Volunteer Programs Individual Placement

The Volunteer Program and Visitor Services 26-week internship position involves working directly with National Park Service Staff. The IP will be assisting with volunteer program operations including administrative work, organizing and executing service projects, and planning. Particularly, the IP will be assisting with the largest volunteer event in the park, the Annual Memorial Illumination. Each year, between 700 and 1,200 volunteers come together to build and place 23,110 luminaries to represent the casualties of America’s bloodiest day. This is a complex event, and the IP would have a chance to understand planning and execution of events, basic incident command, as well as management of a large number of short-term volunteers.  

In addition, the IP will be the face of the park, help at the park visitor center presenting 30-minute Battlefield Orientation talks and greeting visitors as they enter the visitor center and orient them to the park. The Corps Member will hand out park literature, tell visitors about the park, and attempt to meet their informational needs. Over the course of time, the Corps Member is expected to become familiar with the resources available at the front desk, such as park handouts, maps of the area, and monument location guides.  

Finally, the IP will also have a chance to table at several local community events to bring awareness to the park and bring new visitors. This will also entail updating existing outreach materials and creating a new, engaging, make and take activity for families. 

This position is focused both on recruiting and engaging park volunteers and on engaging the public by sharing information on the history of the park, while developing skills like public speaking and interpersonal communication.