Sara Eckard Email & Phone Number

Eureka, California, United States

Harrisonburg, Virginia

Working in the North Zone of George Washington and Jefferson National Forests as a Forestry Aid in Fire Suppression. This includes work with and operation of Type 6 Engines as well as Initial Attack Hand Crew. Primary work involves preparation and execution of prescribed burns.

Prescott, Arizona

Occupies the Spruce Mountain Lookout Tower in Prescott National Forest to watch for potential fire starts. This requires vigilant focus and observation, excellent map reading skills, and extensive knowledge of the area’s terrain. This position also requires clear and concise radio operations as well the ability to use various weather measurement tools to take daily weather observations.

Vicksburg, Mississippi

AmeriCorps NCCC is a National Service Organization, committed to developing leaders and strengthening communities through team based service. Based out of Vicksburg, MS in the Southern Region, the Units Support Team Leaders (USTL) complete a majority of their service supporting the Units Department and are the primary point of contact for a unit of seven AmeriCorps NCCC teams out in the field. They manage team locations, synthesize weekly work data, and track member engagement. They assist the Unit Leader with tasks as seen fit. Unit Leaders may also deploy USTLs to the field to support struggling teams or to lead specialty project teams. Sara led a Wildland Fire Suppression specialty project team of 12 individuals at the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests, where all members became Type 2 Wildland Firefighters and executed 5 prescribed burns as well as worked to suppress the Gate Mountain Wildfire. Duties as Team Leader were the same as a Field Team Leader, listed below.Units Support Team Leaders will also work with the Operations, Programs, and Community Relations departments as needed to assist in running and completing large projects. Operations projects included supply drop off for Disaster Services. Programs projects included writing and leading trainings during Team Leader Training, Corps Training Institute, and Disaster Specialty Team Training. Work in Community Relations involved attending long distance recruitment events such as Grambling State University, University of Louisiana, and Ole Miss. The USTL is also integral in planning and executing the Life After AmeriCorps all day career fair for all AmeriCorps NCCC Southern Region Members.

Vicksburg, Mississippi

AmeriCorps NCCC is a National Service Organization, committed to developing leaders and strengthening communities through team based service. Based out of Vicksburg, MS, this residential service program consists of multiple 6-8 week projects throughout the 10 month service term in locations all over the Southeastern United States. During this service term, significant time was spent responding to the historic flooding of the Baton Rouge, LA area in August 2016. Three of the nine months of in the field service were dedicated to immediate response and long term recovery with the American Red Cross (ARC), AmeriCorps Disaster Response Teams (A-DRT), and the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR). Other notable projects included work with the University of Memphis-Meeman Biological Station on a field/ forest edge restoration and invasive species removal project and Cape Lookout National Seashore on their educational and directional sign repair project in response to Hurricane Matthew. The Team Leader duties involved supervising a team of nine Corps Members on seven total projects, located in four states, running project logistics, and working as the project execution manager. The Team Leader is the primary liaison between project sponsors, the team, and supervisory staff at the AmeriCorps campus in Vicksburg, MS. Other responsibilities included managing the team food and supplies budgets totaling over $15,000, organizing transportation, creating and enforcing safety plans and procedures, overseeing AmeriCorps policies and administering disciplinary actions for violations, and weekly documentation of work accomplished and volunteer hours completed for all members of the team. In addition to the aforementioned cash funds, the Team Leader was responsible for the management of $50,000 worth of United States Government vehicles and tools.

Frederick, Maryland

Tutored 100 and 200-level biology students. Duties included helping students work through difficult concepts, advising students on proper lab report structure, and preparing students for exams.

Frederick, Maryland

Supervised the Teleteam Admissions Call Team.Call team tasks included making calls to prospective students in regards to upcoming admissions events, completing applications, and completing financial aid applications. Assisted prospective students in reaching admissions counselors or other offices at Hood College that could better answer their concerns. Supervisor duties included managing calling projects and answering questions related to them, tallying phone calls per hour for all callers, and ensuring that enough calls were being made by each worker.

Frederick, Maryland

Lead bacterial monitoring project contracted from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Monitored six recreational waterways for their bacterial content and levels. Other intern duties included various water quality analysis, temperature monitoring of local streams contracted from the US Geological Survey, conducting geomorphometry stream surveys, fish husbandry,and GIS field site mapping.Data gathered from the summer's research were presented as a poster at the Maryland Water Monitoring Council's 2015 conference