The park resource management curriculum prepares students for careers as professional park resource managers. Graduates work as park rangers, naturalists, planners, and directors and in other areas of natural resource management.
The President's Commission on Americans Outdoor reports that the management of our nation's outdoor resources is essential for the following reasons: Americans place a high value on the outdoors; it is central to the quality of our lives and the quality of our communities. Outdoor recreation provides significant social, economic, and environmental benefits. High quality resources -- land, water, and air--are essential to fishing and boating, camping and hiking, skiing and bicycling, hunting and horseback riding, and every other outdoor activity. Quality of the natural environment remains precarious. We are becoming aware of more pervasive long-term threats such as toxic chemicals, water pollution from non-point sources, groundwater contamination, and acid precipitation. We are losing available open space on the fringe of fast-growing urban areas and near water. Wetlands and wildlife are disappearing. Wild and free-flowing rivers are being dammed, and residential and commercial development is cutting off public access to rivers in urban areas. With more people doing many different things outdoors, competition for available lands and waters is increasing; to accommodate these pressures we will have to better manage what we have.
Management of natural resources is critical to America's future. Wise management will require the best efforts of highly trained and dedicated professionals. The Department of Horticulture, Forestry and Recreation Resources has award-winning faculty who are committed to provide the highest level of professional training in the field.
Openings exist for those who are adequately prepared. Most employment opportunities are in the public sector, including such agencies as the National Park Service, the USDA Forest Service, state park departments, and city and county park and recreation departments. There are also positions in private business at resorts, lodges, estates, and other areas.
Surveys show that our most successful students possess the following characteristics: love of the outdoors; strong sense of purpose; deep concern for the environment; desire to serve people; leadership ability; and desire for self-expression. Our successful students have possessed these characteristics and have gone on to pursue challenging and rewarding careers in park resource management.
The Park and Resource Management Club provides an opportunity for students to get to know each other and the faculty in an informal setting. The club also allows students to develop and exhibit leadership and organizational skills, an important part of a quality education. Through club meetings and field trips, students meet professionals in the field of park resource management These contacts allow students to learn firsthand about resource management and also about specific career opportunities. In addition to many local trips, recent club activities have included trips to Colorado, the Tetons of Wyoming, the Black Hills and Badlands of South Dakota and the Grand Canyon.
Park resource management combines the study of biological and natural sciences with communications, management, and social sciences. The park resource professional must understand the relationship between the natural environment and human activities. He or she must also have an understanding of the social, economic, and political factors influencing use of natural resources.
Students in the park resource management program can choose between two emphases: park interpreter and park manager/ranger. Students select three courses from a list designed to prepare them for their chosen path.
For more information about the park resource management program
e-mail or write to:
Kansas State University
Department of Horticulture, Forestry and Recreation Resources
1028 Throckmorton Plant Sciences Center
Manhattan, KS 66506-5506
Email:
dedmonds@oznet.ksu.edu
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