Demchik - Healthy Grown Intern & Restoration Field Assistant

University of Wisconsin Stevens Point•Stevens Point, WI

10d•$18•Onsite

About The Position

These positions will start at the beginning of the Spring Semester 2026. During the spring semester, students will have both field restoration responsibilities and summer work preparation, with weekly hours ranging from 10 to 20. The work during spring will include using brush saws and chainsaws, assisting with prescribed burns, and planning. During the 12 weeks of summer, students will work up to 40 hours per week on three main projects: 1) Healthy Grown Initiative Farms, 2) Bird Habitat Focused Landscape Scale Restoration (LSR) Project, and 3) Barrens Restoration Research Project. For much of the summer, students will be partnered with one or two graduate students working on these same projects. Work over summer will include: 1) data recording for bird surveys (while knowledge of birds is nice, it is not expected, these positions will act as data recorders, with that said, there will be opportunity to learn audio/visual identification of songbirds), 2) herbicide application, 3) brushsaw work on invasives and other manual treatment, 4) vegetation survey and forage sampling, 5) possible pollinator/butterfly survey, 6) other duties as needed. During the fall semester, students will work 10 to 20 hours per week, focused on both the LSR project and the Healthy Grown Initiative Project. This can include: invasive control, seed collection, brushsaw work, prescribed burning, and work on an independent project. An independent project that helps advance the students to the next stage of their careers will be required. The intern will develop a project in collaboration with Dr. Demchik and his graduate students that fits within the Healthy Grown Program and their own interests, culminating in a written and oral presentation in Fall 2026 or Spring 2027. Travel between Stevens Point, WI, and participating farms is required, and travel reimbursement is included (although university vehicles will be used with some regularity). Students must enroll in a credit-bearing internship in the summer of 2026.

Requirements

Must be a UWSP student during spring, summer, and fall 2026.
Have NWCG Fire Fighter Type 2 certification and be “burnable” by UWSP Fire Crew standards
Have S-112 or S-212 or For 396 Science of Tree Felling, and be comfortable running a chainsaw
Have (by the end of Spring 2026 semester) a commercial pesticide applicator certification category 6.0
Driver’s license (with two years of driving history) with ga ood record (adequate to meet university certified driver requirements)
Ability to tolerate the combination of very cold conditions as well as heat, bugs, mud, uneven ground, and other field-related conditions while collecting high-quality data in a safe manner (note, this is intense work; if that isn’t for you, then this job is not for you)
Ability to lift 50 lbs in a safe manner
Ability to unconditionally follow all safety protocols, you will be issued safety equipment and will be expected to use it without fail. If this is an issue, do not apply.
Solid plant identification skills
A good work ethic
An interest in learning and applying restoration techniques and habitat management.