Fall marks the end and beginning of the Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership term of service. Consequently, last month included a number of changes as we welcomed and said goodbye to the fantastic individuals who choose to dedicate a year of their lives to volunteer service in the Sierra Nevada.
We said a fond farewell in September to Karen Atkins, who spent a total of two years of full-time service with The Sierra Fund, first as our AmeriCorps Research Assistant starting in 2013 and then our AmeriCorps Environmental Scientist starting in 2014. Karen put in countless hours on our Science Program’s work at Malakoff Diggins and Combie Reservior. She began her Ph.D. work this fall at UC Davis, and we look forward to following her career through her dissertation and beyond.
We’re thrilled that AmeriCorps Outreach Coordinator Kelsey Westfall, after completing one year of service at The Sierra Fund starting in 2014, has agreed to return for a second term. Kelsey’s love of people and enthusiasm for outreach power our health education program and launched our first-ever Post-It Day. We’re looking forward to another great year for this program in 2015-16.
Finally, we’re excited to welcome the newest member of The Sierra Fund’s team, AmeriCorps Research Assistant Alec Arditti. Alec grew up in New Jersey, got his Bachelor’s in Environmental Science from the University of Maryland, and most recently completed stints with the Park Service in California, studying forest fire dynamics in Yosemite and conducting watershed monitoring at Golden Gate Recreation Area. Click here to read Alec’s full bio, and learn why we’re so pleased that he is joining us for a year of service at TSF.
We are grateful to the Sierra Nevada Alliance, which hosts the Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership, for providing this fantastic program that matches 28 individuals with host organizations across the Sierra.
