National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

Achieving

Relevance

in our second century

A Five-year Interdisciplinary Strategy for Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

as We Enter the Second Century of the National Park Service

April 2014
“The National Park Service preserves unimpaired

the natural and cultural resources and values of the 

National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and 

inspiration of this and future generations.” 

National Park Service Mission Statement
Achieving

Relevance

in our second century

A Five-year Interdisciplinary Strategy for Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

as We Enter the Second Century of the National Park Service

April 2014

Produced by

the National Council for Interpretation, Volunteers, and Education
“... to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects 

and the wild life therein and to provide for the enjoyment of 

the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them 

unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations.”

Organic Act of August 25, 1916
Contents

 ii Letter from the Associate Director

 1 Engaging in A Call to Action

 2 How This Strategic Plan Was Developed

 3 How to Use This Strategic Plan

 5 Realizing Our Vision

 6 Outcome 1: Relevance and Inclusion

 7 Goals 1A–1C

10 Outcome 2: Educational Leadership

11 Goals 2A–2C

14 Outcome 3: Active Engagement

15 Goals 3A–3C

18 Outcome 4: Business Acumen

19 Goals 4A–4C

23 Action Plan

41 More About NPS Volunteers

42 Acknowledgements
ii

from the Associate Director

April 2014

Dear Colleagues,

Every day, I am reminded of the fundamental purpose and mission of the National Park Service. 

Few organizations benefit from such a clear, critical mission that is still relevant after almost 100 

years. As the workforce and partners of the National Park Service, we are driven by this powerful 

mission. We are blessed with an incredible legacy of love, dedication, and devotion—love for our 

nation’s natural and cultural inheritance, dedication to its stewardship in perpetuity, and through 

this work, devotion to perpetuating a civil democratic society.

Every generation has its own set of challenges and opportunities in accomplishing this duty—

and ours is no exception. We live in a time of exponential change that often feels chaotic and 

overwhelming. Climate change, globalization, rapidly changing technologies, economic instability, 

struggling educational systems, and polarized politics are a few issues swirling around us on a daily 

basis. Even children’s brains are developing differently due to their intensive use of technology. 

We preserve park resources and values for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of this and 

future generations. Twenty-first-century learners have new needs and desires. Ninety-five percent 

of learning opportunities occur outside the classroom. Learning is highly personal and can happen 

anywhere, anytime. People want to engage in making meaning of the world around them. They 

demand interactive experiences and access to multiple sources of information. They also expect 

multiple opportunities to participate in decisions on the direction and scope of experiences in 

national parks and programs and in their communities. These challenges and changes, along with 

shrinking financial and personnel resources, require us to be highly strategic and make difficult 

choices in meeting the National Park Service mission.

How, in the face of large-scale change and new attitudes about learning, do we accomplish the 

mission so elegantly stated in the Organic Act? More importantly, how do we inspire others to be 

good stewards—to help? How do we contribute to modern society? The answers lie within each of 

us. As we enter the second century of the National Park Service, with all its challenges, fostering 

personal connections through active engagement and learning are the means by which we achieve 

our mission.

In the spirit of our founders, Steven Mather and Horace Albright, we are called to imagine new 

possibilities: We must pursue new directions in interpretation, education, and volunteerism; new 

approaches to solving problems collectively; novel ways to inspire and engage twenty-first-century 

learners; innovative methods to reveal meanings; additional sources of revenue; new strategies 

to connect our parks and programs to communities across our nation; and new ways to keep the 

National Park Service a vibrant, nimble, and effective organization.

I know this is possible because I have witnessed—in spite of the challenges we face, or perhaps 

because of the opportunities they present—brilliance throughout the National Park Service. You 
iii

are responding with innovation, openness to new ideas, risk taking and ongoing learning, novel 

collaborations across organizational and disciplinary boundaries, sharing of power and authority 

with partners and audiences, and much more.

This strategic plan reflects thinking both within and outside the National Park Service—in many 

cases the parks and programs are leading the way. This plan is a tool for superintendents and 

program managers to scale-up innovation and inspire change, as well as a means for highlighting 

success stories in the field. The plan offers a vision for the future based on the best past efforts as well 

as the emerging trends, ideas, and effective work all across the fields of interpretation, education 

and volunteerism.

The problems we face today are too complex to be solved in isolation. They require systems-thinking 

and the input of many good minds. True interdisciplinary collaboration requires sharing power and 

leveraging resources across disciplines and programs and with our partners. Indeed, it is through 

collaboration and working in concert with our partners that our generation will succeed in carrying 

out the National Park Service mission.

Together, we will ensure that parks are relevant to our children and their children, as a pact between 

generations. In the second century of the National Park Service, we will make choices that safely pass 

along our nation's natural and cultural heritage by inspiring the public to share in its stewardship in 

perpetuity. In the process, we can leave the world a better place. We can increase quality of life, help 

realize the vision of democracy, ensure that all Americans’ stories are shared, improve education and 

health, and support environmental and institutional adaptation and resilience.

Join us in forging the future!

Julia L. Washburn

Associate Director, Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

@NPSADfIVE

www.facebook.com/NPSADfIVE

“[We] have no blueprints and no architect.

Only the ideals and principles for which the Park Service was created—

to preserve, intact, the heritage we were bequeathed.” 

Horace M. Albright, 1917

This plan provides a blueprint and strategies for the

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers program and how

we will preserve the heritage bequeathed to us for protection. 
iv

“. . . the spirit and direction of the Nation are founded upon 

and reflected in its historic heritage; . . . the historical and 

cultural foundations of the Nation should be preserved as a 

living part of our community life and development in order to 

give a sense of orientation to the American people.” 

Preamble to the National Historic Preservation Act, 1966

This plan will help the National Park Service ensure that our historic heritage, as a living part

of our nation’s continuing story, has relevance to 21st-century audiences and learners,

and that current and future generations are motivated to share in its preservation.
1

Engaging in 

 A Call to Action

The 2012 A Call to Action articulates an 

expansive vision for the role of the National Park 

Service (NPS) in society during its next century 

and identifies specific actions to move us toward 

that vision. This strategic plan provides a bridge 

between the vision and the actions. It examines 

how we can do our work in order to accomplish 

the A Call to Action vision and carry it into our 

next century. 

This plan also builds on the foundation set in the 

2006 Interpretation and Education Renaissance 

Action Plan, which emphasized five areas of 

focus: engaging all audiences, setting standards, 

embracing partners, creating a culture of 

evaluation, and using emerging technologies. 

Those “pillars” still stand, and relevant actions 

from that plan that were not completed are 

carried over into this strategy. 

This strategy was developed during a time 

of momentous societal change. In addition, 

the economic downturn of the past few 

years necessitated painful budget cuts and a 

significant downsizing of our agency. In the face 

of staff reductions across the Service and the 

need to ensure continued high performance, the 

planning team made it a priority to reexamine 

the ways in which we meet the demands of 

stewarding NPS resources.

The purpose of our strategic planning process 

was to identify more effective ways of 

fulfilling our agency’s mission and adapting 

to our changed circumstances. Continued 

success requires strengthening our capacity 

for organizational learning and increasing 

our flexibility to respond quickly to new 

opportunities and challenges. It requires 

forward-thinking leaders and managers who 

align resources to priorities, inspire excellence, 

and reward innovation.
2

How This Strategic Plan 

Was Developed

This plan is based on the thoughts and ideas 

of many. For two years, the Washington Office 

of Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers 

conducted listening sessions, met with internal 

stakeholders and partners, received ideas and 

recommendations from the National Leadership 

Council, National Park System Advisory Board 

Education Committee, National Interpretation 

and Education Leadership Council, and the 

National Education Council, and solicited 

input through review processes and planning 

meetings. It has been a rich conversation 

which has helped the Washington Office of 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers 

to articulate shared values, aspirations, and 

priorities for the future of our national parks.

The spirit of interdisciplinary collaboration is 

infused throughout this plan. While interpreters 

play a key role in engaging the public and 

inspiring them to stewardship, this work is done 

by many people within all National Park Service 

disciplines and programs and among partners, 

more numerous than NPS employees. 
3

How to Use

This Strategic Plan

This plan is meant to be useful to everyone in 

the National Park Service who has an interest in 

increasing the relevance of parks. It is designed 

to provide guidance on setting priorities and 

helps us decide what to do more of, what to 

do less of, and what to do differently so that 

we can all move in the same direction as an 

organization toward common outcomes. The 

goals can and should be accomplished at all 

levels and within a variety of NPS programs and 

disciplines. The strategies provide high-impact 

approaches that many of us can work toward 

accomplishing. 

Recommended actions are listed in our Action 

Plan on page 23 which identifies responsibilities 

at the local, regional, and national levels. 

However, any given park, program, or regional 

office should identify only a few actions that 

resonate and feel doable, and focus on those. 

In many cases, individuals, parks, programs, 

and regional offices are already practicing these 

strategies and actions. They may also choose 

to modify or develop additional actions and 

strategies to achieve the goals. 

Successful implementation of this plan will rely 

on the creativity and innovative energy of NPS 

staff and volunteers in parks, regions, programs, 

and Washington, working with partners and 

collaborators. If we all take small steps toward 

common outcomes, we will help the Service 

adapt and be resilient in the face of change.

