The National Park Service has selected Ashley Adams to serve as superintendent of Great Basin National Park in Nevada.
Adams currently serves as deputy superintendent of Nez Perce National Historical Park in Idaho, Whitman Mission National Historic Site in Washington, and Big Hole National Battlefield in Montana. She has held that position since October 2019.
“Ashley’s strong inter-personal skills and positive, supportive approach make her a great leader and communicator. She has a track record of fostering a dynamic team environment, both within her own organizations and in her partnerships with a variety of tribal, governmental, and nonprofit agencies,” said Pacific West Regional Director David Szymanski.
“I am honored and excited to join the team at Great Basin National Park,” Adams said. “It is a great privilege to help steward this diverse, resilient, yet fragile landscape that both humbles and inspires. I look forward to working with staff, visitors, partner organizations, Tribes, external stakeholders, and surrounding communities to help serve as a custodian of this incredibly special place.”
Adams, who arrives at Great Basin in February, previously worked for the Bureau of Land Management as the monument manager for Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument in California. She has also worked as a wilderness coordinator for the NPS Wilderness Stewardship national office; served as an NPS national office liaison to the University of California, Merced for the National Parks Institute; worked as a backcountry ranger and trail crew laborer for Glacier National Park; taught a wilderness management course at Duke University, and conducted research on lemurs in Madagascar.
Adams also managed signature partnerships for Yosemite National Park as the liaison to the City of San Francisco for the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and Tuolumne watershed, and as the liaison to the Yosemite Conservancy, the park's official philanthropic partner and cooperating association.
Adams earned a Master of Environmental Management degree from Duke University, where she was selected for a prestigious Doris Duke Conservation Fellows scholarship, and a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors from Stanford University.
Adams grew up in Montana with deep roots to the National Park Service; her father has served as a seasonal park ranger in Glacier National Park for over 50 years. She has an enduring love of mountains, wide open spaces, and landscapes off the beaten path. Her favorite activity is to grab her two mischievous black lab mixes and head out into the mountains for a hike, although you might also find her out on a run, enjoying a winter day on cross-country skis, or nose deep in a good book.
