At the beginning of March, the layoff of the Denali National Park and Preserve Education Manager led to the cancellation of two of the Denali Education Center’s summer programs: the Denali Discovery Camp and Denali Backcountry Adventures. These programs operated in partnership with Denali National Park and the National Parks Service, taking kids into the national park for various educational and environmental activities. At the time, the lack of an Education Manager and other support staff raised safety concerns.
Since then, some of those Denali National Park employees have been re-hired. However, according to Denali Education Center Talkeetna Director Kellie Laurson, the reinstatement came too late in the organizational process.
Laurson said, “We had gotten to a point where we realized that regardless of any reinstatement, we needed to move forward with a clear path of are we doing Denali Discovery Camp, or are we saying this is too much of a risk and too big of an unknown at this point?”
Laurson added the Denali Discovery Camp remains cancelled, but the Denali Education Center is redirecting that effort and expanding some of their other summer programs.
Since 2021, the DEC has hosted the Talkeetna Discovery Camp, a day camp that puts kids in touch with all things Talkeetna. Through a partnership with the YMCA camp at Peggy Lake, the program includes additional activities this year, such as canoeing, fishing, and archery. Additionally, the older camp groups will have overnight camping opportunities.
According to Denali Education Center Youth Program Manager Caitlin Mott, Denali Backcountry Adventures is making its return this year despite its initial cancellation. In the past, the program facilitated backpacking through Denali National Park for kids ages 14-18. This year, the program will be located either in Denali State Park or Denali National Park. Mott said it will likely be in the national park, however, they await confirmation from the National Park Service.
Mott added that registration for both the Talkeetna Discover Camp and Denali Backcountry Adventures is now available on the Denali Education Center website.
