NCBO/CRC Environmental Literacy Internship—Climate Change Curriculum
Project Description:
The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office (NCBO) and Chesapeake Research Consortium (CRC) seek a summer intern for late May through mid-August 2022 (approximately 12 weeks) to assist our Environmental Literacy and Partnerships branch, which encourages and supports efforts in K-12 education to develop and implement comprehensive environmental literacy programs. NCBO supports environmental literacy programming in the Chesapeake by supporting regional environmental literacy policy initiatives, education resource development, grantmaking, and professional learning programming. The selected intern will support two aspects of NCBO environmental literacy work: the identification and analysis of high-quality interdisciplinary climate change education curriculum and support of in-person and virtual professional development programming.
Climate change is a powerful interdisciplinary learning opportunity, but the landscape of high-quality and science-based curricula available is not well understood. The primary focus of this internship is to assess best practices in climate curriculum design and to identify and evaluate examples of existing or planned climate-change–focused curricula. The selected intern will also support the planning and implementation of the 2023 Mid-Atlantic Climate Change Education (MACCE) Conference and provide support for existing MACCE Action teams.
The intern will, as time and capacity allow, support summer Environmental Science Training Center (ESTC)programming, including educator professional development workshops that provide support for the implementation of environmental literacy and climate change programming in K-12 education.
Opportunities: In this position, the intern will work side by side with professionals at the forefront of environmental literacy policy and program development. The intern will develop and hone research, data analysis, and database skills and there is potential for developing expertise with content management systems while supporting revisions and updates to the Bay Backpack website. While supporting ESTC programming, the intern will develop skills useful in communicating, learning, and working with large and diverse audiences. They will have the opportunity to strengthen planning and public speaking/presentation skills throughout the summer workshops. The intern will work both independently and as part of a team to create practical tools and engaging programming in support of regional environmental literacy efforts. The internship also provides the opportunity to fine-tune skills for data organization, analysis, synthesis, and interpretation.
Deliverables:
- Through research, interviews, and professional outreach, develop a catalog of climate curriculum and high-quality standards-aligned lessons
- Develop evaluation criteria and conduct an analysis of climate curricula and lessons; produce a synthesis report based on findings
- Develop a resource for educators, using the Environmental Literacy Model (ELM) format, that can serve as an example for how to connect education for climate action to the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience
- Serve as an active team member supporting the planning and implementation of summer teacher professional development workshops by developing learning activities, facilitating workshop components, and helping with workshop logistics (both in-person and virtual)
- Presentation to NCBO staff at the conclusion of the internship summarizing work conducted
Requirements:
- Strong writing and communications skills
- Strong independent research skills
- Experience developing, working with, and synthesizing complex information
- Familiarity with data management and Google spreadsheets
- Experience (work or study) in environmental science or education
- Interested in climate, sustainability, or education related careers
- Motivated self-starter with the ability to work proactively and reason independently, consistently share progress updates, and recommend or inquire about next steps toward project completion
- The ability to work well with others and incorporate feedback into work products.
- Experience using Google documents and web-based communication tools is desired
- Must be a college-level student entering sophomore, junior, or senior year of undergraduate study
- Must be a U.S. citizen and willing to undergo a security background check
Work Location and Duration:
This position can be a hybrid (combination of virtual and in-person) or wholly in-person opportunity. The in-person aspects of this opportunity will be in support of in-person, placed-based programming. If in-person, this position will be based out of the NOAA Environmental Science Training Center in Oxford, Maryland. The format of the internship is subject to the preferences of the selected intern.
The position will begin in mid-May and conclude in mid-August and will be in place for 12 weeks. We plan on providing interns with access to a NOAA computer, email and phone services (in the office). If the internship is hybrid/virtual, interns will need to have access to a suitable internet, computer and communication resources.
Compensation: The intern will be reimbursed at the end of each month, for a total of up to $6,000 ($500/week) for the equivalent of 12 (in-person) or 10 (virtual) weeks of full-time activities (400–480 hours). Funds are available to compensate interns for occasional work-related travel. Candidates should expect to follow a normal weekday work schedule (roughly 9-5, Monday-Friday) with occasional variations for possible field work or other activities. No benefits are provided. We offer assistance in arranging local housing if the position is an in-person opportunity.
Diversity and Inclusion:
The NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office is committed to supporting a diverse and inclusive science oriented workforce. Our internship program endeavors to recruit from a diverse, qualified group of potential applicants to secure a high-performing workforce drawn from all segments of American society. NOAA is strongly supportive of broadening the participation of historically black colleges and universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, tribal colleges and universities, and institutions that work in underserved areas. We highly encourage applications from students at any of the above institutions as well as students that identify as a member of underrepresented and underserved groups in science, including students who identify as people of color, women, American Indian or Alaska Native, persons with disabilities, members of the LGBTQAI+ community, persons from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and first-generation college students.
Application Instructions: Applicants are instructed to register with the Chesapeake Jobs online application website: https://chesapeake.org/ncbo/ to apply. You will be instructed to submit a resume and cover letter, along with three references. The deadline for applications is February 20, 2023.