Note: Throughout this document, “parks” 

connotes not only the 401 units of the National 

Park System, but also programs, national 

heritage areas, affiliated areas, wild and scenic 

rivers, and national trails. The term “Service” 

refers not only to the employees, but also to 

the wide range of programs the National Park 

Service administers.
4
5

Realizing

Our Vision

The National Park Service is 

recognized as a valued and 

significant educator and a trusted 

interpreter of America’s stories 

and heritage. All audiences 

have multiple opportunities for 

participatory, transformative 

experiences that promote 

stewardship and relevant, inclusive, 

and active learning.
6

outcome one

Relevance and

Inclusion

The National Park Service facilitates thematic, 

inclusive, and inquiry-based interpretation.

we foster transformative experiences that help 

people find meaning and make sense of issues that reflect the breadth of the 

country’s natural and cultural resources and its peoples. We promote active 

engagement and memorable experiences in parks and communities. We provide 

opportunities that attract and engage new audiences, leverage existing and new 

partners, and consistently meet or exceed audience expectations for learning 

and visitor experiences.
7

goal 1a – Place events and park resources into national and global contexts.

Strategies

■ Use the Interdisciplinary Thematic Framework, park plans, and audience 

input to place meaningful stories, integrated natural and social systems, and pivotal issues in 

their greater contexts. (This framework will be available August 2014.)

■ Interpret nationally relevant thematic issues like women’s history, science literacy, 

Latino heritage, climate change, and civil rights in collaboration with cooperating associations 

and other partners.

■ Broaden the themes of interpretation and education activities by incorporating advice 

of external advisors and professional societies (e.g., “Revisiting Leopold” report by National 

Park System Advisory Board Science Committee; “Imperiled Promise” report by Organization of 

American Historians).

■ Foster collaboration among interpreters, communicators, resource managers, 

scientists, scholars, and historians.

■ Use an interdisciplinary approach to harness the knowledge and skills of diverse 

staff (natural and cultural resource experts, law enforcement officers, economists, social 

scientists, etc.) to strengthen and enrich interpretation.

See Goal 1A Recommended Actions on page 24.
8

goal 1b – Ensure that National Park Service audience experiences are 

relevant, inclusive, active, and fun.

Strategies

■ Evaluate interpretive programs and products for their success at including 

diverse audiences, connecting to visitors’ lives, inviting visitors to participate actively in learning.

■ Design interpretive programs that tell all Americans’ stories, uncover buried stories, 

present multiple points of view, and encourage inquiry and civic dialog.

■ Invite visitors to tell their own stories, co-create knowledge about park resources, and 

share the meanings that they discover. 

■ Improve the accessibility of all interpretive programs and products.

■ Use social media, distance learning, electronic gaming, and other emerging technologies 

to encourage self-directed learning and to reach new audiences.

■ Use social science research to better understand our audiences and stay current on 

best practices in interpretation, education, and public engagement.

See Goal 1B Recommended Actions on page 25.
9

goal 1c – Transform the role of interpreter to be a facilitator of 

learning rather than just a giver of information.

Strategies

■ Translate current research on learning and public engagement into interpretive 

practices.

■ Create communities of practice and enhance communication Servicewide about the 

purpose, methods, and goals of facilitated learning. 

■ Use interactive interpretive techniques like facilitated dialog, social learning, and 

essential questions.

■ Train and equip staff, volunteers, and partners to use emerging technology that connects 

with youth and enables free-choice learning by ever-larger audiences.

■ Change how we use our time and plan our work to leverage the capacity of staff, volunteers, 

and partners to engage larger audiences.

See Goal 1C Recommended Actions on page 26.
10

outcome two

Educational 

Leadership

The National Park Service is a valued 

and significant educator.

we accept and fully embrace our role as a critical 

contributor to America’s educational ecosystem, ensuring that parks are 

places for formal education and free-choice lifelong learning that promotes 

personal and societal growth.
11

goal 2a – Establish the National Park Service as an educational institution 

and strengthen parks as places of learning that teach about our American heritage and 

develop civic engagement, scientific and historical literacy, and citizen stewardship.

Strategies

■ Brand, promote, and advance the National Park Service education mission and the 

role of informal education in America’s ecosystem of learning.

■ Collaborate with the National Park System Advisory Board Education Committee and 

informal learning organizations to promote and advance the NPS education mission.

■ Capitalize on the national agreements with the Department of Education and the Bureau of 

Indian Education.

■ Equip National Park Service staff, volunteers, and partners in all disciplines to lead effective 

formal and informal education programs that develop civic engagement, scientific and historical 

literacy, and citizen stewardship. 

■ Expand interpretive and education programs and products to include explanations of how 

scientists and scholars conduct research and create knowledge.

■ Fully integrate Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers with the Department of Interior’s 

Youth Initiative, including the goal to provide educational opportunities to at least 25 percent of 

the nation’s K-12 population annually.

See Goal 2A Recommended Actions on page 27.
12

goal 2b – Collaborate with partners and other educational 

institutions to expand National Park Service education programs and the use of 

parks as places of learning.

Strategies:

■ Invest in and support classroom teachers as National Park Service educators to 

leverage their talents and ability to reach additional students.

■ Give priority to teacher training to maximize the level of outreach and number of 

students who connect with national parks when limited resources require that choices be made 

between teacher training and student programing.

■ Promote partnerships with educators and education organizations to align National 

Park Service education programs with applicable local, state, and national standards, such as the 

Common Core Standards.

■ Use and enhance the National Park Service Education Portal and a variety of educational 

technologies to support National Park place-based, distance learning.

■ Explore new national and regional-level partnerships that could help 

expand National Park Service educational programing, connect parks across the country through 

common themes, and increase the use of parks as places of learning.

■ Create new and innovative ways to join with long-standing partners, e.g., 

cooperating associations and educational institutions, to leverage their resources and expertise.

See Goal 2B Recommended Actions on page 28.
13

goal 2c – Develop and nurture lifelong connections between the 

public and parks—especially for young people—through a continuum of engaging 

recreational, educational, volunteer, service, and work experiences.

Strategies:

■ Work across disciplines to expand and integrate youth programs so that participants 

have access to a seamless continuum of experiences.

■ Partner with healing organizations or programs, such as Wounded Warrior and cancer 

survivor groups, to increase the opportunity to build connections and promote parks as places of 

healing.

■ Promote cultural understanding and scientific and historical literacy through education 

programs, volunteerism, service learning, and internship opportunities.

■ Prioritize working with schools and organizations that reach a high percentage of students 

from underserved audiences.

See Goal 2C Recommended Actions on page 29.
14

outcome three

Active Engagement

The National Park Service 

works hand-in-hand 

with communities to 

engage people of all 

ages and backgrounds in 

meaningful and mutually 

beneficial volunteer 

opportunities.

we facilitate active, meaningful volunteer and service opportunities 

that are highly effective in helping people form deep, personal connections 

to park and community resources. These connections lead to greater 

understanding of scientific and historical content and create active park stewards 

and greater engagement in communities. Volunteer service strengthens one’s 

sense of national heritage and citizenship and encourages civic engagement. 

Young people who volunteer are more likely to finish school, develop jobs skills, 

and be contributing members of society.
15

goal 3a – Cultivate an organizational culture of stewardship and 

service within the larger context of national volunteerism efforts.

Strategies:

■ Recognize volunteerism as an organizational strategy, rather than a program, integral 

to the function and success of the National Park Service.

■ Make volunteering a core strategic function where all sectors of the National 

Park Service participate and find meaning in stewardship and service.

■ Foster relationships with other volunteer and nonprofit organizations to expand and 

share resources and materials broadly. Expand participation in local, national, and international 

volunteerism organizations and efforts.

■ Advocate for volunteers, volunteer managers/coordinators, and volunteerism at all levels.

■ Emphasize the importance of ethics and professionalism in relating to and working with 

volunteers.

■ Espouse shared organizational values that support active engagement as a key 

outcome of the National Park Service mission.

See Goal 3A Recommended Actions on page 30.
16

goal 3b – Build capacity and sustainability for parks and programs 

through effective volunteer management, investments, partnerships, and program/

professional development.

■ Support volunteer management as a profession and promote and use systems and 

tools for accountability and communication.

■ Optimize each park’s operational ability to develop a robust volunteer program through 

strategic investments in staff, funding, time, training and infrastructure.

■ Foster relationships with partner organizations to leverage funds, build capacity, and 

assist with volunteer management and leadership in new and creative ways.

■ Ensure that the volunteer program is fully integrated into the fabric of park and program 

operations through interdisciplinary collaboration to strengthen its impact and effectiveness 

Servicewide.

■ Provide professional development opportunities for volunteer coordinators and promote 

volunteer recognition to ensure a high level of excellence for volunteer programs.

■ Fully integrate the National Park Service Volunteers-In-Parks Program with the 

Department of Interior’s Youth and Service Initiative, including the goal to engage one million 

volunteers annually on public lands in four years.

See Goal 3B Recommended Actions on page 31.

