Thursday, Jul 13, 2006
Valley Forge National Historical Park is excited to be joined this summer by a wonderful group of interns. The variety of skills and knowledge that the interns bring to the park reflects the park’s efforts to enhance educational programs and preserve cultural and natural resources. Each individual shares the vision of helping to make visitors’ experiences at the park ones that they will never forget. Through their work, each intern will gain a greater understanding of the significance of the encampment of 1777-78 and the unique cultural and natural resources the park has to offer. The internships are made possible through partnerships with the Student Conservation Association (SCA) and other organizations, as described below.
Three interns are working in the office of the superintendent. Stephanie Loeb is helping with the promotion and development of new park events through a partnership with the Valley Forge Convention and Visitors Bureau. Stephanie is currently seeking a degree in marketing from Bloomsburg University. Through a grant made possible by the National Parks Foundation and Unilever-Lipton Tea, the park was able to obtain the services of Alisha “Mahogany” Lee from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, Texas. Mahogany is pursuing a double major in health and kinesiology with a triple minor in coaching, business and philosophy. She comes to the park as the health and recreation coordinator intern. While here she plans to create and develop a health and recreation program to innovate communications and public awareness initiatives designed to promote outdoor recreational opportunities. Also, here from Texas is Jacob Zuniga, who is a recreation, park, and tourism science major with a minor in agronomy from Texas A&M University. Jacob is the partnership and volunteer coordinator intern and will assist in enhancing the current volunteer program. He plans to help communicate the importance of volunteering in national parks while seeking to increase new ways to inform the public of volunteer opportunities that Valley Forge NHP has to offer. Jacob also will work with partners and the park’s friends group throughout the summer.
All three of these interns will team up to launch an innovative program called Guide By Cell. Guide by Cell will allow visitors to access a self-guided audio tour at their convenience through cellular telephones. The launch date for the project is mid-July. This project was made possible by Unilever-Lipton Tea Healthy Parks-Healthy Living.
The division of interpretation recruited three interns to help with visitor services. Bonnie Bakewell has come to the park to help with living history programs. Bonnie is a history major and a double minor in historic preservation and political science at Capital University. Joining her from the University of Akron are Jason Collins and Andrew Koosed. Jason is a history and political science major and a seasoned interpreter who enjoys sharing his knowledge of history with inquiring visitors. Thanks to a grant made possible by the National Parks Foundation and Ford Motor Company, Andrew Koosed joins the park as a transportation interpreter. With a bachelor’s degree in geography, he will help to provide an enjoyable experience for visitors by providing guided trolley tours in an effort to reduce congestion on already busy local roads. These individuals will all serve the public in order to make their experience at Valley Forge National Historical Park one to remember.
Two interns will help with curatorial and historical preservation. Liz Seubert comes to the park to help with preservation and documentation of the valuable artifacts in the park’s museum and archival collections, as well as historic monuments in the park. Liz attends the University of Maine at Farmington where she is working on her second bachelor’s degree in history to add to her bachelor’s in anthropology/sociology. Coming from Vassar College is Allison Edgren. Currently working on her double major in history and mathematics, Allison will team up with Liz on cultural resource preservation. Their work will help to ensure that future generations have the opportunity to enjoy the treasures of the past.
Two interns from Villanova University, Skye Lynch and Michael McPherson, are graduate students completing their master's degree in American history. Upon graduation, both will explore further studies toward the Ph.D. degree. Skye and Michael will assist with daily care of the park's historic collections and will complete specific projects related to the collections. Both also be assist with park interpretive programs and will work at Washington's Headquarters.
Partially supported by a grant made possible by the Upper Merion Park and Historic Foundation, two interns are working with park natural resource management staff. Michael Panno is currently seeking a bachelor’s in natural resources and wildlife from the College of Hocking. As a natural resource intern he will help to manage and preserve the eco-system at Valley Forge National Historical Park. Also helping as a natural resource intern is Elisabeth Sibley. Elisabeth attends Tufts University where she is working on a double major in environmental studies and music. She will help to manage and record data on the park’s natural resources for future use. Michael’s and Elisabeth‘s efforts will help to ensure a sustainable environment for flora, fauna and people. Elisabeth and Michael also will assist visitors at the desk at the Welcome Center.
We at Valley Forge National Historical Park would like to thank all the interns for their innovative ideas, talent and knowledge that will be well utilized to enhance the park overall.
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