Summer 2023 Opportunities

Posted on January 8, 2019August 24, 2023 by ucross-admin

Funded Student Summer Experiences in Colorado

(Visit back in January, we will have these same positions open for summer 2024)

Developing and Testing Long-term Ecological Monitoring Protocols for Land Practitioners in South-Central Colorado

Summer Experience Description
During the last year, our YSE team has collected field data at the ranch, studied ecological monitoring strategies, and drafted initial long-term monitoring protocols for the ranch. We are currently seeking Yale students to field test and implement these monitoring protocols at the ranch in Colorado during summer 2022. Student work this summer will directly contribute to our efforts to develop and test monitoring for the ranch and study important land management questions.
The monitoring protocols aim to answer key ecological questions about natural resources at the ranch to inform future land management decisions. Students will implement monitoring over a variety of areas on the ranch, which are likely to include riparian areas, sagebrush ares, and high-elevation forests.
Download the PDF below for more details and learn how to apply.

Details and how to apply!Download

Western Resources Fellowship

Application Period Closed for 2023

*Big Sandy Lake, Wind River Range. Photo Credit: Carli Kierstead*

A student-driven query involving research, an internship, or management project during the summer.
Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative at YSE provides fellows with a financial award, logistical assistance, and mentorship to aid with a summer experience that will have a high impact on conservation, stewardship, or management of natural resources in the Rocky Mountain or High Plains regions. This program supports Yale graduate and undergraduate students completing a summer work that will provide them with practical experience, leadership skills, and/or research experience that will prepare fellows for their future careers. A financial award of up to $8,000 will be granted to each fellow. Fellows will actively participate in peer mentoring with other fellows and will receive guidance from UHPSI staff during the summer.
Read more about past fellows work: 2021 |Past fellowships.
How to Apply
Please apply using the Yale Students Grant Database by March 18, 2023. More information about applications materials can be found in PDF below along with general fellowship expectations.

Details and expectations here!Download

View 10-minute presentations by each 2020 Western Resources Fellows by clicking her e.

Land Management Field Practicum – Not offered in 2023

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Ranch Crew: 2018 Overview — Caleb Gray (a Uni. of WY student)

Posted on August 23, 2018 by ucross-admin

Ranch Crew was an excellent opportunity that I was able to take ahold of, but I was not entirely prepared for what all it entailed. When first glancing over the flyer for it I thought that it might be working as a ranch hand for part of the two weeks, but it was not to Read more about Ranch Crew: 2018 Overview — Caleb Gray (a Uni. of WY student)[…]

The Forks and Fire — Brendan Boepple

Posted on August 13, 2018August 13, 2018 by ucross-admin

Throughout our two weeks with Ranch Crew we became intimate with the Forks Ranch. Assessing ground cover and clipping grasses to measure biomass, we came to understand the natural characteristics of the ranch. We also came to appreciate the deep history of the place through our hosts Cole and Elaine Benton of Grizzly Outfitters. Cole Read more about The Forks and Fire — Brendan Boepple[…]

Changing Perspectives: The Enemy is Everywhere — Reid Lewis

Posted on July 9, 2018July 19, 2018 by ucross-admin

I had the pleasure of arriving to Sheridan, Wyoming via road trip. My father, recently retired, proposed to turn the drive into a camping trip, and he and I spent three great days traveling the plains and mountains of Utah and Wyoming. Passing through Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks, the drive was extraordinary. Coming Read more about Changing Perspectives: The Enemy is Everywhere — Reid Lewis[…]

Ranch Crew 2018: An Immersive Experience in Rangeland Ecology and Management — Lexi Smith

Posted on July 2, 2018July 2, 2018 by ucross-admin

June 2018 was Ranch Crew month for several students (including myself), Ucross members, and collaborating partners from ranch managers to plant ecologists. Ranch Crew is not necessarily what it sounds like. It is so much more than that. Ranch Crew is a two-week immersive experience in rangeland ecology, management, and last but not least…culture! Since Read more about Ranch Crew 2018: An Immersive Experience in Rangeland Ecology and Management — Lexi Smith[…]

Plant ID with the Ranch Crew — Katie Panek

Posted on December 17, 2017 by ucross-admin

During the first week of Ranch Crew, we discovered the joys of Plant ID – or should I say, what is joyful to some (looking at you, Rachel Renne), and painful to others. Our first task was to gather grass from a roadside in the Bighorn Mountains just thirty minutes northwest of Sheridan, WY. The Read more about Plant ID with the Ranch Crew — Katie Panek[…]

Writing the Rapid Assessment — Jordan Skovgard

Posted on December 5, 2017 by ucross-admin

Making the plan Leading up to our rapid assessment, our team had the opportunity to sit down and talk to many professionals with varying focuses in range management. We participated in classes over varying topics. After learning from so many people we sat down to develop a plan for our rapid assessment. To develop this Read more about Writing the Rapid Assessment — Jordan Skovgard[…]

More Than One Way to Ranch — Jaycie Arndt

Posted on December 5, 2017 by ucross-admin

There’s more than one way to skin a cat, but as it turns out there is also more than one way to run a successful ranch. During the first week of Ranch Crew, a majority of time was spent indoors learning concepts and ideas from the esteemed Dr. Brian Mealor at the University of Wyoming Read more about More Than One Way to Ranch — Jaycie Arndt[…]

A lesson about invasive species — Lydia Mendoza

Posted on December 5, 2017 by ucross-admin

During the first week of ranch crew, we all hopped in the van to visit a ranch not far from Sheridan College. Brian Mealor, a professor at the University of Wyoming and the director of the Sheridan Research and Extension Center, walked us out into the field and spent less than a minute searching the Read more about A lesson about invasive species — Lydia Mendoza[…]

From Classroom to Field: A Trip to Red Canyon Ranch — Jessica Swindon

Posted on December 5, 2017 by ucross-admin

After spending a week in Sheridan, the crew took off towards Red Canyon Ranch in south central Wyoming. Iron rich, red valleys appropriately give Red Canyon Ranch its name. Owned by The Nature Conservancy, the ranch is used for testing best conservation grazing practices and research. In addition to cattle, the area is home to Read more about From Classroom to Field: A Trip to Red Canyon Ranch — Jessica Swindon[…]

Ranch Crew Introduction — Jeremy Menkhaus

Posted on December 5, 2017August 15, 2018 by ucross-admin

Summer 2017 marked the inaugural Ranch Crew course and, despite the course’s nascency, it felt like anything but Ranch Crew’s first rodeo (although in its future form, hopefully its actual first rodeo event will be incorporated). Ranch Crew is a two-week rangeland practicum in August held across the state of Wyoming. Divided into two primary Read more about Ranch Crew Introduction — Jeremy Menkhaus[…]

Ranch Crew: Applied Field Practicum

Posted on February 2, 2017July 10, 2017 by ucross-admin

August 12-27, 2017 Do you love Western rangelands? Have you ever wondered what goes into managing livestock? Are you interested getting boots on the ground and learning how to assess and advise rangeland operations? Ranch crew is a 16-day intensive practicum based in Wyoming. The practicum is split in two parts. The first part, Rangeland Read more about Ranch Crew: Applied Field Practicum[…]