Strategies:
17

Strategies:

goal 3c – Provide a range of engaging volunteer, service learning, and civic 

engagement opportunities that match the interests and skills/talents of volunteers, meet 

community needs, and are aligned with high priority National Park Service work goals.

■ Take innovative and creative steps to diversify the volunteer base. Recruit and 

engage new audiences in volunteer and service opportunities.

■ Broaden the volunteer experience and provide compelling and diverse volunteer, 

service learning, and civic engagement opportunities for volunteers of all ages. 

■ Ensure that work performed by volunteers contributes to the National Park Service mission in 

meaningful ways.

■ Provide tangible benefits to volunteers, communities, and society. 

■ Holistically connect volunteer and service opportunities for young people to other 

age-appropriate National Park Service programs that promote community engagement and 

outdoor recreation (play), learning and awareness of park values (learn), and employment and 

conservation careers (work).

See Goal 3C Recommended Actions on page 34.
18

outcome four

Business

Acumen

The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program 

employs excellent business 

practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

in order to accomplish the preceding outcomes, we must use 

business acumen to ensure that programs are cost effective, leveraged, and datadriven. We make effective use of business models and systems, develop a diverse, 

well-trained and dedicated workforce, and establish effective communication 

networks. Decisions are based on the best available social science and evaluative 

data to ensure effective outcomes for audiences, the National Park Service, and 

collaborative partners.
19

goal 4a – Create a flexible and adaptive organizational culture that 

encourages innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship.

Strategies:

■ Regularly seek input from Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers stakeholders and 

ensure that systems and practices reflect the diversity of needs and current trends.

■ Encourage a culture of evaluation that routinely identifies creative and innovative 

strategies to problem solving and shares lessons learned across the Service. 

■ Develop strong interdisciplinary collaboration between Interpretation, 

Education, and Volunteers, partners, and other National Park Service career fields at all levels.

■ Model good business practices that have transparent processes and clearly defined 

work plans aligned with the five-year outlook and funding.

■ Fully integrate the National Park Service Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers 

program with the Department of the Interior Youth Initiative, including the goal to provide 

100,000 work and training opportunities to young people over the next four years.

See Goal 4A Recommended Actions on page 36.
20

goal 4b – Modernize and streamline National Park Service business 

processes and systems.

Strategies:

■ Establish and maintain a sustainable internal communications network for 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers. Use leading-edge technology to enhance 

communication at all levels of the organization. 

■ Create, collect, and use effective measures and standards for assessing 

qualitative and quantitative data on interpretation, education, and volunteer efforts Servicewide. 

■ Transform and use long-range interpretive planning processes to 

incorporate and reflect trends, operational realities, audience research, and the new vision for 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers into services and programs Servicewide.

■ Develop new Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity contracts (IDIQs), cooperative 

agreements, and partnerships to bring additional resources to the interpretive planning effort. 

Modify current financial assistance mechanisms to make them easier to use in support of 

partnerships for Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers.

■ Increase program managers’ familiarity with National Park Service budget, project planning, 

and accountability systems to improve time management efficiency and maximize resources that 

support interpretation, education, and volunteers outcomes. 

See Goal 4B Recommended Actions on page 38.
21

goal 4c – Actively support and train staff, volunteers, and partners from all 

disciplines who deliver Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers services and programs.

Strategies:

■ Care for employees by embracing and prioritizing safety, health, and wellness. 

■ Embrace outside sources of learning and development so that we can focus internally 

on the training that we can best deliver and is aligned with the goals and outcomes of this 

strategy.

■ Establish effective processes for assessing and addressing ongoing developmental 

needs for National Park Service interpreters, educators, volunteer coordinators, and supervisors. 

Ensure ongoing collaboration occurs among the various discipline-based training managers and 

functional areas in order to leverage impact and extent of offerings.

■ Collaborate with Interpretation and Education partners who provide interpretive services 

and facilitate partners in the attainment of excellence.

■ Promote interdisciplinary learning and development through training, details, and other 

means to fully engage the full Service in enhancing the relevance of the National Park Service.

See Goal 4C Recommended Actions on page 40.
22
23

National Park Service

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

Action Plan

The following pages offer recommended actions in support of the 

Achieving Relevance in Our Second Century strategic plan. This action 

plan identifies responsibilities at these levels: Washington Office (WASO), 

Regional Offices (Regions) National Park System units (Parks), and the 

National Council for Interpretation, Volunteers, and Education (NCfIVE). 

Individuals also are encouraged to offer innovative ideas for taking action. 
Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

GOAL 1A RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

INDIVIDUALS

24

Goal 1A – Place events and park resources into national and global contexts.

Action 1A-1

Provide timely and 

relevant employee 

training in science 

literacy and climate 

change fluency.

Action 1A-2

Model interdivisional 

and interdisciplinary 

collaboration 

and include such 

collaboration on annual 

work plans.

Action 1A-3

Make regular use of 

Cooperative Ecosystem 

Studies Units (CESUs) 

and Research Learning 

Centers (RLCs) to access 

a broader research 

community and to 

connect interpreters, 

resource managers, 

scientists, and scholars.

Action 1A-4

Foster development 

and exchange of ideas 

across disciplinary 

and divisional 

boundaries in support 

of interpretation and 

education.

ALL NPS

Action 1A-5

Develop a Servicewide 

Interdisciplinary 

Thematic Framework.

Action 1A-6

Research, develop, and 

disseminate National 

Historic Landmark 

theme studies that are 

the core of the heritage 

initiatives.

Action 1A-7

Embed interdivisional 

collaboration in 

Servicewide training 

programs.

Action 1A-8

Identify and evaluate 

best practices of crossdivisional collaboration 

and provide resources 

and references to the 

field.

Action 1A-9

Make interdisciplinary 

collaboration in support 

of interpretation, 

education, and public 

engagement a criterion 

for Servicewide funding 

calls.

WASO

Action 1A-10

Support parks in 

developing broad 

and multidisciplinary 

interpretive themes for 

General Management 

Plans and foundational 

documents.

Action 1A-11

Create regional 

strategies for integrating 

the emerging stories 

uncovered through 

broad thematic 

initiatives and support 

parks in telling those 

stories.

Action 1A-12

Create accessibility 

teams to work with 

park-based interpreters 

and facility managers to 

improve accessibility.

Action 1A-13

Engage CESU research 

coordinators to involve 

university partners in 

integrating current 

science and scholarship 

with interpretation, 

education, and public 

engagement.

REGIONS

Action 1A-14

Establish 

interdisciplinary 

teams to plan events, 

programs, products, and 

outreach.

Action 1A-15

Review existing themes, 

programs, and media 

for universal concepts 

and interpretation 

that places resource 

meanings in a broad 

context.

PARKS

Outcome One – Relevance and Inclusion: The National Park Service 

facilitates thematic, inclusive, and inquiry-based interpretation.
Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

INDIVIDUALS

GOAL 1B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

25

Outcome One – Relevance and Inclusion: The National Park Service 

facilitates thematic, inclusive, and inquiry-based interpretation.

Goal 1B – Ensure that National Park Service audience experiences are relevant, 

inclusive, active, and fun.

Action 1B-1

Provide timely and 

relevant employee training in cultural competency and cross-cultural 

communication (world 

views, approaches to 

conflict, etc.).

Action 1B-2

Identify and rectify 

deficiencies in the 

accessibility of digital 

media and provide 

appropriate staff 

training.

Action 1B-3

Make use of the 

CESUs to gain access 

to researchers and 

technical experts in 

evaluation, informal 

learning, audience 

characteristics and 

expectations, and public 

engagement.

Action 1B-4

Make best use of social 

media and technology to 

support active learning 

of diverse audiences.

ALL NPS

Action 1B-5

Identify deficiencies 

and ways to make new 

media accessible and 

disseminate training.

Action 1B-6

Sponsor social science 

research to build 

audience-centered 

approaches and 

best practices in 

interpretation and 

education.

Action 1B-7

Develop criteria for 

relevancy, inclusiveness, 

and active learning for 

Servicewide funding 

calls.

Action 1B-8

Support National 

Historic Landmark 

nominations and 

technical assistance to 

increase the diversity of 

stories.

WASO

Action 1B-9

Create accessibility 

teams to work with 

park-based interpreters 

and facility managers to 

improve accessibility.

Action 1B-10

Engage facilitators to 

help with program 

evaluations and 

empower parks to 

reprioritize resources to 

better accomplish the 

park and agency goals, 

audience needs.

REGIONS

Action 1B-11

Develop programs and 

media with audiences 

not for them; embrace 

organizations and 

audience members as 

full partners in program 

design and delivery.

Action 1B-12

Create citizen science 

projects so visitors 

actively participate 

in inquiry-based 

learning and resource 

stewardship.

Action 1B-13

Design and infuse 

multicultural, inclusive 

programs and products 

through current 

scholarly research, as 

well as contributions 

by audiences through 

inquiry and civic dialog 

in order to tell all 

American’s stories.

PARKS
INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

GOAL 1C RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

26

Outcome One – Relevance and Inclusion: The National Park Service 

facilitates thematic, inclusive, and inquiry-based interpretation.

Goal 1C – Transform the role of interpreter to be a facilitator of learning rather 

than just a giver of information.

