Underfunded National Parks Must Turn Away Children, Study Says

by Brian Skoloff
San Francisco Chronicle - January 27, 2005

National parks in California are so underfunded and understaffed that they've eliminated educational programs and are turning away thousands of children each year.

According to a study this week from the National Parks Conservation Association, roughly 80,000 kindergartners through 12th graders participate in educational programs each year at parks such as Joshua Tree, Yosemite and Lassen Volcanic. That amounts to only 1 percent of the state's 7 million public and private school students.

"Part of providing a high-quality education to our children is ensuring access to the unique learning opportunities in our national parks," said Deborah DeMeo, the association's California desert field representative.

NPCA, a nonprofit advocacy group, estimates that the 11 parks would require a $7 million increase in their operating budgets to meet current demand. The national park system as a whole suffers from a shortfall of more than $600 million, according to the NPCA study, prompting parks around the country to cut programs and staff.

In 2003, for example, staff shortages forced Lava Beds National Monument to cut educational programs that had served 2,442 students, according to the study.

Holly Bundock, a National Park Service spokeswoman, said cutbacks have been so severe that nature walks, science workshops and wildlife talks have been axed. The 11 parks examined have 149 staff devoted to interpretive programs, but they'd need twice as many to provide adequate services, the study found.

"Frankly, the emphasis has been on maintenance backlogs, which is visitor facilities and restoration that everybody enjoys, but education is still one of our primary missions," Bundock said. "We'd love more money, but we do what we can with what we've got."

Science educators say parks' financial problems result in wasted teaching opportunities in California's bountiful mountains, deserts and valleys.

"National parks offer the ultimate outdoor classroom," said James M. Andre, director of the Sweeney Granite Mountains Desert Research Center operated by the University of California, Riverside. "Numerous national reports highlight the field experience as most effective means for teaching science and developing an awareness of our natural world."