'Biggest nightmare': National Park Service quietly kills program after 15 years

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Source: SF Gate

NATIONAL PARKS
'Biggest nightmare': National Park Service quietly kills program after 15 years

A program that diversified the National Park Service was canceled indefinitely


National Park Service employees, based out of Sumter County, stand in formation as the motorcade of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter stops in front of the Boyhood Farm, where President Carter grew up, on Jan. 4, 2025, in Plains, Ga.
Getty Images

By Kylie Mohr,
Big Sky Country Contributing Parks Editor
May 6, 2025

A longstanding program connecting young adults from diverse backgrounds with summer jobs in the National Park Service was canceled indefinitely earlier this spring.

The National Park Service Academy was a partnership between the National Park Service and the American Conservation Experience, a nonprofit organization providing environmental service opportunities for young adults and “emerging professionals.” This summer would’ve been the program’s 15th year, according to a job posting for the now-defunct cohort.
“Are you passionate about working outdoors but don’t know where to start?” the job posting reads. “Do you come from a marginalized background?”

According to a comparison of the park service workforce to the U.S. population, Hispanic, Black, Asian and multiracial people are underrepresented in the agency. Nearly 80% of the park’s superintendents are white, and more than 84% of the rangers are white, according to data obtained by E&E News in 2020.

Former National Park Service Academy member manager Deja Charles-Tomkins said the park service canceled the program in February for a variety of reasons. Trump’s executive orders targeting programs with diversity, equity or inclusion placed the academy in the crosshairs. Charles-Tomkins heard that any programs or positions that had those three words in their descriptions would be flagged, and any attempts to change wording would result in firings.

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Read more: https://www.sfgate.com/national-parks/article/national-park-academy-canceled-20307206.php