Action 1C-1

Identify and disseminate 

best practices for 

reaching diverse 

audiences.

Action 1C-2

Create a system to 

reward individuals, 

teams, partners, and 

collaborations for 21stcentury interpretive 

skills and practices.

Action 1C-3

Develop new standards 

for interpretive success 

based on 21st-century 

interpretive skills such 

as digital interpretation 

and facilitated dialog.

Action 1C-4

Create and disseminate 

needed training on 

facilitated dialog 

techniques, digital 

interpretation, and use 

of new media.

ALL NPS

Action 1C-5

Evaluate and rework 

funding criteria to 

emphasize desired skills 

sets.

Action 1C-6

Draft new position 

descriptions that embed 

21st-century interpretive 

skills.

Action 1C-7

Work with the national 

web council to ensure 

www.nps.gov enriches 

in-park interpretation 

and online learning.

Action 1C-8

Represent the needs of 

the field to the web and 

communication councils.

WASO

Action 1C-9

Designate a social 

media consultant at the 

regional level.

Action 1C-10

Intentionally coordinate 

and empower regional 

training teams, linking 

trainers, chiefs, and 

advisory group members 

to identify regional 

needs and prioritize 

training events.

Action 1C-11

Coordinate mentoring, 

detail appointments, 

and job shadowing to 

expand professional 

development 

opportunities.

REGIONS

Action 1C-12

Develop a social media 

strategy and establish 

an interdisciplinary 

social media steering 

committee to increase 

the reach of programs 

and audiences.

Action 1C-13

Train interpreters 

in facilitated dialog 

techniques.

Action 1C-14

Shift programming from 

didactic techniques to 

engaging, co-created 

audience experiences.

Action 1C-15

Seek additional skills to 

address needs of today’s 

learners and help cocreate training for those 

skills.

Action 1C-16

Embed new standards 

into performance 

plans and individual 

development plans.

PARKS
INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

GOAL 2A RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

WASO WASO WASO

27

Outcome Two – Educational Leadership: The National Park 

Service is a valued and significant educator.

Goal 2A – Establish the National Park Service as an educational institution and 

strengthen parks as places of learning that teach about our American heritage and 

develop civic engagement, scientific and historical literacy, and citizen stewardship.

Action 2A-1

Leverage Historically 

Black Colleges and 

Universities as well 

as Latino-, Asian-, 

and tribal-serving 

institutions to engage 

next-generation 

educators in promoting 

park science and history.

ALL NPS

Action 2A-2

Collaborate with the 

Washington Office 

of Communications 

to develop a 

branding strategy or 

communication plan 

specific to promoting 

parks as places of 

learning.

Action 2A-3

Support Department 

of Education Green 

Ribbon Schools program 

by providing content 

and professional 

development 

opportunities for 

teachers.

Action 2A-4

Partner with the 

Department of 

Education to promote 

National Park 

Service educational 

opportunities.

WASO

Action 2A-5

Evaluate TeacherRanger-Teacher Program 

and Teacher Corps 

in partnership with 

the Department of 

Education’s Office of 

Research.

Action 2A-6

Design effective teacher 

engagement programs 

for educators to have 

hands-on professional 

development in parks 

science and history.

Action 2A-7

Inform Congress about 

the educational mission 

of the National Park 

Service.

Action 2A-8

Define “educational 

institution,” the 

characteristics of such 

an institution, and what 

steps the National Park 

Service can take to 

establish itself as one.

Action 2A-9

Launch a new national 

Parks as Classrooms 

Day to promote parks 

as learning landscapes. 

(With National Park 

System Advisory Board)

Action 2A-10

Strengthen the 

National Park Service’s 

participation in National 

History Day through 

innovative outreach 

programs that engage 

underserved audiences.

Action 2A-11

Develop training to 

equip interpreters to 

understand and lead 

curriculum-based 

education programs and 

to develop programs 

that meet Common Core 

Standards.

Action 2A-12

Perform an assessment 

of training needs to 

increase scientific 

and historical literacy 

among interpretation 

and education staff 

and partners. Develop 

training modules as 

needed in partnership 

with NPS Natural and 

Cultural Resources 

programs.

Action 2A-13

Develop online training 

for National Park Service 

staff to learn about nonprofit organizational 

cultures.

Action 2A-14

Develop online training 

for partner staff to 

understand National 

Park Service culture.

Action 2A-15

Develop a competency 

for superintendents 

to increase their 

understanding of 

the role and needs of 

the Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers program.
Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

INDIVIDUALS

WASO

GOAL 2B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

28

Outcome Two – Educational Leadership: The National Park 

Service is a valued and significant educator.

Goal 2B – Collaborate with partners and other educational institutions 

to expand National Park Service education programs and the use of parks as 

places of learning.

Action 2B-1

Establish and expand 

new partnerships 

with youth-serving 

organizations (e.g., Boys 

and Girls Clubs).

Action 2B-2

Partner with informal 

education institutions 

and organizations, such 

as museums, to promote 

parks as places of 

learning.

ALL NPS

Action 2B-3

Collaborate with 

the Department of 

Education and National 

Park Foundation to 

develop a National Park 

Service Teacher Corps 

to increase capacity 

to offer education 

programs in the 

classroom and within 

the park. (Teacher 

Corps could draw 

from Teacher-RangerTeachers, retired teacher 

volunteers in parks, 

Park Stewards, Park 

Teachers, and seasonal 

park rangers who are 

teachers.)

Action 2B-4

Establish a method to 

collect internal and 

external feedback on 

how the Education 

Portal functions.

Action 2B-5

Support national 

partnerships to engage 

new audiences and 

communities which 

cannot always get to 

parks (e.g., National 

Alliance for Faith and 

Justice).

WASO

Action 2B-6

Explore new national 

and regional level 

partnerships that could 

help increase the use 

of parks as places of 

learning (e.g., Journey 

North/South, Roots and 

Shoots, the National 

Writing Project, or the 

National Phenology 

Network).

Action 2B-7

Broaden the Education 

Portal to include partner 

education programs, 

including field trips and 

distance education.

Action 2B-8

Develop a strong 

distance learning 

strategy that is 

audience-centered and 

reaches beyond park 

boundaries. (With Parks)

Action 2B-9

Develop, offer, and/

or host professional 

development 

opportunities for 

teachers that are 

based on national 

park experiences 

and resources, such 

as presenting virtual 

programs, hosting 

teacher workshops, and 

participating in teacher 

in-service trainings. 

Partner with universities 

to offer continuing 

education credits.

Action 2B-10

Partner with universities 

to offer classroom or 

distance education 

programs in courses 

required for teaching 

certification in order to 

reach future teachers.

PARKS
Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

INDIVIDUALS

PARKS

GOAL 2C RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

29

Outcome Two – Educational Leadership: The National Park 

Service is a valued and significant educator.

Goal 2C – Develop and nurture lifelong connections between the public 

and parks—especially for young people—through a continuum of engaging 

recreational, educational, volunteer, service, and work experiences.

Action 2C-1

Create a parent-friendly 

online searchable 

database of activities 

that engage children of 

any age.

Action 2C-2

Develop a template for 

a park-level education 

plan.

Action 2C-3

Re-message and/

or provide updated 

materials for national 

special event days that 

will lead to increased 

civic engagement, 

scientific and historical 

literacy, and citizen 

stewardship.

Action 2C-4

Develop and implement 

a strategy to evolve 

and expand the Junior 

Ranger and WebRanger 

programs as tools for 

engaging children and 

families.

WASO

Action 2C-5

Coordinate and 

develop distance 

education programs 

for national special 

events, anniversaries of 

significant events, etc. 

(e.g., virtual program on 

ANILCA with President 

Jimmy Carter). (With 

Parks)

Action 2C-6

Review completion 

reports in Project 

Management 

Information System 

(PMIS) to determine if 

employee development 

and diversity outcomes 

for funded projects 

are achieved. Capture 

lessons learned. (With 

Parks)

REGIONS

Action 2C-7

Develop an education 

plan to consciously 

decide which audiences 

will or will not be 

targeted, the best forms 

or methods to conduct 

the outreach, etc. 

(similar to a social media 

plan).

Action 2C-8

Partner and align with 

universities, especially 

tribal colleges. Integrate 

classroom or distance 

education programs into 

various college courses 

and/or host university 

courses onsite in parks. 

Courses could range 

from art and science to 

history and geography.

Action 2C-9

Conduct BioBlitz and 

other citizen science 

events and programs, 

including the goal to 

create a generation of 

citizen scientists and 

future stewards by 

conducting fun, engaging, and educational 

biodiversity discovery 

activities in at least 100 

national parks.

PARKS

Action 2C-10

Partner with gym and 

health class teachers, 

hospitals, and active 

lifestyle organizations to 

increase the use of parks 

and green spaces and to 

improve public health.

Action 2C-11

Use partners and 

programs, such as public 

land corps organizations, 

Youth Conservation 

Corps, and the Youth 

Partnership Program, to 

incorporate interns into 

park projects.

Action 2C-12

Develop active, 

technology-based 

activities to promote 

physical recreation and 

meaningful learning 

opportunities in parks.
INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

GOAL 3A RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

WASO

30

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

Goal 3A – Cultivate an organizational culture of stewardship and service within 

the larger context of national volunteerism efforts.

