Pine Knot Job Corps Fire Crew Award

The Pine Knot Job Corp Fire Crew program under the Leadership of Jamie Tyson recently received the following award for their participation in the USDA Forest Service Fire Program.  The Prescribed Fire Champion for 2015 is awarded to a group – The Pine Knot Job Corps fire crew.  If it weren’t for the Pine Knot fire crew the Daniel Boone National Forest would not be able to accomplish its burn goals.  The crew comes to assist with line construction as preparation for the burns and they always come when needed to assist on the actual burn day.  The Pine Knot staff and students always show professionalism and willingness to assist in any capacity.  The students volunteer to assist with this program even though it is sometimes harder than working on a wildfire.  The Center Director and other Center employees support the program entirely even if they don’t get out on the fire lines with the crew.  This program deserves recognition on several fronts.

The Pine Knot Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center is operated by the U.S. Forest Service through an inter-agency agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor and is associated with the Daniel Boone National Forest.  The Pine Knot Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center offers residential job training for at – risk young people between the ages of 16 – 24 and serves 175 students.  The USDA Forest Service operates 28 Civilian Conservation Centers spanning 22 forest and grasslands and 18 states with a capacity of serving 6,200 students.  For more information, visit: http://recruiting.jobcorps.gov/en/home.aspx.  The mission of the USDA Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forest and grasslands to meet the needs of the present and future generations.  The Agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to State and private land-owners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the whole world.