Big South Fork Taking Applications for Teacher Ranger Teacher Program

Date: February 16, 2012
Contact: Howard Duncan, 423-569-2404 ext 260

Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area will once again be participating in the National Park Service program called Teacher to Ranger to Teacher (TRT). This will be the third year for the program at Big South Fork. Applications and information will be sent to local school districts. A local educator will be selected from the applicants to work as a park ranger for eight weeks during the summer. While wearing the National Park Ranger uniform, the teacher performs 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. The teacher then takes back to the classroom curriculum-based programs that draw on the summer's experience and introduces students to the remarkable American heritage that national parks preserve. Teacher rangers form a link between school children and national parks.

The program was first initiated in 2003 and became a national program in 2007. As park ambassadors, the teacher rangers take what they learn back to their home schools and share unique experiences with children, the future caretakers of America's special places. During the summer of 2011, parks nationwide had over 125 teacher rangers.

If a local teacher from Fentress, McCreary, Wayne, or Scott County is interested in applying for the TRT program they may do so by contacting their principal or the superintendent of their school district. They may also learn more about the TRT program and find out how to apply by visiting the Big South Fork website.