Action 3A-1

Incorporate new 

language and concepts 

about participatory 

stewardship into 

everyday conversations 

to foster a culture shift 

in the National Park 

Service.

Action 3A-2

Communicate the value 

of collaboration on a 

broader scale as a way to 

embrace a multicultural 

world.

Action 3A-3

Continually advocate 

for volunteerism which 

includes volunteers, 

volunteer managers, 

and volunteer program/

strategy.

Action 3A-4

Think about 

volunteerism without 

limits by creatively 

developing virtual and 

in-person volunteer 

opportunities for 

groups, individuals, and 

families.

ALL NPS

Action 3A-5

Advocate that volunteerism is a core value 

of the National Park 

Service, and should be 

aligned with NPS mission 

statement, goals, and 

objectives.

Action 3A-6

Demonstrate how volunteer programs respond 

to identified community needs, incorporate 

agency needs and 

interests, are developed 

at the national level, 

and are implemented 

throughout the entire 

agency and department.

Action 3A-7

Reach out to cooperators so they may advise 

the NPS on the value 

that service plays in the 

lives of our citizens.

Action 3A-8

Maintain an active and 

visible presence on Federal Interagency Team 

on Volunteerism (FITV).

Action 3A-9

Foster regional relationships with neighboring 

federal, state, and local 

land management agencies following the FITV 

model to share resources 

and ideas and streamline 

processes for excellence 

in volunteer management and recognition.

WASO

Action 3A-10

Maintain multiple national memberships in 

organizations like AL!VE 

(Association for Leaders 

in Volunteer Engagement), Points of Light, 

Hands-On Network, etc.

Action 3A-11

Participate in International Volunteer Managers Day by publicly 

recognizing National 

Park Service volunteer 

managers/coordinators 

in unison with those 

around the world.

Action 3A-12

Stretch National Park 

Service resources 

through creative collaboration with partner 

organizations to support 

volunteer management.

Action 3A-13

Encourage and support 

parks and program offices Servicewide in seeing 

volunteerism as a way to 

help preserve resources 

and educate the public 

about the significance of 

those resources.

Action 3A-14

Foster relationships with 

neighboring federal, 

state, and local land 

management agencies 

following the FITV model to share resources and 

ideas and to streamline 

processes for excellence 

in volunteer management and recognition.

Action 3A-15

Cultivate partnerships 

with other organizations 

to support volunteerism.

Action 3A-16

Develop relationships 

with surrounding communities through volunteerism engagement.

Action 3A-17

Continually advocate 

for volunteerism with 

park management and 

leadership.

Action 3A-18

Communicate to staff 

and partners the 

value of cultivating a 

stewardship-focused 

organization.

PARKS
ALL NPS WASO

GOAL 3B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

31

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

Goal 3B – Build capacity and sustainability for parks/programs through 

effective volunteer management, investments, partnerships, and program/

professional development.

Action 3B-1

Abide by the standards 

of high quality volunteer 

management as set 

forth in the 13-module 

training package, 

“How to Succeed with 

Volunteers-In-Parks.”

Action 3B-2

Broaden and diversify 

funding sources and 

mechanisms.

Action 3B-3

Collaborate with others 

(parks, programs, other 

disciplines, volunteer 

organizations, partners, 

interdisciplinary teams, 

and other Department 

of the Interior bureaus) 

to improve and sustain 

volunteer programs.

Action 3B-4

Show appreciation for 

volunteers in a timely 

manner.

Action 3B-5

Include volunteers 

in decision-making 

processes as valued 

stakeholders.

Action 3B-6

Support volunteer 

management as 

a profession and 

encourage certification 

and other programs 

in promoting career 

development.

ALL NPS

Action 3B-7

Promote www.volunteer.gov as a one-stopshop for interdisciplinary 

reporting, Public Land 

Corps tracking, and 

data sharing. Account 

for volunteer program 

statistics and expenses 

through the use of the 

Volunteers-in-Parks data 

tracking and reporting 

system in www.volunteer.gov.

Action 3B-8

Align National Park 

Service systems, policies, 

and priorities to increase 

volunteer coordination 

and management 

capacity. 

Action 3B-9

Use emerging technology to cost effectively 

engage volunteers and 

prospective volunteers.

Action 3B-10

Recognize volunteers, 

volunteer managers, and 

programs through local, 

regional, and national 

awards programs 

including the George 

and Helen Hartzog 

Awards for Outstanding 

Volunteer Service, the 

Presidential Service 

Awards, Take Pride in 

America Awards, etc.

Action 3B-11

Engage and enhance 

partner involvement in 

philanthropy, marketing, 

and coordination of 

volunteer activities in 

parks.

Action 3B-12

Provide leadership and 

management oversight 

in achieving the goals 

of National Park Service 

volunteer and youth 

initiatives.

Action 3B-13

Identify new sources of 

funding for the National 

Park Service VolunteersIn-Parks Program (e.g., 

20-percent Recreation 

Fee National) and high 

priorities for strategic 

investments.

Action 3B-14

Assess the current 

Servicewide volunteer 

awards program to 

ensure that it provides 

incentives and rewards 

for an increased number 

of volunteers.

Action 3B-15

Support the efforts 

of the Council 

for Certification 

in Volunteer 

Administration in 

professionalizing 

volunteer administration 

worldwide.

WASO

Action 3B-16

Collaborate with 

strategic partners, 

such as Americorps, 

to increase volunteer 

management capacity.

Action 3B-17

Streamline the 

Servicewide Volunteersin-Parks budget 

allocation process 

and communicate the 

process and decisions 

to internal stakeholders 

in a way that makes 

information transparent.

Action 3B-18

Finalize Director’s 

Order #7 and develop 

associated policy 

guidance that reconciles 

conflicting information.

Action 3B-19

Finalize Reference 

Manual #7 to clarify policies set forth in Director’s Order #7 including 

guidance for complex 

operational issues.

Action 3B-20

Update and maintain 

the basic, 13-module 

volunteer management 

training package, 

“How to Succeed with 

Volunteers-In-Parks,” 

as a relevant and useful 

tool for managers/

coordinators.

(Continued)
GOAL 3B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

WASO WASO

32

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

Goal 3B – Build capacity and sustainability for parks/programs through 

effective volunteer management, investments, partnerships, and program/

professional development.

Action 3B-21

Provide varied 

certification training 

programs to ensure 

a high level of 

excellence and a good 

understanding of 

National Park Service 

Interpretation and 

Education standards 

for volunteers and 

partners who conduct 

interpretation and 

education programs.

Action 3B-22

Invest in new, state-ofthe-art, online volunteer 

manager/coordinator 

training and other tools 

to support volunteer 

coordination.

Action 3B-23

Analyze Servicewide 

business processes to 

identify and remove 

barriers that limit the 

number of volunteers 

in parks (e.g., effects 

of park travel ceiling, 

implementation of 

housing policy, etc.).

WASO

Action 3B-24

Support Volunteer 

Managers/Coordinators 

through basic and 

advanced volunteer 

program management 

training.

Action 3B-25

Seek creative funding 

sources to enable 

participation in national 

volunteer conferences, 

certification courses, and 

other partner-related 

functions. Participate in 

the National Conference 

on Volunteering and 

Service when possible.

Action 3B-26

Encourage mentoring 

between parks for 

support of new program 

managers/coordinators.

Action 3B-27

Encourage collaboration 

with state and local 

entities (e.g., a local 

volunteer administrators 

association or volunteer 

center) in creative 

problem-solving, 

capacity-building 

efforts, and training 

opportunities for both 

volunteer managers/

coordinators and 

volunteers.

Action 3B-28

Identify current barriers 

to increasing the 

number of volunteers 

and draft a memo for 

the Associate Director 

that can inform 

strategic dialog with the 

National Park Service 

Directorate and/or to 

the Department.

Action 3B-29

Coordinate National 

Volunteer Week events 

to promote volunteer 

recognition, youth 

and service learning 

events, and interagency 

recognition efforts.

Action 3B-30

Encourage all staff to 

engage with volunteers.

Action 3B-31

Strategically request 

appropriate fund 

sources to invest in 

park infrastructure that 

will support on-site 

volunteers (e.g., trailer 

pads, housing, and 

supplies).

Action 3B-32

Continue to leverage the 

2008 base increase (NPS 

Centennial funding) 

for volunteer program 

management.

Action 3B-33

Ensure that park 

Volunteer Managers/

Coordinators have 

sufficient work time 

to properly manage 

and plan a robust 

Volunteers-In-Parks 

program.

Action 3B-34

Ensure that the 

Volunteers-In-Parks 

management position 

is housed where it can 

fully support the entire 

park.

(Continued)

PARKS
GOAL 3B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

Goal 3B – Build capacity and sustainability for parks/programs through 

effective volunteer management, investments, partnerships, and program/

professional development.

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

PARKS PARKS

33

Action 3B-35

Ensure that the Volunteers-In-Parks program 

is fully integrated into 

park management 

systems and park operations and priorities.

