Internship in Recreation Resource Management
Stephen Jones Memorial Internship
Trail Monitoring in Moab/Monticello/Blanding
Description
Stephen Jones was a visionary endurance athlete, father, and husband and loved the outdoors. Professionally, he was a self-taught and masterful software engineer. Stephen was tragically killed in an avalanche in February 2016. At the time of his death, he was enthusiastically promoting 200-mile trail races to push the envelope of what is possible in the realm of human endurance. To honor Stephen’s legacy, his friend Candice Burt, through her company Destination Trail, LLC, founded the inaugural Moab 200. This 238-mile endurance run was originally the brainchild of Stephen. Destination Trail, LLC, along with Stephen’s family, is initiating this internship scholarship in Stephen’s memory to promote and encourage Recreation Resources Management students at Utah State University. The purpose of the internship scholarship is to support future recreation managers on public lands and parks in Utah and the United States by providing meaningful internship opportunities with agencies and non-governmental organizations that will enhance their academic and professional careers.
The goal of the summer internship is to give undergraduate or graduate students an opportunity to gain hands on experience supporting and maintaining a trail use monitoring program in southeastern Utah. The intern will work closely with staff within the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University and the Bureau of Land Management, learning research design, data collection, and data analysis skills related to trail use in remote locations. The intern will directly learn about the policies and management efforts that support outdoor recreation opportunities on public lands and be exposed to the many different types of job opportunities related to outdoor recreation management in the Bureau of Land Management.
Major Duties
- Establishing and maintaining an array of trail counters and cameras.
- Inventorying and assessing trail conditions using GPS-based monitoring equipment.
- Analysis and interpretation of trail use and condition data.
- Developing a research presentation and/or poster to be shared at the iconic Moab 240 trail race.
- Assisting with the permitting and monitoring of special uses on Bureau of Land Management Lands throughout southeastern Utah.
- Assisting with outdoor recreation management and maintenance needs on Bureau of Land Management lands, as needed.
Qualifications
- Applicants must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student at USU’s Quinney College of Natural Resources (QCNR).
- Must have a valid U.S. driver's license and transportation.
- Level of Physical Demand: The work will require some physical exertion such as hiking with a heavy backpack, walking over rough, uneven, or rocky surfaces; recurring bending, crouching, stooping, stretching, reaching, or similar activities; or recurring lifting of moderately heavy items.
Benefits/Description:
- Approximate Start/End Date: May 6/August 16
- $20 an hour, 25 hours a week for 15 weeks.
- Housing: No
- Location: Moab, Monticello, or Blanding, Utah
- Supervisor: Jordan W. Smith, Ph.D.
Stephen Jones was a visionary endurance athlete, father, and husband and loved the outdoors. Professionally, he was a self-taught and masterful software engineer. Stephen was tragically killed in an avalanche in February 2016. At the time of his death, he was enthusiastically promoting 200-mile trail races to push the envelope of what is possible in the realm of human endurance. To honor Stephen’s legacy, his friend Candice Burt, through her company Destination Trail, LLC, founded the inaugural Moab 200. This 238-mile endurance run was originally the brainchild of Stephen. Destination Trail, LLC, along with Stephen’s family, is initiating this internship scholarship in Stephen’s memory to promote and encourage Recreation Resources Management students at Utah State University. The purpose of the internship scholarship is to support future recreation managers on public lands and parks in Utah and the United States by providing meaningful internship opportunities with agencies and non-governmental organizations that will enhance their academic and professional careers.
The goal of the summer internship is to give undergraduate or graduate students an opportunity to gain hands on experience supporting and maintaining a trail use monitoring program in southeastern Utah. The intern will work closely with staff within the Institute of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism at Utah State University and the Bureau of Land Management, learning research design, data collection, and data analysis skills related to trail use in remote locations. The intern will directly learn about the policies and management efforts that support outdoor recreation opportunities on public lands and be exposed to the many different types of job opportunities related to outdoor recreation management in the Bureau of Land Management.
Major Duties
- Establishing and maintaining an array of trail counters and cameras.
- Inventorying and assessing trail conditions using GPS-based monitoring equipment.
- Analysis and interpretation of trail use and condition data.
- Developing a research presentation and/or poster to be shared at the iconic Moab 240 trail race.
- Assisting with the permitting and monitoring of special uses on Bureau of Land Management Lands throughout southeastern Utah.
- Assisting with outdoor recreation management and maintenance needs on Bureau of Land Management lands, as needed.
Qualifications
- Applicants must be currently enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student at USU’s Quinney College of Natural Resources (QCNR).
- Must have a valid U.S. driver's license and transportation.
- Level of Physical Demand: The work will require some physical exertion such as hiking with a heavy backpack, walking over rough, uneven, or rocky surfaces; recurring bending, crouching, stooping, stretching, reaching, or similar activities; or recurring lifting of moderately heavy items.
Benefits/Description:
- Approximate Start/End Date: May 6/August 16
- $20 an hour, 25 hours a week for 15 weeks.
- Housing: No
- Location: Moab, Monticello, or Blanding, Utah
- Supervisor: Jordan W. Smith, Ph.D.
Apply to the QCNR summer internship program here
Application Deadline: March 31, 2024