2025 Summer Intern Program Outcomes

Outcomes

The 2025 BRC Summer Intern Program ran for 10 weeks from June 16 to August 22.  For the first time, we hired two crew leads and six high school interns.  Seth Mastrude (Crew Lead) and Riley Hurliman (Assistant Crew Lead); Isaac Berry, Landon Dougherty, Chadd Hilman, Alex Jaca, Jack Murphy, and Elias Taylor (interns) for the Summer Intern Program.  By hiring this combination of leads and interns, we could split them into two sub-teams, each with a crew lead and three interns, to work on two projects simultaneously. Without reservation, this team was exceptional, both in terms of performance and the quality of their work.  

The work schedule (see Table 1) had the teams mitigating eight properties, working in two-week increments (one sub-team per week) on the Powder Basin Watershed Council (PBWC) Trout Creek Beaver Habitat Restoration project, and two weeks (whole team) establishing and recording data on Multiparty Monitoring Plots.

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Results

Table 1: 2025 Cubic Yards of Material Mitigated

Property Owner Dates Total Acres Mitigated Acres Woody Material (Cubic Yds) Non-Woody Hazard Material
Metal (lbs) Tires & Rims (lbs) Other
Strommer June 16–20 22 5 8,946
Combs June 23–27 25 3 9,798
Edwards June 30–July 3 12.5 3 7,916
Bowers July 7–11 12.6 3 12,501
Bowers 2 July 14–18 5 3 6,400 4,800 5 antique farm implements
Goodyear July 21–25 5 2 6,305
Baker July 28–Aug 1 17 3 8,291
Nelson Aug 4–8 20 4 9,159 6,400 4,800
Total 114.1 26 62,916 6,400 4,800 5 antique farm implements

Results

Table 2: 2025 BRC Summer Intern Host Survey Results

Property Owner Overall Experience Satisfaction Recommend Comments
Strommer 10 10 Yes It’s a great program. Well run.
Combs 8 8 Yes Better instruction on pruning techniques.
Edwards 10 10 Yes N/C
Brower 10 10 Yes Your organization and crew do amazing work.
Goodyear 8 10 Absolutely Unable to burn slash piles. Need to know complete process. Heard limbs were chipped. Not sure what to do with slash. However, workers were great. Hope they return!
Baker 10 10 Yes N/C
Nelson 10 10 Yes Thank you for an amazing job! It looks wonderful and we hope to have your program assist again.
PBWC 10 10 Yes Continue using qualified leaders and great kids.
Average 95% 98% 100%

Overall, the 98% of the respondents were satisfied with the mitigation service provided; 95% have the highest rating about their overall experience; 100% indicated that they would recommend the service to others. 

Note: Mitigation property hosts were invoiced for the cost of one intern during the week of mitigation—$800 if the full crew participated and $500 if a sub-crew provided the service. The total cost-share contribution from property hosts was $5,800. Each property owner was also asked to complete a post-treatment survey, and the results are summarized in Table 2 above.

Additional Accomplishments

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  • The 8-person crew was split into two sub-crews, each comprising a Crew Lead and three interns.

  • Each sub-crew spent a week on the Powder Basin Watershed Council (PBWC) Trout Creek Beaver Habitat Restoration Project:

    • Helped construct 2 of 3 buck-and-rail exclosure fences (3,963 feet long) protecting 11.23 acres of riparian habitat.

    • Helped construct 18 of the 56 beaver dam analogues across the 2.5-mile project reach.

  • One sub-crew, not working on the PBWC project:

    • Spent a week removing hazardous materials on one property (see table above).

    • Provided wildfire mitigation services on the Goodyear property.

  • Over two weeks, the Crew recorded protocol-based data on 105 multiparty monitoring plots for the USFS:

    • 98 plots near Phillips Reservoir and off the old Albany Road in the Baker City Watershed.

    • 7 plots on Butte Timber Sale Units off the Anthony Lakes Highway.

Launching the Pathways Program: Opening Doors to Outdoor Careers for Youth

  • Program Purpose: Provides high school youth opportunities to explore a variety of outdoor career paths.

  • Origins: Developed from discussions with 2025 interns and BRC partners: Baker High School Future Center (BHSFC), Anthony Lakes Outdoor Recreation Association (ALORA), and Treasure Valley Community College (TVCC).

  • Founding Meeting:

    • Held at BHSFC on September 3.

    • Attended by 5 of 6 interns plus the Assistant Crew Chief.

    • Program concept shared and received positive feedback.

    • Attendees agreed to meet monthly and invited friends to join.

  • Partner Contributions:

    • Partners provide job-experience opportunities across Fall, Winter, and Spring terms.

    • Experiences include:

      • Recreation-related employment with ALORA.

      • Education-related opportunities with BHSFC.

      • Forestry positions with Oregon State University Extension Service.

      • Watershed management with the Powder Basin Watershed Council.

      • Wildfire management careers with BRC.

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  • College Credits & Certificates:

    • TVCC courses allow students to earn college credits and skill certificates.

    • November offerings: Intro to Wildland Fire (S130/190) and Power Saw Use and Safety (S212).

    • Spring: potential Wilderness First Aid certificate course.

    • Credit structure: 3 TVCC credits = 1 high school credit.

  • Compensation: Students earning work experience are paid $16/hr.

  • Course Progress:

    • October 24–25: two of three course modules completed.

    • Fourth module scheduled for completion in November.

Partner Acknowledgements & Support

Financial Support Provided By:

  • Coalitions and Collaboratives (AIM program)

  • The Roundhouse Foundation

  • Oregon Forest Resources Institute

  • Friends of Paul Bunyan Foundation

  • Tyler Foundation

Contracted Services with BRC Summer Crew:

  • Powder Basin Watershed Council – supported beaver habitat restoration by constructing dam analogues and post-and-rail fencing to protect vegetation vital to beavers.

  • Wallowa Resources – assisted in recording monitoring plot data in the Butte Treatment area and the Baker City Watershed.

These partnerships help cover intern costs and provide valuable experiences, broadening their awareness of the diversity within natural resource management sectors.