Where are you from?
Boston, MA
Where do you attend school? Share with us the city/town, what you are majoring in, what your academic interests are?
In May 2020, I completed the Master of Landscape Architecture degree program at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst. In addition to the MLA degree, I earned a Graduate Certificate in Cultural Landscape Management. Additionally, I have developed a keen interest in horticulture and had the opportunity to complete two intensive horticulture summer internships while in school. For my capstone project, I undertook historic site research and design for Castle Island, Marine Park, and Pleasure Bay, important public landscapes in my hometown of South Boston.
What are your career or educational goals?
I plan to build a career as a designer at the intersection of cultural landscape planning and horticulture. I see both practices as tools for encouraging and deepening connections between people, the natural world, the built environment, and history.
Outside of school and work what are your hobbies and/or interests?
I love exploring public landscapes, from formal botanic gardens to forested conservation areas. I’m always trying to learn as much as I can about different places and how they fit within the larger context of public landscape history in the U.S. I’m an avid hiker and am usually on the lookout for new spots to set up my hammock. I also enjoy photography and have dabbled in developing and printing film whenever a darkroom is easily accessible.
What is your internship project focus? Explain what you will be doing, which parks/partners will you be working with? Who is your mentor at OCLP?
Over the next 7 ½ months, I will be working primarily with John Auwaerter and Eliot Foulds to complete several Cultural Landscape Reports that currently exist in various degrees of development. First, I will focus on Blow-Me-Down Farm at the Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park in Cornish, NH.
Why did you choose to participate in a Designing the Parks Internship? How is your internship hosted? (Examples include: LHIP, NCPE, ACE, HBCUI, Mosaics in Science, etc)
My internship is hosted by NCPE. I chose to participate in the Designing the Parks Internship program because the Olmsted Center exists precisely at the intersection of cultural landscape planning and horticulture that I hope to explore in my career. I could not imagine a better organization to work and learn with at this important early stage of my career.
What are you looking forward to learning or exploring during your internship?
As much as possible! First, I want to increase my knowledge of the Cultural Landscape Report format and develop my confidence in assembling those documents. This will include honing skills in research, writing, and graphic communication. Additionally, I hope to learn more about the ways in which new technologies, especially related to digital representation and modeling, can be applied to cultural landscape planning.
What types of opportunities will Designing the Parks provide you with?
I look forward to participating in the planning efforts around significant cultural landscapes in the U.S. and developing skills that will carry forward in my career. I am also excited about opportunities to learn more about cultural resource management in the National Park Service, and to meet professionals working in the field. Of course, I am also thrilled to gain new friends and colleagues among the Olmsted Center staff and my fellow associates.
Designing the Parks 