The auditorium is filled with the chatter of young voices, echoing throughout the room. Conversation centers around the day’s plan and if the weather will cooperate. The noise fades as a woman approaches the podium, and all eyes turned to her.

“We are going to be learning about timber, fish and wildlife, understory, range and vegetation,” said Annie Schenkoske, her voice filling the chamber. She then looked down at each of the young people seated in front of her. “And I’m going to be right there learning with you.”

Schenkoske is the center director of the Blackwell Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center in Laona, Wisconsin, and the first to pilot the Civilian Conservation Centers, also known as CCCs, new conservation education program.

Three Forest Service Job Corps CCCs, including the Blackwell CCC, have recently expanded efforts to enhance the environmental literacy of their student populations. By partnering with national forests and the Society of American Foresters, this collaboration provides students an engaging experience with the outdoors. Working together can enhance student learning and provide every Forest Service Job Corps student with the basic knowledge and awareness of the Forest Service mission and provide purposeful direction when exploring a career in conservation.

“All of us together came up with the curriculum for the program to give our students a real basic understanding of what conservation is and why its valuable and important,” said Schenkoske.

A Unique Role and a Unique Responsibility

The Forest Service Job Corps CCCs are unique among the Job Corps program. These centers focus on teaching conservation-based trades and sustaining the health, diversity and productivity of our nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. These centers are also inaugural members of the American Climate Corps.

Civilian Conservation Centers are the best locations to educate youth about conservation due to their rural setting and being in proximity of national forests and grasslands. Students that attend a CCC have amazing opportunities to spend time in nature and gain direct experience working on public lands, but designing and constructing a conservation education program has its challenges. Fortunately, the CCCs knew just who to reach out to.

Nancy Chapman, the program coordinator for the Job Corps National Office, and national lead for this initiative recognized that conservation education is a critical responsibility for enhancing the knowledge of underserved youth; not only to overcome barriers to access to public lands, but also to consider careers in the Forest Service and other public land management agencies. By partnering with the Society of American Foresters, who have deep connections to rural communities, she knew this program could connect Forest Service Job Corps students to consider careers in conservation that they were unaware of.

“The CCCs have an obligation inherent in their name to provide conservation education to all of our students,” said Chapman. “Partnering with Society of American Foresters and national forests and regions across the country allow us to leverage their vast experience in both education and conservation, and provide our students professional, consistent training nationally.”

Conservation Class is Outdoors

Civilian Conservation Centers provide workforce development training, serve their communities and expand access to the outdoors to underserved youth.

“This conservation education program addresses all three of those,” said Chapman. “We look forward to growing this program.” 

The curriculum consists of two days. On the first day, students spend their time outside at training stations learning about forestry, fish and wildlife, hydrology, understory and grazing, recreation and fire. The second day, students expand their awareness in service to public lands by working on restoration projects such as trail maintenance and removing non-native invasive species out in their local community.

Nicole Shutt, the district ecologist for the Eagle River-Florence District on the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, was one of the visiting professionals from the Forest Service who assisted students with their questions.

“One of the things that they learned is all the various career fields and jobs that are out there in conservation and the Forest Service,” said Shutt. “Which I think was kind of a revelation for a lot of the students.”

At the various stations, students browsed career cards that listed potential occupational areas they could consider for future employment. The cards informed students about the big picture perspective into how everything ties into an overall land management project like the one they did out in the community.

“They had career cards, and they were asking about those,” said Shutt. “The students had a lot of energy, a lot of questions, it was really fun watching them discover things.”

Providing the students direct experience with the outdoors allows them to build a strong foundation for environmental literacy and see a measurable impact on the landscape. Many students that attend Job Corps have had minimal interaction with nature, and for some, this experience may have been their first.

One person who observed this directly was Meryl Harrell, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Undersecretary for Natural Resources and Environment, who helped pull the invasive plant Scotch Broom with students at the Siltcoos Area, Oregon. Harrell recalled a time when she personally felt the spark of learning about conservation and how Job Corps is delivering that to the next generation.

“There’s so many interesting things to learn, so to just see that spark and pass that along is just really exciting,” said Harrell. “Everyone’s cheering each other on, I’ve observed that folks are just glad to be outside. I think there’s really something about being in the outdoors and breathing fresh air, being under these amazing trees, I see others feeling that too.”

Nature Impacts Everyone

Nature impacts everyone. Environmental challenges transcend cultural, social, economic and political boundaries. To address these challenges, conservation education helps Forest Service Job Corps students appreciate the country’s natural resources and conserve them for future generations. The Forest Service wants to provide Job Corps graduates a clear path to pursue careers in conservation, with some even previously rising through the ranks of the agency.

“I think the USDA is so lucky and proud to have the Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers,” said Harrell. “It’s also really fantastic to see people who have graduated from Job Corps centers then having leading roles within the Forest Service.”

Providing Job Corps students the basic knowledge of the Forest Service mission allows them to learn about caring for the land and serving people, but also break barriers by giving students an accessible means to the outdoors.

Matthew Powell, a masonry trade and fire student at the Blackwell CCC, felt that the best part for him was the hands-on learning that got him out of the classroom.

“I’m more of a hands-on guy,” said Powell. “So, getting to walk through the forest and see all the different types of plants and what plants you know can kill other plants, that interested me.”

Students like Powell also get a chance to enhance their environmental perspective, because students from Job Corps come from a variety of different backgrounds. For Powell, even getting to be in a national forest was eye-opening.

“I’m from Nebraska,” said Powell. “We don’t have forests like that down there.”

Gavin Dalle Ave, a carpentry trade student at Blackwell CCC, is another student who felt being directly involved in nature provides a more meaningful learning experience.

“I love to be there working hands-on,” said Dalle Ave. “Not just sitting down and listening.”

Dalle Ave felt he gained a new perspective over the two days and that other Job Corps students should take advantage of the experience when the conservation education program arrives on their center.

“Don’t knock it till you try it,” said Dalle Ave. “Because if you haven’t tried it, you may never know.”

Students arriving at Forest Service Job Corps each bring their own unique motivations for joining the program. Some students find that being out in nature is what made them consider careers in conservation in the first place. Sir Falls, a maintenance trade student at Weber Basin CCC, is one of those students.

“I came to Job Corps because I thought forestry looked cool,” said Falls. “It’s at your own pace, literally. Opportunities like these, where you can get off campus, and do things—that, I’m interested in.”

Carrying on to the Next Generation

Since 1905, the Forest Service has recognized a role and responsibility to educate young people about management and conservation of our nation’s forests and grasslands. The Forest Service Job Corps is taking on that responsibility to the next generation.

“Since I was a kid, I just liked being outside in nature,” said Falls. “So, I want to be here, to try to help.”

Each year the Forest Service educates on average 5 million-plus people about the various conservation programs that teach people about natural resource management. The Forest Service wants to give Job Corps students the best tools to make educated choices and take action to sustain cultural and natural resources and explore their careers for the future.

“I plan to finish my maintenance trade, graduate from Job Corps, and then put all my energy into forestry and learn everything I can,” said Falls. “I think I want to have a career in the Forest Service.”