Cultural Resources Intern (PLC) – ONSITE – Reconstruction National Historical Park

Start/End Dates: May 26, 2025 – August 9, 2025 (12 weeks)
Compensation: $688 per week
Medical Insurance: Not provided
Application Deadline: February 7, 2025

The Latino Heritage Internship Program seeks to engage ethnically and racially diverse young professionals in natural resource careers.

Eligibility Requirements:

• Must be a U.S. citizen or legal resident.
• A personal vehicle is required for this position.

Position Description: 

In 2024, the Reconstruction Era National Historical Park (REER) was contacted by a descendant of Elizabeth (Lizzie) Hyde Botume, a volunteer teacher for the Freedmen’s Aid Association who established a school in Port Royal, South Carolina. The family possessed a collection of artifacts belonging to Mrs. Botume, including journals, photographs, correspondence, elementary primers and readers, and a family Bible. In October 2024, the family decided to donate the collection to REER, establishing the Elizabeth Hyde Botume Collection.

This collection provides invaluable resources about Black education and the experiences of early Northern teachers during the Reconstruction era, directly tied to the park’s location. The Cultural Resources Intern selected for this position will collaborate with park historians to research the collection and develop a public-facing deliverable for the park’s use.

This project requires the intern to conduct intensive research on the collection’s artifacts and transcribe 19th-century handwritten documents. Deliverables include:

• A temporary exhibit for display at the park or a digital exhibit for the park’s website.
• A small article about the collection for the park’s website.

Tasks will include:

• Identifying people and places in historical photographs.
• Transcribing documents.
• Extracting key information from historical documents.
• Conducting historical and genealogical research on Elizabeth Hyde Botume.
• Creating a narrative to serve as the foundation for the exhibit and article.

Qualifications:  

• Candidates should have at least a bachelor’s degree or higher in history or a related field (e.g., anthropology, historic preservation, or museum studies).
• Must be able to read 19th-century cursive handwriting.
• Ability to independently conduct historical research.
• Academic writing skills to produce an accessible article that meets National Park Service (NPS) standards.
• Experience with exhibit building is a plus but not required.

Skills:

• Proficiency in reading cursive handwriting.
• Strong research skills.
• Excellent writing skills.
• Relevant degree in history or a related field.

Interns in this program will receive 480 hours toward Public Land Corps (PLC) Hiring Authority. See below for more information about PLC.

Public Land Corps Non-Competitive Hiring Authority (PLC)
The Public Land Corps Non-Competitive Hiring Authority is a special hiring authority available to qualifying interns. The intern must be between the ages of 18 and 30 years old, inclusive, or a veteran up to age 35 and complete 640 hours of work on an appropriate conservation project to be eligible for this hiring authority. Upon successful completion of the PLC project(s), the intern is eligible for two years to be hired non-competitively into a federal seasonal, term, or permanent position. The applicant must apply to a PLC-eligible position advertised on USAJobs.gov and selected off a non-competitive certificate of eligibility. For more information, see DOI Personnel Bulletins 11-02 , 12-13, and 17-03.

EEO Statement

Environment for the Americas provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation and training.