Catoctin Mountain Park and Local School Systems Awarded National Park Foundation ‘Ticket To Ride’ Grant

Date: September 4, 2012

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Catoctin Mountain Park and Local School Systems Awarded National Park Foundation 'Ticket To Ride' Grant To Bring Local Students Into Park

$230,000 Grant Connects 30,000 Students with National Parks Across the Country 

Responding to an overwhelming need for transportation and educational programming funding from parks and schools nationwide, the National Park Foundation, the official charity of America's national parks, created the Ticket To Ride program. With support from Disney, Ticket to Ride provides financial resources for transportation, in-park educational programming, and meals that make national park field trips possible for schools across the country. This year, Catoctin Mountain Park was selected to receive a Ticket to Ride grant in order to bring 550 students to Catoctin Mountain Park. Nationwide, over $230,000 in Ticket to Ride grants will make it possible for more than 30,000 students to experience their local national park this fall.

At Catoctin, high school students, selected by their teachers for capability and enthusiasm, will assist Park Rangers and volunteers guiding middle school and younger students on explorations focused on human impact on water quality and other topics relevant to that group's science curriculum. Partner schools will bring urban and rural students from multiple counties, providing the first National Park visit for a large percentage of students, all of whom live within 35 miles of the park. Sadly, there is no public transportation in the area, so many may not have the means to make return visits to Catoctin, increasing the importance and impact of this journey.

"Providing the means for America's youth to experience all that our national park system has to offer is imperative," said Neil Mulholland, President and CEO of the National Park Foundation. "The Ticket to Ride program makes it possible for us to engage the younger generation through the parks' unique natural, cultural and historical classrooms, ultimately fostering an early love and appreciation for these important places."

Additional 2012 Ticket to Ride Grantees include:

Assateague Island National Seashore
Biscayne National Park
Boston National Historical Park
Bryce Canyon National Park
Buck Island Reef National Monument
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park
Congaree National Park
Crater Lake National Park
Craters of the Moon National Monument and National Preserve
Devils Postpile National Monument
Erie Canalway National Heritage Corridor
Everglades National Park and Biscayne National Park
Fort Sumter National Monument
Homestead National Monument of America
Lava Beds National Monument
Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial
Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
Mississippi National River and Recreation Area
Moores Creek National Battlefield
National Mall and Memorial Parks
New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park
North Cascades National Park
Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
Piscataway Park
Point Reyes National Seashore
River Raisin National Battlefield Park
San Juan Island National Historical Park
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area
Stones River National Battlefield
Virgin Islands National Park
Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts
World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument
Yosemite National Park

Recognizing that once in the parks, a world of experiential learning opens up, the National Park Foundation and the National Park Service are dedicated to providing this critical access to the parks. Through these field trips, young people discover their natural, cultural and historical heritage, participate in volunteer and service-learning activities, enjoy recreational opportunities and most importantly, begin a lifelong relationship with their national parks.

For more information about the Ticket to Ride program, our corporate partners and ways to support this and the other exceptional National Park Foundation programs, go to www.nationalparks.org.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION

You are the owner of 84 million acres of the world's most treasured memorials, landscapes, ecosystems, and historic sites -- all protected in America's nearly 400 national parks. Chartered by Congress, the National Park Foundation is the official charity of America's national parks. We work hand in hand with the National Park Service to connect you and all Americans to the parks, and to make sure that they are preserved for the generations who will follow. Join us in supporting your national parks -- this is your land. www.nationalparks.org.

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Catoctin Mountain Park is one of nearly 400 units administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. The park Visitor Center, located on State Route 77 three miles west of Thurmont, Maryland, is open daily from 10:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., and from 8:30 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Correspondence should be addressed to: Superintendent, Catoctin Mountain Park, 6602 Foxville Road, Thurmont, MD 21788. Our website address is www.nps.gov/cato. General information can be obtained by calling the Visitor Center at [phone].