Rhonda Buell Schier, Superintendent of Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial / NPS

National Park Service Acting Midwest Regional Director Patricia Trap announced the selection of Rhonda Buell Schier as superintendent of Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial in Lincoln City, Indiana.

A 15-year veteran of the National Park Service, Schier is currently chief of museum services and interpretation at Gateway Arch National Park, St. Louis, Missouri. She will assume her new role mid-March. “Rhonda has a very wide range of leadership experiences in many parks and a proven record of collaborating successfully with partners and stakeholders," said Trap. “She has proven herself to be an accomplished leader intently focused on helping the American people find deeper meaning and connections with their national parks. Rhonda is sure to add tremendous value as superintendent of Lincoln Boyhood home.”

“It is an honor to be named superintendent of Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial,” Schier said. “I am inspired by the many ways that Lincoln’s youth on the family farm shaped his tenets of leadership, and how the focus on reading and learning spurred in his childhood were fundamental to his philosophy and practice of human rights. I am thrilled to serve at the historic site and join the exceptional team of staff and volunteers, and participate in the neighborhood of communities and partners.”

Schier began her permanent National Park Service career in 2004 as the education specialist at Mount Rushmore National Memorial. She went on to serve as supervisory park ranger at Independence National Historical Park, and as chief of interpretation and education at Valley Forge National Historical Park. 

Prior to joining the National Park Service, Schier served two decades as a public educator, teaching elementary multi-age, special reading, and computer science for elementary through adult learners. While teaching, she spent her summers as a seasonal park ranger, camp director, and recreation leader. Schier is from the Black Hills of South Dakota and graduated from the University of South Dakota with a Bachelor of Science degree in education. She received the Colorado Board of Education Award, the National Milken Educator Award, and was named Middle School Teacher of the Year for Rapid City Schools.