Last week, 16 Fulton High School students were recognized for their participation in Tremont’s Environmental and Community Leaders Fellowship.
The Fellowship is a partnership between Fulton High School, Tremont Institute and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. In addition to exploring careers and opportunities in the environmental field, the program helps young adults develop their self-awareness, civic leadership skills and personal connections to nature.
The celebration kicked off with a welcome and reflections by student participants. Then, GSMNP Superintendent Cassius Cash reflected on his own journey into environmental leadership, touching on the challenges he faced as a person of color in the field. He encouraged the students to “let the curiosity of you succeeding at something overcome your fear of failure.”
Though the school year is winding down, several participants will continue to work with Tremont Institute and the national park throughout the summer. Four current program participants and one program alumni will be offered paid summer internships, splitting their time between assisting with Tremont’s environmental education summer programs and learning about the different departments and career possibilities at the national park.
Information provided by the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont