-Competitive Hiring Authority is a special hiring authority available to qualifying interns. The intern must be between the ages of 18 and 30 years old, inclusive, or a veteran up to age 35 and complete 640 hours of work on an appropriate conservation project to be eligible for this hiring authority. Upon successful completion of the PLC project(s), the intern is eligible for two years to be hired non-competitively into a federal seasonal, term, or permanent position. The applicant must apply to a PLC-eligible position advertised on USAJobs.gov and selected off a non-competitive certificate of eligibility. For more information, see DOI Personnel Bulletins 11-02 , 12-13, and 17-03.

EEO Statement

Environment for the Americas provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employmentand prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.