Position Description: The Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve (Reserve) seeks a student to assist the Coastal Training Program (CTP) Coordinator with the development of a program needs assessment. The CTP Program Assistant will be responsible for the development of a detailed assessment that will be administered to program stakeholders and used to target future program delivery and scope. The Program Assistant will also help define the reach of the needs assessment and determine what methods for gathering information (survey, focus groups, interviews, literature reviews, or other) could be used to produce a complete assessment. The Program Assistant will establish the process for implementation of the needs assessment and may participate in portions of the implementation. Other tasks that the Program Assistant may complete include designing and populating a CTP resource database to complement the needs assessment, and assisting the CTP Coordinator with other elements of program development and delivery.
Program Context: The niche of the Coastal Training Program is facilitating coastal learning for a targeted audience of “decision-makers” that includes natural resource managers, community and land use planners, elected and appointed officials, municipal staff, environmental regulators, property developers, industry and commercial operators, consultant experts, and coastal researchers. The Coastal Training Program Coordinator builds coastal leadership within this western Lake Superior decision-maker community by providing skills training, technical expertise and collaborative learning opportunities that relate directly to coastal management.
Position details
The position term is from September 2019 through summer 2020 (end date flexible depending on completion of work). This position can accommodate an average of 10 hours per week, for up to 50 weeks, or a total of 500 hours. While a consistent schedule is preferred, there is some flexibility in the arrangement of a work schedule. Hours between the school semesters and the summers can vary. The pay rate for this position is $11 per hour. The Lake Superior National Estuarine Research Reserve is located at 14 Marina Drive on Barkers Island in Superior, WI. The Assistant will need to provide their own transportation to and from Barkers Island.
Desired qualifications:
- Strong familiarity with social research methods, including survey design.
- Experience managing, organizing and analyzing data.
- Some familiarity with the structure of agencies, organizations, and decision-maker roles that may influence local coastal systems. Strong verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability to work on multiple projects at once and prioritize tasks.
- Willingness to learn new skills.
- Ability to work effectively in a group or team.
- Proficient use of Office Program Suite – Access, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher.
Qualifications:
All interested students are encouraged to apply. Ideally, applicants will be students of at least sophomore status. This position is open to all majors but particularly oriented toward students pursuing a degree in:
- Social Sciences or Social Inquiry
- Political Science
- Sustainability Studies and/or Environment and Sustainability
- Geography and/or Urban and Regional Studies
- Environmental Science
- Communications
- Marketing
Preference will be given to applicants with experience in applied social research methods, independent data analysis, and/or analytical writing. The ability to communicate successfully with a professional audience, as well as an ability to work independently, are important to this position.
To Apply: Please email cover letter and resume to Karina Heim, Coastal Training Program Coordinator, at karina.heim@wisc.edu by May 31, 2019.
For more information visit our website at https://lakesuperiornerr.org/ or the website of the National Estuarine Research Reserves System at http://nerrs.noaa.gov/. For questions, please call the Lake Superior Reserve at 715-392-3141.
