Staff transitions announced

(VISALIA, CA) - With SRT's continued growth and the seasonal change that comes with annual AmeriCorps service, staffing changes have us saying hello to a new crop of Staff members and bidding adieu to those exiting staff.

Adriana Becerra and James Von Tersch, SRT Education Technicians who came to us via the Sierra Nevada AmeriCorps Partnership program of the Sierra Nevada Alliance, are completing their year of AmeriCorps service to their country and to SRT. We wish them a fond farewell with our sincere wishes for future success.

Noe Romo Loera will soon complete his year of AmeriCorps service as caretaker of SRT's McCarthy Blue Oak Ranch Preserve. Noe was the first such caretaker for Blue Oak Ranch, and as such was key to offering public access as it opened this year. SRT appreciates the foundation he help to lay for the stewardship of this significant SRT conservation asset. Noe served as caretaker of the preserve while serving his AmerCorps year with American Forests based in the Southern Sierra.  He was able to keep the preserve open on weekends, telecommute, and work in the field for American Forests in several restoration efforts. Noe is moving on to a full-time job with the US Fish and Wildlife Service in Los Banos, California as a Wildlife Biologist. His good nature, flexibility, and attention to the caretaker position will be missed.

Ian Axsom, who has served as conservation biologist at SRT's Carrizo Plain-based operation since 2017, recently added the title of Carrizo Land Steward, a new role SRT created to better shepherd its growing holdings in the region. Please join us in congratulating Ian on his new job and expanded duties. The new position adds managerial duties to his existing job of biological monitoring, reporting, and drone mapping. Ian recently completed a Masters Degree at Cal Poly where he studied habitat for Blunt Nosed Leopard Lizard in the Elkhorn Valley in the Carrizo National Monument. Some of his new responsibilities will include keeping an eye on illegal trash dumping and broken fences, but also coordinating with contractors and neighboring ranches like the Las Pilitas Ranch, now owned by the Nature Conservancy.  Ian will also work closely with California Department of Fish and Wildlife to manage the Northern Carrizo in a consistent and forward-thinking manner for special wildlife species, like the Pronghorn Antelope, San Joaquin Kit Fox, and Giant Kangaroo Rats.

Please join us in hearty appreciation to all for jobs well done and well wishes for new horizons.

For a listing of current positions open, please visit the SRT Careers page: https://sequoiariverlands.org/what-were-up-to/careers