Diverse Voices Memo: College Students in National Parks

Renée Koma

Department of Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Management

RPTM 470: Recreation and Park Management

Dr. Nathan Reigner

March 11, 2021

 Among the underrepresented voices in today’s parks and recreational spaces, college
students are some of the most urgent. They encompass a number of other traditionally
underrepresented groups; form a large percentage of the future workforce; and will ultimately
decide, as working, voting adults, the financial future of many national parks.
The percentage of Americans holding a four-year bachelor’s degree is not insignificant
and continues to rise. In 2019, that number hovered around 32% of the population (McElrath et
al., 2021). Minority groups enrolled in two and four-year degree programs are also on the rise,
with students of Asian ethnicity exceeding white students, and black students not lagging far
behind all other groups. The total percentage of the population enrolled in two and four-year
degree programs amounted to 41% in 2018 (“College Enrollment Rates”, 2020). The modern
college population includes many groups who lack transportation to national parks and
recreation spaces and struggle to pay for their degree, let alone park entrance fees.
This creates a significant issue. Much of National Park Service advertisements and
programs are aimed towards families and adults that exceed the typical age of an
undergraduate college student, and the average national park visitor is white and affluent (Rott,
2016). The percentage of minorities enrolled in college will likely continue to follow an upward
trend. If degree holders earn an average of $18,772 more per year than non-degree holders
(Stobierski, 2020), and if these minorities and age groups continue to be underrepresented and
unwelcome in national parks, then the National Park Service may face a grim lack of funding in
coming decades (Rott, 2016).
Park managers will need to increase diversity in park staff in order to create more
welcoming places for diverse groups of people. For college students in particular, a park pass
that reduces the costs of park entrance fees for certain seasons or certain days may help attract
college-aged visitors to the park. This is similar to the already established Annual 4th Grade
Pass, which offers free admission to participating fourth graders and their families (“Overview of
the Every Kid in a Park Pass”). College students are not mentioned or represented on the
National Park Service website other than the section that lists internship and job opportunities.
This may be especially alienating to minority groups in college, who often feel unwelcome in
outdoors-based careers. If this is the only space in which the college-aged demographic is
welcome, then the diversity issue persists.
My interpretation of this voice will recognize the problem, which remains well-hidden,
and identify management-based solutions. The college student demographic will have their
voices heard beyond the single page of their resume, and may even search for a park near
them.
Each generation of college students represents the near future of the NPS. They
represent the wants and needs of the population as it ages, and speak to a more and more
heavily educated American public with diverse faces, languages, cultures, and interests. To
keep up, NPS will need to create more welcoming spaces for diverse cultures. They will need to
promote a narrative that is different from the solitary wilderness experience, which does not
resonate with many cultures across the nation. They will also need to financially cater to the
next generation of college students, who may be even more in debt than the last. They may do
this by offering park passes and increasing methods of public transportation to reach National
Parks.
 Works Cited

College Enrollment Rates [PDF]. (2020). The Condition of Education.

McElrath, K., & Martin, M. (2021, February). Bachelor’s Degree Attainment in the United
States: 2005 to 2019 [PDF]. U.S. Census Bureau.

Overview of the Every Kid in a Park Annual 4th Grade Pass [PDF]. (n.d.). National Park
Service.

Rott, N. (2016, March 09). Don't care about national Parks? The Park service needs you
to. Retrieved March 12, 2021, from https://www.npr.org/2016/03/09/463851006/dont-care-
about-national-parks-the-park-service-needs-you-to

Stobierski, T. (2020, December 14). Average salary by education level: Value of a college
degree. Retrieved March 12, 2021, from https://www.northeastern.edu/bachelors-
completion/news/average-salary-by-education-
level/#:~:text=Bachelor's%20degree%20holders%20will%20earn,than%20%24750%2C00
0%20in%20additional%20income.