Scholarship Recipients

For the summer of 2023, Kelsey Carlson worked as a wildland firefighter for the US Forest Service. As the only female on her crew, she rose to a tough challenge that inspired her to continue pursuing her degree in forestry and certification in wildland fire ecology and management at Northern Arizona University. She is an advocate for female leadership in public lands management and hopes to utilize her skills and education to achieve a leadership role in the future.

Paola Hinojosa’s first experience with the National Park Service was through the Latino Heritage Internship Program where her passion for community engagement, environmental project development, and outdoor recreation converged and blossomed. Believing strongly in the value of equitable access to the public lands experience, she is pursuing a bilingual certification and other coursework to prepare for a career in community outreach and diverse, accessible programming.

Through the Latino Heritage Internship Program, Carla Navarrete interns at Zion National Park studying Latino history in the area. Belonging to LGBTQ+ and Latinx communities, Carla recognizes that many people do not have access, awareness, or feel that they belong in these outdoor places, and hopes to facilitate community outreach to foster connections between Latinx communities and outdoor recreation. Carla is finishing a Bachelor’s degree in biology with an emphasis in natural science and a potential concentration in recreation or resource management.

Callum Cintron is the type of young person that greatly impresses us at WNPA. An anthropology and natural resources student at Oregon State University, they are determined to make sure that public lands, especially national parks, are accessible to everyone–no matter their life situation.

Callum knows a bit about what that means. As a transgender person with a disability, they are concerned with safety and accessibility when visiting a park.

They have done meaningful work as a volunteer apprentice with Partnership for the National Trail System (PNTS). Callum helped to plan this year’s PNTS National Trails Workshop, and sits on the DEI committee which works to foster “an inclusive, diverse, equitable, and accessible culture throughout the National Trail System.” Their work also helps to elevate Indigenous knowledge and stewardship.

Callum embodies the values that the Ernest Quintana-Marty Sterkel Education Scholarship was founded upon: supporting those who aim to increase diversity in the workforce of the National Park Service and similar land management or resource agencies.

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area’s Anna Flores received the Ernest Quintana and Marty Sterkel Education Scholarship from Western National Parks Association (WNPA) in 2021. Flores was recognized for her commitment to National Park Service (NPS) and dedication to continuing her college education. Flores’s work as a Spanish communications assistant included educating the public at the park visitor center, interacting with visitors at the Native American Indian Culture Center, and creating new programs focused on the park’s popular topics. Despite a difficult childhood and various academic hurdles, Flores continues to persevere as a first-generation Chicana student in STEM with a passion for the healing purposes of nature. She plans to continue educating and reconnecting her people with nature in a healing and therapeutic way.

Eva Vieyra was awarded the Ernest Quintana and Marty Sterkel Education Scholarship in 2021 by Western National Parks Association (WNPA). As a member of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area youth, Vieyra worked with inspirational role models and other college students to beautify the park, reestablishing her connection with the earth. She worked with other Latinx folks in National Park Service (NPS) who shared her passion for nature and aim to diversify park participation. Vieyra hopes to become an NPS staff member and create inclusive programs to address racial discrepancies that interfere with exposure of national parks to diverse communities.

Maya Tainatongo was the recipient of the Western National Park Association’s (WNPA) Ernest Quintana and Marty Sterkel Education Program Scholarship in 2020 for her dedication to her work at Saguaro National Park in Tucson, Arizona. During her time there, she taught children about the park and its history, including the indigenous Hohokam people who lived on the land before it become a national park. Her Mexican American and Pacific Islander heritage helped her understand the value of feeling welcomed in a community. After graduation from the University of Arizona, Tainatongo hopes to create programs within the national parks for underrepresented groups.

From the borderlands community at Coronado National Memorial, Vanessa Wyns was awarded 2019’s Ernest Quintana and Marty Sterkel Education Scholarship. In her time as an intern, Wyns crusaded to create equal education opportunities and park access for the underserved Mexican-American community in the area. She used her language skills to translate visitor material, design and distribute Spanish marketing material, and deliver educational programs that allowed the park to connect with Spanish-speaking visitors. Wyns’ aspirations for her career include celebrating borderlands culture in the national parks and continuing her work to remedy local inequities in nature access and education.