Recipient Organization
UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA
COLLEGE OF FORESTRY AND CONSERVATION
MISSOULA,MT 59812
Performing Department
College of Forestry and Conservation
Non Technical Summary
The National Park Service strives to incorporate both sustainability practices and multicultural perspectives in its day-to-day procedures. The National Park Service also recognizes the importance of workforce diversity and have partnered with the University of Montana to provide internship opportunities for Native American students. Hiring and mentoring a Native American sustainability intern allows Glacier National Park to engage youth of diverse backgrounds to the NPS while broadening the sustainability knowledge and expertise within the park. This project will contribute to the ongoing effort in the CFC to engage diverse students.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The objective of this project is to create partnerships between Glacier National Park and Native American youth by recruiting an intern to work on communicating and promoting sustainability within Glacier and the surrounding community. The University of Montana, through the Native American Natural Resource Program (NANRP) and other programs, has developed expertise in advising and mentoring Native American students and placing them in internships and summer employment positions with federal agencies. Glacier hopes to benefit from the experience and expertise of University of Montana staff ing recruiting, training, and mentoring Native American students interested in employment with the National Park Service and in particular, the fields of communication and sustainability.
Project Methods
UM will assist in recruiting a Native American student to work at the Crown of the Continent Research Learning Center in Glacier National Park for the 2012 summer season. This student will be a University of Montana employee but will work side-by-side with the CCRLC's Science Communication Specialist and Citizen Science Coordinator as well as the park's Green Team. In cooperation with NPS staff, The UM adviser will orient, advise, and mentor the student to assist him or her in having a successful seasonal work experience and to make them aware of NPS career opportunities. The PI will work with interns and mentors from Glacier, Grand Canyon, and Glen Canyon (who are all hosting sustainability interns) and NPS Intermountain Region mentors to provide an orientation workshop. This two-day workshop will focus on NPS culture, diversity partnerships, and sustainability topics. Using personal observations, interviews with students, and interviews with NPS mentors and other key officials, write a 1-2 page summary to the NPS on the successes and challenges of the partnership and how a similar internship might be constructed in the future.