Navigating the Federal hiring process can be daunting, so the
Federal government has developed a series of programs to offer
students from high school through postgraduate school
assistance in initiating their Federal careers.
Earlier programs included the Student
Temporary Employment Program and the Student Career Experience Program.
Over time, these have been replaced by
several programs collectively known as the Pathways Program.
Listen to one of Salinas' permanent employees, Jose Chavez,
to learn how the STEP Program has led to a
successful career with the Federal government.
So my name is Jose Chavez. I live in Mountainair, where actually
our Headquarters is at, Salinas Pueblo Missions.
I actually started off as a student back to 2004. So at that point, I was a
freshman in high school, and I was able to become a student employee
through the National Park Service.
And, from there, I went ahead and after I graduated in 2006,
I went to the University of New Mexico.
And, after pursuing a position within the National Park Service, I was
able to get on through the STEP program. And from that point, I
went ahead and obtained my degree through Applied Science in
Construction Technology. So after that, I was offered a
position here at the National Park Service, which required stabilizing.
So, from there, that's how I started along with the
students that we've hired on yearly. And what we do is we come in,
we take out all the old mortar, replace with new amended mortar,
and anything that's bad within the wall we take it out
and just replace it with new stuff that we know it can be
preserved for generations to enjoy.
So how did you choose this job? Well, this job, to me,
it was something I actually just started as a student employee,
you know, so it was something that was in our local community.
I didn't have to commute, and it was right there in town at the
age of 16, making at the time pretty good money, you know,
started off at like $9.80-some an hour. So, at that time as a 16 year old,
it's something real good to have, and you know, I
actually just thought about it. You know, having it on my resume
as a Federal employee that it would be be something real
beneficial in the long run.
Little did I know I was actually going to become a Park Service employee.
So when you went to college, were you thinking that
you wanted to try to come back and work here?
Actually, I wasn't. I didn't know there was
an opportunity at the time. So, after I kept going and taking classes,
took all my basics, about two years in I was notified,
you know, that if I wanted to become
a National Park Service employee that I can
get my degree in a type of construction degree and after
looking into it, I realized that I only had like a year left
because all the classes I had taken, all the base classes.
So I just had to take the core curriculum for the construction technology degree.
Oh, nice. So you actually found out about
the job while you were in college. Yes. And then that
helped you to come back and sort of plan your curriculum at school
and then figure out a career when you got done with school.
Right, so I was, I stayed on the STEP program throughout,
like I said, since 2004. So this August, I'll actually be
employed with the National Park Service for 16 years.
Oh, that's awesome. So, by doing a program like the STEP program or
Pathways, students can really get a jump on a career with the Federal government.
Yes, exactly.
I mean, you know, I think there's plenty of opportunity
out there, and if you want to pursue it, there's opportunity
to pursue a position within the National Park Service.
And, so do you feel that the work that's been asked of you
throughout your career is well within your means?
Definitely. The worst thing is the heat. I mean, it's, the job
gets tedious, you know, staring at your wall. Of course,
talking to your fellow employees, you know,
your coworkers, make jokes throughout the day. Try to
make the time pass, you know, 'cause it does get tedious.
You're just here, chipping out the old mortar, replacing it with new,
and, of course, in the long run you don't really realize
how beneficial it is to the visitors that are going to be here.
You get it throughout the day, you know,
they're like, "Wow. This is so
beautiful, it's amazing." We see it everyday, you know, so it is amazing,
but it's not as amazing as other visitors see it.
So they, you know, after hearing that you do feel somewhat
appreciated to know that you're preserving it for generations.
And, so Azan, how do you prepare the students, like you were
mentioning with the heat and other, like, safety issues 'cause I'm
sure different issues arise out here? Right. How do you prepare the
students, so that they feel safe and know where to go if they have trouble?
Well, initially, right, we have our introduction and we go
through our student Handbook and it talks about all our stuff that
you know, we cover, safety, any by-laws that we have within
the National Park Service. And from that point, we go on and we
usually have about 2 safety meetings, you know,
tailgate safety meetings a week if not more
sometimes depending on the type of stuff that we're running into,
any hazards or anything that's been brought up.
As far as the heat, the more into the summer,
the hotter it gets, so at that point we actually take a
little bit more breaks. Make sure everybody is hydrated.
We carry about 20 gallons of water, you know,
I guess 4 or 5 gallon jugs full of ice.
We make sure that, you know, if somebody's
feeling sick that they can go ahead and bring it to us, you know,
any supervisor and make sure that, you know, everything is
accommodated for, paid attention to, 'cause, you know, the heat
is a real big thing out here. And I noticed also 'cause this
site really doesn't have much shade that you ended up with
some canopies before the end of the summer. Right. That's
something that we brought up to upper management and they
felt like it was a good idea.
The shade's not very big, but I mean,
every 30 minutes to an hour, you know, whatever, we're
not very strict as to taking breaks, getting a glass of water
or whatever, a cup of water, jug of water and sitting under
the shade for at least 10 minutes is wonderful in this
type of environment. Oh, I agree. So if there is a student out there
who's thinking about trying a position like this,
what advice can you give them, like where should they be
looking for this kind of position? When do you oftentimes post?
So in our community within Salinas, we usually post it around,
you know, probably around let's say April or March,
somewhere in there. And that's just something, we do
hand out flyers. We do make it possible for people to find out.
We take it to the local schools around and of course, usajobs.
I mean, make sure you fill out your resume and make sure that
you have your login available to usajobs.
And you can actually make, I guess,
make a profile to basically say, you know,
you're looking for the STEP program or what types of
positions you're looking for. So that's something that's
real helpful to understand and know. Well perfect, thanks Azan.
Whether you're enrolled in high school, college, graduate school,
or are a recent graduate, the Federal government has a
variety of opportunities for
paid employment. Learn more about current job opportunities
at usajobs.gov. Student positions at Salinas will be
posted on nps.gov/SAPU as they become available.