Project Cultural Resource Specialist – Northern Nevada and Lake Tahoe Region

Join NCE as a Project Cultural Resources Specialist and build your career supporting the protection and preservation of cultural resources. This is an exciting opportunity to work on diverse, interdisciplinary projects within our Environmental Services Practice throughout Northern Nevada and California. You’ll collaborate with a team of scientists, engineers, planners, and resource specialists supporting public and private clients while gaining hands-on experience and professional growth.

NCE is looking for a motivated and curious problem solver who thrives in a fast-paced yet supportive environment, enjoys a mix of office and fieldwork, and brings strong analytical and critical thinking skills to both. This position offers flexibility for an office or hybrid work schedule from either our South Lake Tahoe or Reno office.

What we offer:

• Mentorship from experienced professionals
• Diverse project experience across Northern California and Nevada
• Professional development opportunities and licensure support
• A collaborative and supportive work environment
• Competitive salary and benefits
• Work-life balance and flexible scheduling options

Responsibilities:

• Perform a mix of office and fieldwork, applying analytical and critical thinking skills in both environments.
• Execute tasks within agreed upon level of effort and timeframes, following directions and asking questions as needed.
• Efficiently identify, review, and process large amounts of technical and regulatory material to support deliverables.
• Conduct Class III (i.e., intensive) pedestrian surveys alone or within a team setting.
• Conduct cultural resources construction monitoring.
• Draft concise field notes pertaining to identified historic and prehistoric artifacts and features, site setting, and site layout/structure.
• Draft resource descriptions for IMACS forms and DPR forms
• Draft cultural resource evaluations based on significance criteria of the National Register of Historic Places and/or California Register of Historical Resources.
• Draft determinations of effect based on the potential and/or perceived project-related impacts to National Register and/or California Register eligible resources.
• Draft Cultural Resources Inventory Reports.

Qualifications and Experience (Must Have):

• Master of Arts or Science degree (anthropology, archaeology, or related field) with a minimum of five (5) to seven (7) years’ CRM experience.
• At least three (3) years’ experience working in the Great Basin and/or Northern California
• Proficiency with a variety of field data collection equipment (i.e., Trimble handhelds, ESRI mobile applications) to map site boundaries, artifact concentrations, diagnostic artifacts, and features (including linear features).
• Working knowledge of federal and state regulations related to cultural resources (i.e., Section 106 of the NHPA and CEQA).
• Working knowledge of various regulatory agency guidelines related to cultural resources (i.e., BLM, USFS, USACE, Caltrans, NDOT).
• Working knowledge of cultural resources inventory reports and site forms, specifically Nevada Intermountain Antiquities Computer System (IMACS) and California Department of Recreation (DPR) 523 forms.

Qualifications and Experience (Desired):

• Ability to evaluate resource significance by developing tailored historic contexts and applying National Register criteria.
• Ability to record a wide variety of historic buildings for review by NCE’s architectural historian.
• Experience with ArcGIS Pro Desktop software and ESRI mobile data collection applications

Working Conditions:

The selected candidate for this position will work from NCE’s Reno or Tahoe offices during standard working hours (Monday – Friday 8-5pm). A hybrid schedule (combination of home and office work) after the first year of employment will be discussed with your supervisor and NCE’s regional manager. Fieldwork will be required and typically entails one to three days away from home, with some projects requiring several weeks of fieldwork. Up to 50% of work may occur out of our northern California offices (Point Richmond, Oakland, and Sacramento), and travel to northern California is expected. Office work will be required to perform duties related to resource documentation and reporting. Candidates with strong GIS skills may be given mapping assignments for cultural resources project and other technical areas.

Salary Range: is $65,000 to $80,000 annually, depending on experience. Samples of work will be requested to demonstrate the ability to meet the specified qualifications.