National Park Service Announces Selection of Local Teachers for Teacher Ranger Teacher Program

Date: May 29, 2013
Contact: Howard Duncan, 423-286-7275
Contact: Effie Houston, 423-569-9778

Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area and Obed Wild and Scenic River are pleased to announce the selection of two local educators for the Teacher Ranger Teacher (TRT) program at the two Upper Cumberland Plateau parks.  Pam Clark has been selected to work with National Park Service rangers at Big South Fork; Pam works with McCreary County Schools as an eighth grade science teacher at McCreary Middle School in Kentucky.  Jeff Kidd has been selected to work with National Park Service rangers at Obed; Jeff is employed by the Morgan County School system at Oakdale School where he teaches sixth through eighth grade social studies and also serves as a coach.

The TRT program is now in its fourth year at Big South Fork and Obed.  Local teachers have previously been selected for the position and by every measure have had very rewarding experiences.  Local educators will work closely with park rangers during the summer.  The teachers will perform various duties depending on their interests and the needs of the park, including developing and presenting interpretive programs for the general public, staffing the visitor center desk, developing curriculum-based materials for the park, or taking on educational projects.  Teachers will take the summer's experience back to the classroom and share with students the remarkable American heritage that the national parks preserve.  Teacher Rangers help to create a link between school children and national parks.

National parks preserve and provide access to the powerful ideas, values, and meanings associated with the remarkable cultural, natural, and recreational heritage of the United States.  The National Park Service provides opportunities for all Americans to connect to their national heritage through the national parks.  However, these opportunities are lacking for some children.  The Teacher to Ranger to Teacher Program serves to link national park units with teachers from local school districts.

For further information, call the Big South Fork's Bandy Creek Visitor Center at [phone] or the Obed Visitor Center at [phone].