Action 3B-36

Invest in highperformance volunteers 

who are interested in 

serving in leadership 

roles.

Action 3B-37

Create avenues for 

volunteers to share 

suggestions, ideas, and 

problems.

Action 3B-38

Develop annual 

work plans including 

recurring, one-time, 

and wish-list projects 

for volunteer groups, 

individuals, and families.

Action 3B-39

Conduct annual 

performance appraisals, 

exit interviews, and/

or provide essential, 

valuable, and timely 

feedback to volunteers.

Action 3B-40

Monitor volunteer 

programs for compliance 

with policy and legal 

requirements.

Action 3B-41

Support volunteer 

development through 

orientation, specialized, 

and safety training.

Action 3B-42

Volunteer Managers/

Coordinators/Leaders 

should regularly utilize 

the “Everyone Ready” 

online volunteer 

management resources 

to stay current with 

volunteer trends and 

training materials.

Action 3B-43

Provide leadership 

training for 

interdisciplinary staff/

volunteers who may lead 

volunteer projects.

Action 3B-44

Ensure staff (paid and 

non-paid) and visitor 

safety through regular 

training sessions, 

including Operational 

Leadership, and 

providing up-to-date 

resource materials.
GOAL 3C RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

WASO

34

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

Goal 3C – Provide a range of engaging volunteer, service learning, and civic engagement opportunities that match the interests and skills/talents of volunteers, meet community needs, and are aligned with high priority National Park Service work goals.

Action 3C-1

Use www.volunteer.

gov and other creative 

recruitment tools to 

attract and retain 

volunteers (individuals, 

groups, families).

Action 3C-2

Engage broader 

audiences in innovative 

and varied projects/

programs. Ensure 

that our volunteer 

corps represents the 

demographics of our 

nation.

Action 3C-3

Create compelling 

opportunities for 

volunteers of all ages. 

Provide opportunities 

that broaden the 

volunteer experience (to 

include service learning).

ALL NPS

Action 3C-4

Continue to enhance 

www.volunteer.gov and 

connect it more directly 

with www.serve.gov and 

other online volunteer 

recruitment portals 

where practical and 

feasible.

Action 3C-5

Promote www.

volunteer.gov as the 

interagency public 

portal for volunteer 

opportunities.

Action 3C-6

Develop national 

volunteer programs 

(e.g., volunteer emeritus 

and voluntourism 

programs) that can be 

efficiently implemented 

throughout the National 

Park System.

Action 3C-7

Collaborate with 

tour companies and 

other organizations to 

expand voluntourism 

opportunities and 

volunteer vacations.

WASO

Action 3C-8

Expand and implement 

Emeritus Volunteer 

Program to engage 

retired National Park 

Service employees in 

park, program area, 

and community-based 

volunteer activities. 

Action 3C-9

Develop, in partnership 

with the National 

Park Foundation, a 

Corporate Volunteer 

Program where donor 

recognition includes 

volunteer opportunities 

in national parks.

Action 3C-10

Establish Servicewide 

partnership with 

organizations like 

Campus Compact to 

place college students in 

volunteer and internship 

opportunities around 

the System.

Action 3C-11

Utilize workforce 

management expertise 

to ensure that 

Volunteers-In-Parks 

work experiences 

provide career training 

and professional 

development 

opportunities for the 

volunteer.

Action 3C-12

Build bridges to engage 

youth organizations 

in urban centers 

through volunteerism 

and service-learning 

opportunities.

Action 3C-13

Reach out to 

collaborators to identify 

community resources 

that will help parks 

reach underserved 

audiences (e.g., urban 

and rural youth) who 

may benefit from 

volunteer and service 

opportunities with the 

National Park Service.

(Continued)

REGIONS
GOAL 3C RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

Goal 3C – Provide a range of engaging volunteer, service learning, and civic engagement opportunities that match the interests and skills/talents of volunteers, meet community needs, and are aligned with high priority National Park Service work goals.

Outcome Three – Active Engagement: The National Park 

Service works hand-in-hand with communities to engage people of all ages and 

backgrounds in meaningful and mutually beneficial volunteer opportunities.

PARKS

35

Action 3C-14

Ensure that volunteer 

opportunities result in 

improved and enhanced 

park facilities, services, 

and resources while 

meeting the needs of 

the volunteer(s).

Action 3C-15

Develop appropriate 

park volunteer programs 

(e.g., service learning 

and citizen science 

programs) that can be 

efficiently implemented 

by multiple disciplines in 

the park.

Action 3C-16

Connect with the local 

community through 

creative service activities 

onsite, offsite, or 

virtually.

Action 3C-17

Work with schools, 

clubs, colleges, and 

other organizations to 

promote/encourage 

fun and meaningful 

stewardship 

opportunities at all ages.

PARKS

Action 3C-18

Expand hands-on/

service-learning 

educational 

opportunities like citizen 

science programs in 

parks and communities. 

Promote service-learning 

opportunities to high 

schools, clubs, colleges 

and families.

Action 3C-19

Connect people to 

parks by planning and/

or participating in 

community outreach 

events, educational 

institutions’ career 

development days, and 

partner/public programs.

Action 3C-20

Establish a volunteer 

ambassador corps to 

connect communities 

to parks through 

outreach programs and 

presentations.

Action 3C-21

Participate in National 

Days of Service such

as Martin Luther King 

Day of Service, National 

Public Lands Day,

National Trails Day, César 

Chávez Day of Service 

and Learning, and Make 

a Difference Day, etc. to 

promote service in parks 

and communities in a 

fun, educational way.
WASO WASO

GOAL 4A RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

36

Outcome Four – Business Acumen: The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program employs excellent business practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

Goal 4A – Create a flexible and adaptive organizational culture that encourages 

innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship.

Action 4A-1

Include evaluation 

components in State of 

the Park reports, Park 

Scorecards, Servicewide 

Comprehensive 

Call guidelines, 

and performance 

evaluations.

Action 4A-2

Equip interpreters and 

educators to conduct 

systematic evaluation 

through asking 

questions of substance, 

determining the data 

needed to answer 

specific questions, 

analyzing data, etc. 

Recognize evaluation 

champions.

Action 4A-3

Foster a Servicewide 

commitment to 

evaluation that 

facilitates coordination, 

fosters information 

exchange, and 

supports application 

of results. Ensure that 

the workforce has the 

motivation, knowledge, 

ability, and tools to fully 

integrate evaluation 

practices into their daily 

work.

ALL NPS

Action 4A-4

Implement the 

recommendations of 

the National Education 

Council Research to 

Practice Committee.

Action 4A-5

Identify potential 

organizations or 

institutions whose 

evaluation practices 

have a direct connection 

with a National Park 

Service program or 

service and work 

with the Evaluation 

and Visitor Studies 

Coordinator to create 

relationships or 

mutually-beneficial 

partnerships (e.g., 

university research 

studies).

Action 4A-6

Participate in discussions 

surrounding the State 

of the Parks questions. 

Prepare a list of 

alternative questions to 

pilot next fiscal year.

WASO

Action 4A-7

Identify and use 

qualitative research 

and evaluation to 

expand the impact 

and replication of best 

practices in Washington 

Office-funded projects.

Action 4A-8

Develop an online 

platform through which 

creative and innovative 

examples, case studies 

and best practices are 

shared. Include samples 

of Memorandums of 

Understanding, cooperative agreements, 

planning documents, 

and other support documents that were used to 

accomplish the project 

or program. Make the 

online platform prominent and easy to access 

by all NPS staff.

Action 4A-9

Develop Frequently 

Asked Questions (FAQs) 

on “doing more of less” 

to assist the field in making choices.

Action 4A-10

Develop a Servicewide 

evaluation framework 

and identify research 

needs for interpretation, 

education, and volunteer programs.

Action 4A-11

Prepare and share an array of useful evaluation 

questions, studies, methods, reports, resource 

materials, and tips and 

trends in evaluation on a 

regular basis.

Action 4A-12

Introduce the Service to 

a common language of 

evaluation.

Action 4A-13

In collaboration with 

the Denver Information 

Collection Office, 

explore the existing 

pool of known survey 

questions and compile 

a bank of questions 

already curated and 

approved by the Office 

of Management and 

Budget. Make the 

questions available to 

parks to use in survey 

development.

(Continued)
INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

Goal 4A – Create a flexible and adaptive organizational culture that encourages 

innovation, collaboration, and entrepreneurship.

Outcome Four – Business Acumen: The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program employs excellent business practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

WASO

GOAL 4A RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

37

Action 4A-14

Launch two to four 

evaluation webinars 

each year to provide 

practical evaluation 

tools to the field, 

including asking 

research questions, 

understanding program 

evaluation, and 

facilitating focus groups.

Action 4A-15 

Update the 

Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers National 

Award Program 

to reflect our 

interdisciplinary 

approach and be 

more inclusive of the 

breadth and depth 

of employee and 

partner contributions 

to increasing relevance 

and accomplishing the 

NPS mission. Assemble a 

diverse workgroup that 

includes field staff to 

draft new criteria and 

eligibility requirements. 

