In an effort to make visitors a bit safer in national parks, the National Park Service is working with the Student Conservation Association to get into the minds of park visitors. And the agency is looking for some interns to help develop an understanding of why visitors do the things they do in the parks.

This summer the Park Service is launching a risk management student internship program for graduate and undergraduate students. The work involves not just talking with park visitors, but developing safety plans, evaluating current interventions, and working on education programs for visitors.

The program's objective is to provide students with an opportunity to apply skills in epidemiology, behavioral sciences, risk management, public health, and/or social sciences that will enhance NPS injury prevention and control efforts to mitigate unintentional injuries (e.g drowning, fall injuries, hypothermia, dehydration, carbon monoxide poisoning, animal bites or attacks, and trauma from crashes in cars, boats, bikes, and other forms of transportation, among many other injuries that occur in parks) to park visitors.

The goals of this project are to:

* Build a cadre of future leaders and park staff who apply and further develop skills/understanding of wilderness risk management techniques.

* Increase capacity of current park staff to undertake risk management and injury prevention initiatives.

* Provide resources to strengthen parks' risk management programs and support preventative search and rescue efforts.

* Provide safety outreach and education to park visitors.

More than 15 internship opportunities initially were available in the following parks (though some have been filled):

Cuyahoga Valley National Park

Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area

Death Valley National Park

Devil's Postpile National Monument

Gateway National Recreation Area

Glen Canyon National Recreation Area

Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Olympic National Park

Richmond National Battlefield Park

Saratoga National Historic Park

Virgin Islands National Park

National Park Service Headquarters

Interns will receive a weekly subsistence, housing, transportation, a week long training/orientation in Mount Rainier National park prior to placement to include training in injury epidemiology, risk management and all student will receive Wilderness First Aid certification. Students who are selected are eligible for an AmericaCorps student grant of up to $1500. In addition, students may be able to fulfill practicum requirements through this opportunity.

Students interested in learning more/applying should go to the Student Conservation Association's website and type "public safety' in the search engine.