On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss the autonomy of state parks. Back in the 1960s and 1970s, decision-making in state parks was centralized at headquarters resulting in cookie-cutter approaches to management; however, as Phil explains, recent trends have empowered authority at the local level. Since each park is unique, each state park should have the authority to make quick, high-impact decisions. While headquarters should have a role in inf...
Jul 05, 2022•24 min•Ep. 260
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guests Jonathan and Destry Jarvis, join the show to discuss their book, National Parks Forever: Fifty Years of Fighting and a Case for Independence. Fusing experience with non-fiction, Jonathan and Destry unpack five decades of political tension involving state parks. Since 1972, conflicting perspectives in the Department of the Interior have hindered the role of the National Park Service. While some have contended the NPS should promote preservation and...
Jun 28, 2022•45 min•Ep. 259
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss why parks should be financially sufficient. While a complex topic in execution, the bottom line for a park’s financial structure is simple: Each state park should be sufficient to maintain operating expenses including maintenance and personnel. As Phil explains, this implies independence in terms of need provision for visitors and staff and controlling the destiny of the park. Granted, any state park would b...
Jun 21, 2022•27 min•Ep. 257
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss why rangers should commit to their campaign hat. While dress code is often a subjective topic, for park rangers, the uniform plays a valuable role. While badges have their place, as Phil explains, the campaign hat designates authority and captures an iconic legacy to tourists. If one is a ranger or park leader, it’s critical for visitors to know who they are as they explore and inquire. As the campaign hat r...
Jun 14, 2022•21 min•Ep. 258
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss his final experience at the State Park Leadership School. Started by the National Association of Park Directors in 2005, Phil unpacks his role with the school in finding instructors, inspiring attendance, and delivering content. Since each state has different guidelines and regulations, Phil explains why the school is now a two-year program focused on overarching leadership principles and best practices. Alt...
Jun 07, 2022•23 min•Ep. 256
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, Park Supervisor, Rowdy Perry, joins the show to discuss his love and appreciation for state parks. As a former ranger turned supervisor for the Michigan Department of Nature Resources, Rowdy unpacks the attendance rise in his state, the psychological safety parks bring, and how park leaders should perceive their jobs. Per his experience, while park employees get paid in sunsets, the reason behind the work comes back to people and providing them resources...
May 31, 2022•29 min•Ep. 255
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, Ben Novak, Lead Scientist at Revive & Restore, rejoins the show to share recent conservation success stories. While intended consequences may seem like a vague term, in the context of environment preservation, this often refers to the calculated controlling of species and habitats to sustain life. In select state parks, the reintroduction of wolves into the wild is a prime example of what’s working. In other areas, the reintegration of turkeys into g...
May 24, 2022•44 min•Ep. 254
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Host of the “Build a Winning Team” podcast, and former COO of Story Brand, joins the show to discuss his story and definition of success. A man of many hats, Tim Schurrer talks about the value of humility within a teamwork setting. Per his experiences, corporate success is often defined by a selfless culture where roles are prioritized above the spotlight. By cultivating an environment of validation, team members can derive contentment fro...
May 17, 2022•28 min•Ep. 253
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss new economic trends within park management. In the wake of the pandemic, park visitors have increased around the country. Yet, while the uptick in retention has been a silver lining, the population boom has led to new opportunities. As more tourists visit state parks, the more demand has taxed its resources. Accordingly, this has prompted some park rangers to enforce new fees and limits for trail and campgro...
May 10, 2022•22 min•Ep. 252
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, special guest, Michelle Baker, former Director of Disney Institute, and business leader at Disney Cruise Line, joins the show to discuss ways to build a better park culture. As Michelle explains, the emerging generation of park leaders and visitors have a deep desire to leave a lasting impact. From recreation to labor, the theme among rangers and tourists today is to live and work on purpose. Yet, for some starting out in the industry, the ‘how to’ on im...
Apr 05, 2022•28 min•Ep. 251
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss the proper title for park visitors. As Phil explains, while there’s a transactional element involving visitors, they aren’t best described as customers or guests due to service intent. Since state and national parks are for the public, the goal for park leaders should be to retain tourists over time as opposed to making money in the moment. Accordingly, one could say the best investments for parks are cyclic...
