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| NPS Photo | | The Teacher to Ranger to Teacher Program links National Park units with teachers from predominantly Title 1 school districts. This allows the teacher participating in the program to bring their National Park Service experience to the classroom for their students. |
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Teacher to Ranger to Teacher Program
National parks provide Americans opportunities to connect to their national heritage. Too often social and economic factors deny some from realizing those opportunities. The Teacher to Ranger to Teacher (TRT) program offers a unique solution by linking National Park Service (NPS) units with teachers from schools with ethnically diverse student populations, with little or no experience with national parks, and little opportunity to explore the relevance these areas can have in their lives. Teacher rangers form a link between schoolchildren and national park units like Dinosaur National Monument.
How Does It Work?
Teachers are detailed as park rangers to Dinosaur National Monument through an Inter-Governmental Personnel Act (IPA) agreement between their public school district and the National Park Service. They spend eight weeks during the summer performing various duties, determined by their interests and the needs of the park. The park provides training, a ranger uniform, shared housing, and a $300/week supplementary payment.
Once back in their schools, teacher rangers bring national parks into the classroom throughout the school year. During National Park Week in April, teacher rangers wear their NPS uniforms to school and engage students and other teachers in activities that relate to Dinosaur National Monument and other NPS sites.
Position's General Duties
The Teacher-Ranger-Teacher helps visitors better understand fossil and other resources located in the monument by providing information at the visitor center desk and providing formal presentations to the public. Each year, the Teacher-Ranger-Teacher works on special project based on the park's needs and the selected individual’s interest.
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2007 Project: develop self-guided activities for educational groups visiting the park
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2009 Project: develop youth activities for fossil discovery centennial celebration
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Possible Future Projects: develop Scout activities, develop curriculum-based programs, and develop Junior Ranger program for school classroom
How Do I Apply?
The 2009 Teacher-Ranger-Teacher position has been filled. We plan to offer a Teacher-Ranger-Teacher position the summer of 2010. Please check back the winter of 2009/2010 for the application process. For questions about the position, contact Carla Beasley at (435) 781-7702 or by e-mail.
More information
For more information about the program and find a list of participating parks, visit the website.
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