Another Successful Year with YCC

2007 Petrified Forest National Park YCC Crew

NPS

News Release Date: August 1, 2007

Contact: Lyn Carranza, [phone] ext. 245

Another Successful Year with Youth Conservation Corps at Petrified Forest National Park

Petrified Forest, AZ – This past summerPetrified Forest National Park hired fourteen youth from areas near the park in a Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) program. “Students were recruited from local high schools to assist with a number of critical park projects,” said Acting Superintendent Brad Traver.

Some of the deferred maintenance projects completed with the assistance of this crew included  exotic plant eradication, striping parking lots, and installing barricades at sensitive areas along trails. In addition, many other small projects were completed that may not have otherwise been accomplished without the assistance of this crew.

As a part of this program, the students are provided educational opportunities during the time that they are employed. This summer, students took a hike into the Painted Desert Wilderness and learned about the park’s paleontology.They went to two other National Park Service sites, Sunset Crater and Walnut Canyon, where they learned about how other parks are organized and how they operate. They were given special “behind the scenes” tours at those sites. The group also learned about one of the National Park Service’s sister agencies, the U. S. Forest Service on a trip to Old Caves Pueblo in the Coconino National Forest. They also visited the Holbrook Historic Courthouse and Meteor Crater.

YCC is a summer employment program established by the Federal government to provide an opportunity for young men and women to work, earn, and learn together in projects in public land areas of the United States of America.

The three objectives of the YCC program are:

1) Accomplish needed conservation work on public lands;
2) Provide gainful employment for young people of all social, economic, ethnic, and racial backgrounds; and
3) Develop in participating youth an understanding and appreciation of the nation’s natural environment and heritage.

Youth are provided an opportunity to increase self-esteem and learn self-discipline. They learn work ethics, relate with peers and supervisors, and build lasting cultural bridges. Length of employment was 8 weeks beginning on June 11, 2007, and continuing through August 3, 2007.

In the heading photo:
Students hired for the 2007 YCC program included from left to right:  Darien Chee, Derrick Baloo, Shane Lee, Marcelino Luna, Amber George, Kaitlyn Wilbanks, Rebecca Slade, Sherilyn Baloo, Albert Neff, Curtis James, Stephen McConnell, Matthias Baldwin, Leander White, and Maranda Barker (not shown).    

Color, digital images are available upon request at the address or phone number below.

For information call [phone] weekdays, 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Mountain Standard Time; or write to the Superintendent, Petrified Forest National Park, P.O. Box 2217, Petrified Forest, AZ 86028; or e-mail the park.