(With Regional Offices)

Action 4A-16

Regularly use the online 

platform as inspiration 

for new forms of 

innovative outreach, as a 

resource for useful tools 

and support documents, 

and to stay current in 

trends in Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers. Contribute 

material, lessons 

learned, success stories, 

etc. to the online 

platform to promote 

communication and 

assist the National Park 

Service is accomplishing 

its mission.

Action 4A-17

Participate in national 

socioeconomic 

evaluation efforts and 

projects to inform future 

practice.

Action 4A-18

Reach out to 

Cooperating 

Associations and other 

non-profit partners 

to enhance mutual 

understanding of 

business acumen and to 

identify entrepreneurial 

strategies to expand 

interpretation and 

education services.

PARKS
GOAL 4B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

WASO WASO WASO

38

Outcome Four – Business Acumen: The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program employs excellent business practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

Goal 4B – Modernize and streamline National Park Service business 

processes and systems.

Action 4B-1

Streamline, simplify, 

and modernize the 

Servicewide interpretive 

report system to provide 

useful data for all 

levels of Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers. Develop 

software for a new 

Servicewide Interpretive 

Report in consultation 

with stakeholders at all 

levels.

Action 4B-2

Work with NPS 

Planning Office to 

ensure Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers has a central 

role in the creation 

of park foundation 

documents.

WASO

Action 4B-3

Rewrite Director’s 

Order #6 and Reference 

Manual #6 so that they 

reflect the guiding principles and best practices 

of National Park Service 

interpretation and 

education, align with 

the strategic plan, and 

provide guidelines on 

how to use an interdisciplinary approach 

in operations without 

marginalizing the role of 

interpretive professions 

to accomplish objectives. 

Circulate for wideranging field review 

that includes partners, 

concessioners, volunteers, and all levels of 

the Interpretation and 

Education community.

Action 4B-4

Develop a common 

language for and 

understanding of 

Cooperative Agreements, 

Interpretation and 

Education Services 

Agreements, Commercial 

Use Authorizations, 

Concessions Contracts, 

Cooperating Association 

Agreements, and various 

types of fundraising 

agreements. Ensure that 

they are as streamlined 

as possible and are 

aligned with National 

Park Service goals.

Action 4B-5

Develop and distribute 

guidance on the types 

of agreements (and 

other mechanisms) 

and the various 

authorities frequently 

used in support 

of Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers efforts.

Action 4B-6

Engage with Financial 

Assistance Agreements 

Improvement Team to 

ensure Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers needs 

are addressed in any 

changes to the financial 

agreements process.

Action 4B-7

Develop a distance 

learning format for 

Introduction to Park 

Program Management 

and offer it more 

frequently. Make this 

course a requirement for 

new program managers 

across all disciplines.

Action 4B-8

Create training tools 

to empower parks 

to implement and 

incorporate interpretive 

planning at every level.

Action 4B-9

Ensure that the authorities and mechanisms 

(e.g., Cooperative Agreements) for entering into 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers 

partnerships are well 

understood by National 

Park Service program 

managers and partners.

(Continued)
Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

GOAL 4B RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

INDIVIDUALS

Goal 4B – Modernize and streamline National Park Service business 

processes and systems.

Outcome Four – Business Acumen: The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program employs excellent business practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

NCfIVE

39

Action 4B-10

Complete a simple but 

elegant communications 

plan for Interpretation, 

Education, and Volunteers with wide stakeholder involvement.

Action 4B-11

Establish a field advisory 

group for development 

of the new Servicewide 

Interpretive Report. 

Fundamentally shift 

what is counted in parks.

Action 4B-12

Develop effective 

measures and standards 

and work with the 

Washington Office 

Budget Team to 

incorporate them into 

the Park Scorecard.

Action 4B-13

Transform the longrange interpretive 

planning process to 

incorporate and reflect 

trends, operational realities, audience research, 

and the new vision for 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers. 

The process should be 

sustainable, nimble, 

practical, and flexible 

so that any interpretive 

park program manager 

can feel empowered to 

use this planning tool to 

strategically plan work 

at the park level.

NCfIVE

Action 4B-14

Participate in discussions 

surrounding the State 

of the Parks questions. 

Prepare a list of 

alternative questions to 

pilot next fiscal year.

Action 4B-15

Develop new interpretive planning templates 

and examples. Use external planning and design 

expertise to inform the 

process. Strengthen collaboration on interpretive planning between 

Harpers Ferry Center 

and regional offices.

Action 4B-16

In collaboration with the 

Institute at the Golden 

Gate, develop a national 

level business plan that 

identifies staffing and 

funding trends and recommends how to build 

capacity and new business practices to support 

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers. 

Communicate status of 

the plan throughout its 

development.
GOAL 4C RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

INDIVIDUALS

Use this space to record 

your own ideas for 

taking action.

WASO WASO WASO

40

Outcome Four – Business Acumen: The Interpretation, Education, 

and Volunteers program employs excellent business practices to maximize and 

leverage resources.

Goal 4C – Actively support and train staff, volunteers, and partners from all 

disciplines who deliver Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers services and programs.

Action 4C-1

Develop a statement 

that affirms the primacy 

of safety and wellness 

for Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers employees 

and shines a light on 

our important role in 

providing for visitor 

safety in Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers 

programming.

Action 4C-2

Develop an annual 

Servicewide calendar 

of Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers training 

opportunities aligned 

with this strategic plan 

and timed with strategic 

work plan milestones, 

such as the Servicewide 

Comprehensive Call 

deadlines. Include 

training opportunities 

offered by the regions.

Action 4C-3

Work with National 

Park Hospitality 

Association and the 

National Association 

for Interpretation to 

assess practicability of 

certifying partners to 

National Park Service 

standards. 

WASO

Action 4C-4

Brand partners as 

official National Park 

Service interpreters 

and educators. Provide 

training to ensure a high 

level of excellence and 

a good understanding 

of National Park 

Service Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers standards.

Action 4C-5

Develop and offer 

change management 

training for 

Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers managers 

(“Letting Go,” grief 

model, Harvard Business 

Review webinars, etc.) 

to ensure managers 

are prepared to guide 

their staff and work 

through feelings and 

reactions to the changes 

happening in the field 

of Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers.

Action 4C-6

Ensure focused training 

for interpretive supervisors is developed and 

delivered.

Action 4C-7

Develop a training 

plan that addresses the 

results of the training 

needs assessment.

Action 4C-8

Conduct training needs 

assessment every five 

years. Review current 

National Park Service 

learning opportunities and develop a plan 

for addressing gaps 

and meeting needs for 

long-term development 

(e.g., facilitated dialog) 

and practical skills that 

respond to immediate 

needs (e.g., Project Management Information 

System project writing, 

website work/Content 

Management System, 

and digital media). 

Communicate timeline, 

progress, and conclusions to field.

Action 4C-9

Assess the future 

of the Interpretive 

Development 

Program, including 

the certification and 

coaching elements, 

and ensure alignment 

with the strategic 

plan. If coaching and 

certification continue, 

recognize that the 

training program cannot 

continue to be delivered 

as originally planned, 

certification cannot be 

delivered and conferred 

by the same source, 

and that the delivery 

mechanism must be cost 

effective.

Action 4C-10

Use the Employee 

Performance Appraisal 

Plan’s Individual 

Development Plan to 

support competencybased developmental 

opportunities for 

Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers staff. 

Support employee 

participation in training, 

details, mentoring 

opportunities, etc. that 

focus on 21st-century 

skills.

Action 4C-11

Continue to offer 

Operational Leadership 

and “Go, No Go” 

training. Make use 

of lessons learned to 

reinforce a safety culture 

for Interpretation, 

Education, and 

Volunteers staff.

Action 4C-12

Support the community 

of practice that formed 

under the Interpretive 

Development Program.
41

More About 

National Park Service Volunteers

The REIMAGINING SERVICE coalition has established four principles to guide its work:

1. The volunteer ecosystem is more effective when all sectors participate in its evolution.

2. Make volunteering a core strategic function, not an add-on.

3. Focus volunteer engagement on true community needs.

4. In order to get a return, you have to invest.

(REIMAGINING SERVICE website, www.reimaginingservice.org, copyright 2013)

The National Park Service is a signatory of the REIMAGINING SERVICE principles. The goals that 

support Outcome Three, Active Engagement, in this strategic plan reflect the four principles 

established by the REIMAGINING SERVICE coalition.

The National Park Service Volunteers-In-Parks Program (VIP) was authorized by Public Law 91-

357 enacted 1970. The primary purpose of the VIP program is to provide a vehicle through which 

the National Park Service can accept and utilize voluntary help and services from the public. The 

major objective of the program is to utilize this voluntary help in such a way that is mutually 

beneficial to the National Park Service and the volunteer. For more information visit www.nps.gov/

gettinginvolved/volunteer.
42

Acknowledgements

Thanks to all who contributed to the strategic planning process, including the National Park System 

Advisory Board Education Committee under the leadership of Dr. Milton Chen. Thanks also to PEER 

Associates for helping us to evaluate 500 pages of comments collected through the NPS Planning, 

Environment and Public Comment site (PEPC) and listening sessions with staff and other stakeholders.

