Through Yosemite Leadership Program (YLP) summer internships, culturally diverse college students spend 12 weeks living, working and learning in Yosemite. This program, one of the premier internships in the National Park Service, inspires young people to develop deep connections with Yosemite, and serves as a pathway to public-lands careers for students who might not otherwise have the chance to visit or work in a national park.

In 2017, the 16 YLP interns worked with education rangers, engineers, wildlife experts and others to receive on-the-job training and explore environmental leadership. As part of their summer in the park, the interns worked on projects to benefit Yosemite, producing resources such as a bird-banding field guide, a manual for youth art classes, an educational fire-management video, and a map of climbing routes. The YLP interns also mentored more than 130 young people in Yosemite, including participants in donor-funded programs, such as Parks in Focus and Adventure Risk Challenge.

Your support helped college students gain valuable career experience and complete professional projects in Yosemite. Read our Q-and-A with Lora, our 2017 art programs intern, for an inside look at the YLP experience.

Completed in partnership with Yosemite National Park and University of California, Merced.

Shauna Potocky

Director of Education and Youth Program

Project Notes

The Yosemite Leadership Program Summer Internship is one of the premier internships in the National Park Service, recognized for its ability to recruit highly qualified, culturally diverse youth and provide them with the opportunity to live and work in Yosemite National Park alongside the managers, scientists and program administrators in the field.