Mar 29, 2022•13 min•Ep. 250
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss popular themes and topics from today’s tourists. Having spoken at several park ranger conferences in recent weeks, Phil notes the common denominators of frequently asked questions. The most common threads? Visitor retention and voluntary compliance. As Phil explains, while many park fans are curious about increased visitation and staffing struggles, the motivations for these inquiries are similar. With more ...
Mar 22, 2022•26 min•Ep. 249
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns on-site at Zion National Park to discuss the complexities of maintaining large-scale state parks. From capacity management to resource protection, encouraging tourism and preservation in tandem can be a difficult task. Sprinkle in today’s social issues and the recipe for park leadership can get tricky in a hurry; however, as Phil charges, as long as rangers are committed to perceiving their parks through the eyes of a ...
Feb 16, 2022•16 min•Ep. 248
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss ways leaders can focus on professional growth during this pandemic era. While personal growth centers on passion, experience, and knowledge base, as Phil explains, the key to professional growth boils down to legacy. Despite competition being a commercial necessity, to mature professionally, one must consider what making a difference looks like. For some, upward mobility is essential to this reality; for oth...
Nov 30, 2021•32 min•Ep. 246
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest Scott Durham, former superintendent of West Virginia State Parks, joins the show to discuss the origin of the “Ranger First” mantra. As Durham explains, with park ranger set as a universal term, the “Ranger First” philosophy was established to clarify authoritative influence and promote voluntary compliance. Since its inception, benefits have emerged specifically through community-oriented policing and accountability among rangers and superintenden...
Nov 23, 2021•28 min•Ep. 245
Phil Gaines returns to discuss ways park leaders can focus on personal growth during this pandemic era. While COVID-19 has altered many park programs, on a personal level, the effects have varied among rangers. Even as visitation rates have increased in recent months, so tends to complacency, especially for leaders accustomed to former rhythms. Yet, as Phil explains, if you’re an influencer hoping to mature in this season, you must refuse to be easily satisfied. Rather than stick to the predicta...
Oct 12, 2021•32 min•Ep. 242
On this episode of the Parks Leaders Show, the Ingles family joins in to discuss their passion for state parks. As road warriors, the Ingles have a fresh perspective on park trends and patterns. With the recent increase in park visitation, De and John note emerging issues in national parks such as overcrowding and conservation communication and provide solutions on what rangers can do in the short term. Additionally, to help parks in their preservation efforts, the Ingles hope their passion proj...
Oct 05, 2021•22 min•Ep. 241
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss ways park leaders can recalibrate their careers amidst the pandemic. In this Covid-19 era, customer service has suffered across multiple industries such as national and state parks. Despite new efforts to attract tourists, limited staff, restricted hours, and dwindling attendance have combined to hinder performance across multiple locations. Yet, as Phil explains in this episode, while disruptions increase d...
Sep 28, 2021•22 min•Ep. 240
Matthew Luhn joins the show to discuss using Pixar-style storytelling for interpretation. As discussed in previous interviews, interpreters are some of the best storytellers on the planet. Especially when integrating science, the opportunity to engage park visitors through interactive engagement has never been greater. According to Matthew, the value of stories, in part, is their ability to tie a critical message to the story itself. For instance, if you want to encourage an audience to be prepa...
Aug 24, 2021•27 min•Ep. 239
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss the relationship between interpretation and cultural challenges. In present times, more and more park rangers are having to adapt their language to political correctness. Especially after a year like 2020, to preserve retention, state and national park leaders are reanalyzing how they communicate history to the next generation of visitors. However, as Phil and I discuss in this episode, interpretation is als...
Aug 10, 2021•31 min•Ep. 238
Kyle Wagner, former Travel Editor for the Denver Post, joins the show to discuss her state and national park endeavors. A current freelance editor and writer, Kyle explains her heart for exploration and goal to visit every Colorado State Park. With a mission to visit every national park, Kyle hopes her followers can draw inspiration from her favorite landmarks and historic sites. Kyle also shares her top five Colorado state parks and some of the most embarrassing questions raised by her readers....
