(ARLINGTON, VA) April 6, 2022 — The Student Conservation Association (SCA), the national leader in youth service and stewardship, announced today that it will reach an unprecedented milestone this summer when it places its 100,000th service member, and will commemorate the occasion with a year-long celebration that coincides with the organization’s 65th anniversary.
“When Liz Putnam founded SCA in 1957, she also launched a movement,” states SCA President and Chief Executive Officer Stephanie Meeks. “Liz gave young Americans the opportunity to help protect their national parks, and since then more than 130 other conservation corps have followed the trail Liz blazed. Other corps have formed to send young adults overseas or into U.S. cities to address challenges there. And all have proven the remarkable ability of young people to change the world.
“Our SCA100K campaign will celebrate youth service in all its forms, in particular the invaluable hands-on preservation of America’s public lands, from which so many have drawn solace over the past two years of the pandemic. In times of need, young people have always aided these age-old treasures.”
Meeks indicates that later this month, in advance of Earth Day, SCA will introduce a team of 10 accomplished Alumni Ambassadors to represent all SCA alums, eras, and geographies throughout this special year. Other SCA100K components will include alumni reunions, a 65th anniversary Memory Book, a salute to the agency partners who mentor young conservation leaders, and more.
Modeled after the Depression Era Civilian Conservation Corps, SCA welcomed its first SCA volunteers to Grand Teton and Olympic National Parks in June of 1957. Today, thousands of young SCA members from diverse backgrounds and cultures safeguard national, state, and municipal green spaces every year. Studies show these transformative, nature-based experiences significantly enhance youth development and fuel sustained growth.
Additionally, more than two-thirds of former SCA interns are employed or otherwise active in the conservation field years or even decades after their initial SCA service, a key indicator for an organization devoted to inspiring lifelong stewardship.
In 2010, Ms. Putnam was awarded the Presidential Citizens Medal by President Barack Obama at a White House ceremony for “performing exemplary deeds of service for her country and fellow citizens.”
CONTACT: Kevin Hamilton, VP for Communications, 603.372.7068 or khamilton@thesca.org
About the Student Conservation Association
The Student Conservation Association (SCA) is the national leader in youth service and stewardship. SCA conserves lands and transforms lives by co-powering young people from diverse backgrounds to plan, act, and lead, while they protect and restore our natural and cultural resources. Founded in 1957, SCA’s mission is to build the next generation of conservation leaders, and two-thirds of former SCA interns worldwide are employed or studying in conservation-related fields. For more, visit www.thesca.org.
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