Bianca Acosta

Renee Albertoli

Raphael Allen

Tracy Ammerman

Eileen Andes

Nichole Andler

Ruben Andrade

April Antonellis

Christine Arato

Matthew Arnold

Graciela Avila

Terry Baldino

Anthony Bates

Paula Bauer

Denise Bausch

Carla Beasley

Randall Becker

Cathy Beeler

Jon Bennett

Jeanette Benson

Troy Benzhaf

Celeste Bernardo

Chris Bernthal

Linda Bishop

Cindy Bjorklund

Joann Blacoe

Linda Blaser

Katie Bliss 

Bradley Block

Tucker Blythe

Tina Boehle

Beth Boland

Paloma Bolasny

Heather Boothe

Carol Borneman

Lauren Boross

Amy Bracewell

Suzanne Brinkley

Michael Brondi

Heather Brown

Barbara Brundage

Colin Campbell

Julena Campbell

Dominic Cardea

Tim Cash

Sharon Cawley

Larry Cebula

Diane Chalfant

Theodora Chang

Cheryl Chipman

Jane Clark

Laura Cohen

Jocelyn Cole

Rhea Cole

Jason Collins

Cris Constantine

Jim Cook

Kelly Coy

Sarah Craighead

Malinee Crapsey

Phyllis Cremonini

Tim Cruze

Roberta D’Amico

Rachelle Daigneault

Maggi Daly

Butch Davis

Wyndeth Davis

Karissa DeCarlo

Paula Degen

Mark DeGregorio

Julie Denslow

Cheryl DeShazer

Clark Dixon

Peggy Dolinich

Mary Doll

Daniel Downing

Kristen Dragoo

Dan Dressler

Martha Droge

Stephanie Dubois

Jermey Ebersole

Diane Eilenstein

Mark Engler

Kelli English

Melissa English-Rias

Rudy Evenson

Jane Farmer

Tom Farrell

Katherine Faz

Rich Fedorchak

Jacob Fillion

Maureen Finnerty

Andy Fisher

Holly Fisher-Hickman

Sheri Forbes

Brian Forist

Myra Foster

Jennifer Frost

Michele Gee

Dorothy Gist

Keena Graham

Matt Graves

Patrick Gregerson

Lisa Griebel

Lauren Gurniewicz

Jennifer Haley

Joan Haley

Jill Hamilton-Anderson

Craig Hansen

Sue Hansen

Clayton Hanson

Jill Harding

Rebecca Harriett

Jewel Haskins

Mary Hazell

Gayle Hazelwood

Judy Hellmich

Laura Henning

Dean Herrin

Carolyn Hill

Gregory Hindsley

Ann Hitchcock

Elizabeth Hoermann

Holly Holst

Ann Honious

Martha Hoverson

Christine Hoyer

Stacy Humphreys

Dave Hutson

Heather Huyck

Elizabeth Igleheart

Laura Illige

Jim Ireland

Arlene Jackson

Curt Jacquot

John Jameson

Rick Jenkins

Dan Jensen

Eun Jeon

Bianca Johnson

Donna Johnson

Mike Johnson

Theresa Johnson

Jay Johnstone

Rebekah Jones

Brian Joyner

Barbara Judy

Bill Justice

Andrea Kaawaloa-Okita

Jennifer Kays

Caroline Keinath

Marta Kelly

Elizabeth Kerwin-Nisbet

Sandi Kinzer

Lorrie Knies

Rana Knighten

Carolyn Knoll

Don Kodak

Megan Kohli

Duey Kol

Nancy Kotz

Krista Kovach-Hindsley

Amber Kraft

Kathy Krause

Shannon Kruse

Elisa Kunz

Michael Kusch

Mike Kusch

Becky Lacome

Wendy Lauritzen

Gloria Lee

Martha Lee

Albert Legault

Kristen Leong

Michael Liang

George Liffert

Diane Liggett

Barbara Little

Joe Llewellyn

Mary Lou Herlihy

Linda Lutz-Ryan

Paul Pfenninger

Maci MacPherson

Ann Marie Eilander

Susan Martin

Eileen Martinez

Victoria Mates

Karen Maxville

Carol McBryant

Carol McCoy

Laura McCoy

George McDonald
Maureen McGee-Ballinger

Alicia McGraw

Nichole McHenry

Pat McKnight

Julie McNamee

Lynda Mealue

Tom Medema

Bret Meldrum

Sara Melena

Lisa Mendelson-Ielmini

Marla Miller

Chris Mills

Sarah Molines

Justin Monetti

John Morris

Linda Morton

Amy Muraca

Lynne Murdock

Nancy Murray

Nicole Murray

Priscilla Nalls

Corbett Nash

Pam Neil

John Newman

Valerie Newman

Susan Newton

Susan Norris

Shawn Norton

Paul Ollig

Kerry Olson

Megan O'Malley

Anne O'Neill 

Margie Ortiz 

Rob Parenti

Elizabeth Parnicza

Sara Patton

Celinda Pena

Bobbie Pennington

Jude Pfister

Karl Pierce

Joy Pietschmann

Valerie Pillsbury

Gretchen Pineo

Barbara Pollarine

Scott Prestridge

Christopher Quesenberry

Alan Ragins

Lenard Ramacher

Scott Rector

Dennis Reidenbach

William Reynolds

Pamela Rice

Doug Richardson

Angie Richman

Tom Richter

Jim Roberts

Denise Robertson

Nick Roll

Linda Rosenblum

Arrye Rosser

John Rudy

Cathy Runge

Nathan Sargent

Ryan Scavo

Joanne Schillizzi

Alysia Schmidt

Pat Schmidt

Paul Schrooten

Charles Schubert

Alan Scott

Aleutia Scott

Jeff Selleck

Adam Shaffer

Kirby-Lynn Shedlowski

David Shelley

Claire Shields

Carol Shull

Kim Sikoryak

MaryEllen Snyder

Sandhya Soni

John Sprinkle

Christina Stanczak

Ryan Stead

Liza Stearns

Margie Steigerwald

John Stein

Elizabeth Stern

Nancy Stimson

Ted Stout

George Su

Lisa Sullivan

Pete Swisher

Rebecca Talbott

Kimble Talley

Jennifer Thelen

Steve Theus

Charles Thomas

Candace Tinkler

Martin Tjiattas

John Tobiason

Naomi Torres

Lyndon Torstenson

Tim Townsend

Mike Tranel

Spirit Trickey 

Maggie Tyler

John Tyson

Karla Vanderzanden

Jennie Vasarhelyi

Amelia Vela

Gay Vietzke

Clarence Wadkins

Rick Wallner

Faye Walmsley

Sue Walter

Kathryn Warnes

Becky Warren

Tim Watkins

Sandy Weber

Peggy Weissenger

Roberta Wendel

Carole Wendler

Carol West

Mike Whatley

Anne Whisnant

Ernestine White

Terry Wildy

Rebecca Wiles

Brendan Wilson

Dan Winings

Jamie Wolfe

Inez Wolins

Don Wollenhaupt

Roy Wood

Monique VanLandingham

LaTasha Virgil

Jennifer Zazo 

Phil Zichterman

PHOTOGRAPHS

Front cover Golden Gate NRA, 

NPS / Michael Silverman

Inside front cover Boston 

Harbor Islands NRA, NPS

Contents Badlands NP, 

NPS / Dudley Edmonson

Page ii NPS / Mathew John

Page iv Home of Franklin D. 

Roosevelt NHS, NPS / Bill Urbin

Page 1 War in the Pacific NHP, 

NPS / Devin Sortor

Page 2 Badlands NP, 

NPS / Gary Joseph Cohen 

Page 4 Fort Vancouver NHS, NPS

Page 6 Denali NPP, 

NPS / Neil Blake

Page 7 Gettysburg NMP, NPS / 

Martha Lindsey Bestebreurtje

Page 8 Weir Farm NHS, 

NPS / Alex von Kleydorff

Page 9 Golden Gate NRA, NPS

Page 10 Gateway NRA, NPS / 

Francesca Simondi

Page 11 Rocky Mountain NP, 

NPS / Kirsten Leong

Page 12 Gateway NRA, Sesame 

Street Workshop

Page 13 Grand Canyon NP, 

NPS / Mike Buchheit 

Page 14 Mount Rainier NP, 

NPS / Kevin Bacher

Page 15 Congaree NP, NPS / 

James and Jenny Tarpley

Page 16 Badlands NP, 

NPS / Gary Joseph Cohen

Page 17 New Bedford Whaling 

NHP, NPS / Emily Prigot

Page 18 Golden Gate NRA, 

NPS / Brenna Cruz

Page 19 Yosemite NP, NPS

Page 20 Fort McHenry NMHS, 

NPS / Kate Marks

Page 21 North Cascades NP, 

NPS / David Snyder

Page 22 Petrified Forest NP, NPS

Page 41 Chickamauga and 

Chattanooga NMP, NPS / Jason 

Martz

Back cover Mount Rainier NP, 

NPS / Noah Pylvainen

“The creation of a national park is an expression

of faith in the future. It is a pact between generations,

a promise from the past to the future.”

Rethinking the National Parks for the 21st Century;

National Park System Advisory Board Report, 2001
National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Interpretation, Education, and Volunteers

www.nps.gov