Aug 03, 2021•32 min•Ep. 237
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guests, James Ledgerwood, superintendent of Chimney Rock State Park, Mary Yeager Gale, Chairman of the Board for Chimney Rock Management, and Emily Blackwell, Project Manager at Stewart, join the show to discuss access at Chimney Rock State Park. Known for its renowned elevator access and outcroppings trails, Chimney Rock State Park has seen an evolution of improvement since 2011. While many last decades would struggle to summit its peak, changes to trai...
Jul 27, 2021•36 min•Ep. 236
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest Brad Krey returns to discuss interpretative services and digital access to parks. As education evolves into a social distance science, the same reality is impacting today’s parks. According to Brad, there’s not only a concern to teach a new generation about natural resources but build influential relationships through technology. In an ideal world, more teachers consider state parks as a platform for natural resource education. From there, by utili...
Jul 20, 2021•27 min•Ep. 235
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host, Phil Gaines, returns to discuss park retention with COVID-19 impacts beginning to fade. After 15 months of social distancing, parks, like most enterprises, are slowly returning to normality. Accordingly, Phil asks two critical questions: 1) How do we get back to normal? 2) How do we educate and engage in what we want them to learn? As Phil and Jody discuss, state parks should embrace the opportunity to provide more resources, from kiosks t...
Jun 29, 2021•24 min•Ep. 234
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, Alan Spears, Senior Director of Cultural Resources for the National Parks Conservation Association, joins the show to discuss civil discourse in state parks. In a politically charged era, the struggle to promote diversity is real. Tensions are high, feelings are fragile, and confrontations are ignitable if not handled appropriately. Yet, as Alan explains, state parks can play a part in healing cultural and racial divisions. Not only can parks commemorate...
Jun 22, 2021•39 min•Ep. 233
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, Jackson Lake State Senior Park Director Amy Brandenburg joins the show to discuss becoming dark-sky certified. Having helped her Morgan County state park achieve dark-sky certified status in September 2020, Amy explains the requirements of obtaining the designation. As she points out, the accreditation process can be exhausting for parks pursuing similar endeavors. For starters, park rangers must not only file an extended application but revise their par...
Jun 15, 2021•25 min•Ep. 232
On this special episode of the Park Leaders Show, the Logsdon family joins the show to discuss iguanas and working with families as camp hosts. As a family on the go, the Logsdon live an abnormal life; however, while their mobile, small-home lifestyle has been perceived unorthodox by some, the learning, volunteer, and mentoring opportunities have well made up for it. According to Nathan, more young families should consider camp hosting as a realistic venture. Even in shoulder seasons, camp hosts...
Jun 08, 2021•31 min•Ep. 231
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, biologist, Gina Zwicky, joins the show to discuss her passion for frogs. Charming, charismatic, and ecologically intriguing, Gina explains how frogs inspired her career as well as her side hustles. Currently serving as a park service volunteer, Gina also discusses why she enjoys taking people on interpretative nature hikes and what people can do to improve their interactions. For instance, while frogs are suffering due to human activity, by connecting wi...
Jun 01, 2021•30 min•Ep. 230
On this episode of the Park Leaders Show, guest co-host Phil Gaines, and Milward Simpson, Executor Director for the National Association of Interpretation, returns to discuss interpreters at parks. While most interpretative services foster outdoor natural hobbies and interests, as Milward and Phil explain, the success of visitation must also reflect in data and revenue. As many parker ranges aspire, forming life-long connections with guests is an intellectual and financial end-goal; however, thi...
May 25, 2021•33 min•Ep. 229
Andrea Ketchmark, executive director of the North Country Trail Association, joins the show to discuss chapter-based organizations and the working relationship between agencies and associations. As the pioneer of a nonprofit organization that coordinates volunteer trail builders and chapters in eight states, Andrea’s role entails project implantation, navigation and safety communications, and grant writing. However, of all her responsibilities, perhaps the greatest challenge involves working wit...
May 18, 2021•30 min•Ep. 228
