Resource Program Manager: Gavin Gardner

My name is Tahmoor Chadury, and I am an intern with the Latino Heritage Internship Program (LHIP) and Environment for the Americas at Salem Maritime and Saugus Iron Works National Historic Sites. Through a series of articles, I'd like to highlight National Park Service employees in Salem and Saugus and ask them questions about their work. In honor of World Ranger Day (July 31), for this edition I chose to interview Resource Program Manager, Gavin Gardner, on his journey with the National Park Service.

What is your current job title and what are your duties?

To be honest, I’m not sure what my current job title is. I was the Chief of Resources, but because our park sites have started moving away from the term “chief," I don’t know what I am anymore. I suppose “Resource Program Manager” works. My job is to oversee the protection and preservation of Salem and Saugus’ natural and cultural resources. But if it were up to me I would call it the preservation and conservation division. I oversee the parks' compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the National Historic Preservation Act (Section 106).

What did you do before arriving at the National Park Service and how did you arrive at your current position?

Gavin Gardner walks in Salem's annual Haunted Happenings Parade

I started this journey my senior year of high school, interning for county and state archaeologists in Maryland, where I grew up. I went to school at Northern Arizona University and graduated with a degree in anthropology, with a focus in archaeology. But I didn't think I wanted to be an archaeologist, because I didn't understand that archaeology was more than digging square holes very slowly. I didn’t have too many other marketable skills so after college I worked at a Borders bookstore. Eventually I decided to try an archaeology job with the U.S. Forest Service in Arizona. And that opened my eyes to what this career could actually be like, at least with the federal government. It was like walking along in the woods following a map and looking for treasure. It was actually a lot of fun. So that seasonal position lead to another, and another, and another with the U.S. Forest Service.

Gavin Gardner monitoring the removal of Africanized bees from cliff dwellings at Tonto National Monument

I almost accidentally linked up with the National Park Service (NPS) when looking for a winter seasonal position, and my first NPS job was at Death Valley National Park. That really opened up my eyes to NPS as an agency, which focuses on the preservation, conservation, and interpretation of resources. Following that, I bounced around the country working seasonally at different NPS sites, went back to school and earned my master's degree from Sonoma State University. My first permanent park job was at Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument. Eventually I was ready to leave New Mexico, and so I took another position at Springfield Armory National Historic Site. This program manager position came up at Salem Maritime and Saugus Iron Works a few years later, and here I am now.

Do you have a dream park?

I love the desert but I also do like parks in the same vein as Klondike Gold Rush National Historic Site. I don’t really have a dream park, but a dream region instead. Anything west of Kansas would be fine by me. I love mountains and hiking and to be honest there aren’t really that many east of the Mississippi, the Appalachians being the sole exception.

Gavin Gardner with Montserrat College of Art students in Pedrick Store House

Where do you see yourself and the National Park Service (NPS) in ten years?

I doubt that I will move from Salem in the near future. I have a wife and kids and we've planted roots in this city. So I don’t see myself moving anytime soon. For the National Park Service, I hope to see more NPS sites designated, specifically historic sites. From a cultural resource perspective, I’d like to see a focus on 20th century history such as the Red Scare in Hollywood, the Women’s Rights movement, the Cold War, LGBTQ civil rights, sites dedicated to American artists, and the pop culture movement. There's some argument over adding "modern history" sites. But I think people fail to really recognize that they're part of history, or that we're living in history. There is a real lack of these 20th century historic sites in our agency, and I hope more attention is devoted to these more recent periods of history in the future.

Gavin Gardner walks in the annual North Shore Pride Parade

What do you like most about working at Salem Maritime and/or Saugus Iron Works?

I love that I live within walking distance from the park. I love the community of Salem; the people are so diverse. I also like that the city is history based and how there is so much to learn everyday.

What advice would you give to someone looking for a career with the National Park Service?

The most important thing I’d say is be prepared to move. There is so much diversity in sites across the country and sometimes the lesser known ones are the best. Take advantage of being a seasonal employee; you might never get the opportunity to work in such diverse environments so frequently ever again.

Each July, World Ranger Day recognizes and celebrates the work of park rangers who protect natural and cultural resources. What is you message on World Ranger Day?

Gavin Gardner walks through the Salem Commons after the annual meeting for Historic Salem

Image courtesy of Ty Hapworth, @HelloSalem

What I like most about World Ranger Day, is it makes you think about park rangers all over the world, in so many different places doing so many different jobs. And it's a chance for me to recognize myself as a small part of a much larger push to protect special places around the world.
The main message I have for World Ranger Day is to encourage everyone to go out to your local national park sites, even those that do not have as much traffic. Also, don’t be shy about asking employees questions. Answering questions and leading tours are what we're here for!

This article was written by Tahmoor Chadury, who joins Salem Maritime and Saugus Iron Works National Historic Sites from the Latino Heritage Internship Program (LHIP) and Environment for the Americas for the summer of 2020. He is a rising senior at the Ohio State University pursuing a double major in biology and history. Chadury is originally from Brooklyn, New York.