JACKSON, WY — The Youth Conservation Program (YCP) is more than a summer job.
YCP participants spend a summer in one of America’s most popular landscapes developing a personal conservation ethic. YCP is an action-packed educational opportunity that accomplishes much-needed work in Grand Teton National Park.
Applications are now open for the summer of 2019. Young adults ages 16-19 will spend the summer working on trail, preserving historic sites, and learning about every aspect of the park. They’ll make money and work hard, but feel like they’re contributing to something big and important (because they are!). Soon enough, it will feel more like play than work.
“Anyone who is lucky enough to find themselves in Grand Teton National Park for the summer as a part of the Youth Conservation Program (YCP) knows that this experience changes lives,” YCP alum Erin Anderson writes. “To do everything was a challenge at first—like fixing a lunch for a 10-hour work day or washing clothes that had been in the dirt for a 40-hour work week. Enjoying the sunrises from the bus each morning and driving to the north end of the park, I thought to myself, ‘How many people get to do this?'”
The experience I had in YCP has stayed with me over the years and eventually drew me back to the Tetons to lead the crew this summer. There’s something magical about finding one’s self in a familiar environment year after year. My growth from participant to leader with YCP has made me a more confident individual and given me the ability to put myself inside the shoes of new YCP participants. It’s been important to be able to coach them through the daily challenges but also to share why the work they’re doing is so important to the park.
YCP runs from June 17 through August 22, Monday through Thursday, for teens between the ages of 16-19. Pay is $14/hour with an end-of-season bonus.
