WASHINGTON – Congressman Pat Ryan (D, NY-18) announced Thursday that he has secured $1.27 million for AmeriCorps that will create 71 new jobs for youth in Poughkeepsie as part of the Student Conservation Association’s Hudson Valley Corps.
The new positions will expand on the 45 youths who engage in conservation efforts across the region.
The expansion will allow the corps to protect an additional 100 miles and 60 acres of threatened ecosystems and train an additional 4,500 community members in conservation best practices and environmental stewardship in the first year, he said.
Created in 1999, the Student Conservation Corps’ current Hudson Valley Corps consists of 45 AmeriCorps members who engage in over 40 Hudson Valley communities in conservation efforts and education.
Corps members will serve for 10 months at sites ranging from Saratoga Springs to New York City, working one-on-one alongside conservation professionals at state agencies and nonprofit organizations.
