Many graduates of the park and resource management program at Slippery Rock University fulfill their dream of working for the National Park Service, but one SRU student is already getting a taste of the experience. Beau Fillion, a senior from Palmyra, New York (Palmyra Macedon HS), was selected for an internship at one of the NPS’s most recognizable locations, Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
Fillion is one of only three college interns working from May to August as an interpretive ranger at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota.
“I always wanted to work in the National Park Service and this is a really good way to get my foot in the door,” Fillion said. “I’ve never been this far out west, and this is really cool to experience something different, especially at a place that is so historically rich and one of the most well-known destinations in the U.S.”
Fillion is working 40 hours per week at Mount Rushmore and leads programs where he talks to visitors about topics related to the site, including the granite carvings of the U.S. presidents and a history of Native Americans in the area. He also staffs the information center and observation area that is visited by more than 2 million people each year. Mount Rushmore is visited by most people during July and the Independence Day weekend.
Fillion learned about the internship after it was posted and shared by professors at SRU. He said taking classes, such as an interpretation class with Becky Thomas, associate professor of parks, conservation, and resource management, helped prepare for his internship.
“SRU’s program has helped give me all the skills that I need and I learned how the parks operate,” Fillion said. “Being knowledgeable coming into the internship, rather than having to learn more on the job, gave me an advantage.”
Fillion first attended Finger Lakes Community College near his home in New York, where he said his professors recommended SRU for completing his bachelor’s degree.
“SRU is good fit for the size and relatively close distance from home, and it’s been a really good college experience,” said Fillion, who plans to work in the NPS after graduating.
“I enjoy learning about an area and sharing that with other people,” Fillion said. “There are so many different areas in the U.S. to explore; you could work in a rainforest or a desert all in the same country. I think that’s really cool.”
More information about park and resource management at SRU is available on the program’s webpage.
