Where are you from?
Havertown, PA
Where do you attend school? Share with us the city/town, what you are majoring in, what your academic interests are?
I graduated in May 2019 from Tufts University located in Medford, MA, with Bachelor’s degrees in Environmental Studies and Anthropology. My interests lie at the intersection of people and place, which I have pursued as an environmental educator in school vegetable gardens, a facilitator of youth preservation crews, and most recently through horticulture at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA.
What are your career or educational goals?
I aim to inspire and nurture environmental curiosity in others. This work is directly tied to breaking down systemic barriers to the outdoors based on race, class, and ability. I hope to support accessible environmental engagement programs near urban centers and teach horticulture and food systems skills that will carry participants to job opportunities in environmental preservation.
Outside of school and work what are your hobbies and/or interests?
I love to write letters. Postcards, handwritten letters, and, mostly recently, notes from an old typewriter. I appreciate the slower timescale of sending and receiving updates from friends in the mail, as opposed to electronically.
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?
As the Horticulture Associate, my focus is on revamping the Olmsted Center’s Historic Plant Propagation Program with the guidance of Brooke Derr, Horticulturist. This program aims to support parks that have ailing, historically significant trees. Through propagation resources and trainings, parks are equipped to grow replacement trees (propagules) and preserve their story in the landscape.
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)
I first learned about the Designing the Parks program in 2018, when I worked as a Field Team Leader with the Olmsted Center’s Branching Out Youth Program. I remember listening to a DTP teach-back and appreciating the excitement that the associate brought to their landscape preservation work. My position is supported by the National Council for Preservation Education.
What are you looking forward to learning or exploring during your internship?
I have the unique opportunity of partnering with many Region 1 parks, rather than focusing on one site. I am thrilled to explore these numerous partnerships, which will deepen my understanding of the region’s history through its diversity of vegetation, landscapes, treatment plans, logistical constraints, and park philosophies. I look forward to upcoming site visits to parks and nursery facilities.
What types of opportunities will Designing the Parks provide you with?
Learning from, and with, others! Especially the other associates and young professionals, collaborative peer groups who meet weekly. I look forward to upcoming virtual seminars and workshops offered through DTP and NCPE to learn more about projects and career paths within the Park Service.
Designing the Parks 