This program utilizes qualified non-profit youth- and veteran-serving organizations to carry out appropriate natural and cultural resource conservation, education, volunteer service and education…

The National Park Service awarded the National Council for Preservation Education a $103,531.05 cooperative agreement on February 27, 2026, under the Youth and Veteran Organizations Conservation Activities program (CFDA 15.931) to recruit, train, and manage three youth interns performing cultural resource work at Sitka National Historic Park through December 31, 2027.

Interns will complete hands-on tasks including researching and cataloging museum objects, preserving historic structures, and supporting public education programs. Each intern receives training, mentorship, and a stipend while delivering tangible products: curated collections for public research use, conservation museum reports, and interpretive materials. Work is performed in Sitka, Alaska.

The program targets young adults and veterans gaining professional experience in heritage management while strengthening preservation capacity at the park site. The National Council for Preservation Education is a non-profit organization headquartered in Ithaca, New York, that specializes in placing qualified interns at National Park Service sites to fill archival, curation, and cultural resource staffing gaps.

This program utilizes qualified non-profit youth- and veteran-serving organizations to carry out appropriate natural and cultural resource conservation, education, volunteer service and education projects on department of the interior lands through authorized national park service programs. This project will recruit and manage 3 youth interns to assist with cultural resource projects at sitka national historic park. Interns will complete hands-on tasks such as researching, cataloging museum objects, preserving historic structures, and supporting public education programs. Each intern will receive training, mentorship, and a stipend while contributing to tangible deliverables like curated collections for public research use, preparing conservation museum reports and interpretive materials. Beneficiaries include interns gaining professional experience and parks receiving skilled support. Expected outcomes include improved preservation of cultural resources and a trained workforce prepared for careers in heritage management.beneficiaries include private non-profit institutions and organizations public and private non-profit academic institutions state and local government agencies quasi-public non-profit institutions and organizations that support youth and young adult career training and development, and education in the areas of natural and or cultural resource conservation and management. Individuals families students and the general public will receive a benefit from the development and execution of these programs and projects.