Visitor Services Member – Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex

Summary

American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit Conservation Corps, in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), is seeking one Visitor Services Support Member to contribute to a variety of visitor services projects under the mentorship of Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex Staff.

For more information about ACE, please visit our website.

Start Date: October 5, 2026

Estimated End Date: March 8, 2027

* a 22-week minimum commitment is required, approximately 880 hours*

Location Details/

Description:

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex, Willows, CA

The Sacramento NWR Complex includes five national wildlife refuges (Sacramento, Delevan, Colusa, Sutter, and Sacramento River NWRs) and three wildlife management areas (Butte Sink, Steve Thompson North Central Valley, and Willow Creek-Lurline WMAs). Complex headquarters and the visitor center are located at Sacramento NWR, where this position will be based.

These refuges are located in the Sacramento Valley, part of California's Central Valley, a key wintering area for migratory birds along the Pacific Flyway. The Complex manages wetland, upland, and riparian habitats that support waterfowl, other migratory birds, threatened and endangered species, and a variety of rare plants and invertebrates.

The Complex welcomes more than 200,000 visitors annually for wildlife observation, photography, and other outdoor recreation. It also provides some of the most popular public waterfowl hunting opportunities in California, serving nearly 30,000 hunters each year. A Friends organization supports refuge programs and operates the nature store in the visitor center.

For more information, visit the Sacramento NWRC website!

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. This position will help USFWS realize that mission at Sacramento NWR Complex.

During this term, the ACE member will support and assist, under the guidance and direction of USFWS staff, the sustainment of high quality visitor services and facilities. There are opportunities for assisting with programs that connect the public to National Wildlife Refuges and conservation. The incumbent will assist with providing visitors with information about and orientation to the Refuges and their resources, and complete various other duties to support the visitor services program as needed.

This position will provide a good overview of the work the USFWS does for wildlife, plants, and their habitats.

This individual placement is meant to facilitate professional development and promote exposure to land management agencies and networking with professionals including refuge managers, biologists, administrative staff, maintenance staff, and others. This could include gaining experience in different conservation fields and shadowing different work groups.

• Staffing the visitor center front desk to assist visitors in-person and over the phone (including on weekends). This includes opening, closing, and staffing the Visitor Center and providing visitors with information about and orientation to the refuges.
• Answering phones and responding to voicemails, or directing calls to appropriate staff.
• Assisting visitors with the steps of purchasing a digital day pass for the auto tour.
• Assisting with distributing materials for teacher-led (self-guided) field trips for school groups and visitors.
• Assisting the administrative program with filing, scanning, copying, and office organization.
• Developing self-guided programs aligned with the Refuge's environmental education objectives, in collaboration with USFWS staff.
• Assisting with updating the Refuge complex's website and posting public safety alerts to social media.
• Potentially developing interpretive content for visual and audio exhibits inside the visitor center.
• Potentially developing content for social media that promote the mission of the USFWS.
• Conducting formal/informal interpretation at wildlife observation areas, trails, and the auto tour route; and updating informational kiosks and brochure racks across the complex.
• Gathering traffic counter information monthly from parking lots around the complex, and entering visitor counts.
• Assisting with coordination between the USFWS and the Friends group.
• Assisting with special hunts and volunteer events, including the junior hunts and mobility impaired hunt blind reservations.
• Set up and cleaning up the multi-purpose room for meetings, events, and classes held at the refuge visitor center, including set-up and taking down of audio-visual equipment.
• Work both independently and collaboratively with volunteers, refuge staff, other ACE members, and Friends group members.
• Working on a variety of projects as assigned.

• Maintaining visitor center outdoor grounds (cleaning kiosks, pressure-washing…