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Contact: Deborah Coble, 907-280-8739
Contact: Angela Bates, 478-752-8257 ext. 219
ATLANTA, Ga. — National Park Service (NPS) South Atlantic-Gulf Regional Director Stan Austin today announced the selection of Carla Beasley as the new superintendent of Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, located in Macon, Georgia. Beasley previously served as the park’s acting superintendent for several months through June this year. She will begin her new assignment on September 27.
“We are excited to welcome Carla back to Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park as superintendent,” said Austin. “Carla’s experience managing complex operations will prove critical as the park works to protect a broader set of resources established by the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act. Carla is well-primed to build on the park’s key partnerships and exceptional stewardship of prehistoric American Indian heritage.”
“I am excited to officially join the dedicated team at Ocmulgee Mounds and continue the tremendous work of the previous superintendent, Jim David,” said Beasley. “It is an honor to further the legacy of strong relationships with the tribal nations, park partners, the community, and others to ensure the ongoing protection of this deeply meaningful site that has witnessed 12,000 years of continuous human habitation.”
Beasley joins the park from Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and Middle Delaware Scenic and Recreational River where she has been chief of interpretation, education and partnerships since 2010. Her career with the National Park Service began as a Student Conservation Association volunteer at Ozarks National Scenic Riverways in 1989. She then worked as a seasonal ranger for several years before securing her first permanent position as an interpretive ranger at Carlsbad Caverns National Park in 1992. In subsequent years, Beasley worked as an interpretive ranger in a variety of progressively challenging management roles, including supervisory park ranger at Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park and chief of interpretation at Dinosaur National Monument. In 2016, she was selected as a Horace Albright Fellow, affording her a front-row seat to key issues affecting the National Park Service. In 2018, while at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, Beasley and her team won the agency’s regional Achieving Relevance Interpretive Team Award for significantly changing the course of interpretation and education while greatly improving the park’s visitor experience programs. She has also completed temporary assignments as acting deputy superintendent at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area and acting superintendent at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park.
A native of Fort Smith, Arkansas, Beasley holds a Master of Science in Resource Interpretation from Stephen F. Austin State University and a Bachelor of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife Management from Arkansas Tech University. During her free time, she enjoys traveling to national parks to experience their natural beauty, diverse cultural heritage and numerous recreational opportunities.
About Ocmulgee National Historical Park:
Located in Macon, Georgia, visitors may find traces of 12,000 years of Southeastern culture from Ice Age Indians to the historic Creek Confederacy are preserved at Ocmulgee National Historical Park. The park includes many artifacts and the massive temple mounds of a Mississippian Indian ceremonial complex that thrived here between 900 and 1100. Originally established Dec. 23, 1936 as a 703.70-acre national monument, the park has recently undergone a boundary and designation change from national monument to national historical park authorized by the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation Management and Recreation Act of 2019 (Public Law 116-9). Expansion of the park’s boundary to cover more than 2,000 additional acres brings the approximate acreage to about 3,000 acres– almost four times its previous size. The park receives approximately 150,000 visitors annually.
Last updated: September 3, 2020