Department of the Interior Grant: Next Generation Ranger Corps Program for Local Youth Employment in Southern Arizona

Saguaro National Park and FOSNP will join together in partnership to create a new program for youth employment and economic opportunity in Southern Arizona, entitled the Next Generation Ranger Corps. Using funds from the National Park Service, FOSNP will recruit and hire local (3) youth interns to be placed with Saguaro National Park as Next Generation Ranger Corps members, here for referred to as a NextGen Rangers.
Through this agreement, the National Park Service is committed to working within our local community and providing opportunities to alleviate poverty through providing employment opportunities for youth interested in public lands and conservation, as well as providing youth from under-represented areas of Tucson opportunities to gain professional development in career tracks they may not have traditionally considered available to them. Interns will also gain exposure to outdoor recreation opportunities and experiences in other national parks in Arizona.

This project addresses the public purposes of 1) providing opportunities to alleviate poverty through providing employment opportunities for youth interested in publisnad and conservation; 2) providing youth from under-represented areas of Tucson opportunities to gain professional development in career tracks they may not have traditionally considered available to them; 3) providing opportunities for youth to learn about the environment by spending time working on and completing conservation projects in national parks; 4) motivating youth to become involved in natural resource protection of their communities and beyond, and engage in hands-on experience; 5) gaining and disseminating new scientific knowledge; and 6) assisting in the promotion and improvement of the public’s understanding of natural resources and conservation.