Diversity a specialty of new Teton superintendent
Vela, who grew up in Wharton, Texas, has significant experience with the Park Service and other federal and state agencies. He was special assistant for Hispanic Affairs to the late U.S. Congressman Mickey Leland, D-Texas, and was regional director for the Park Service’s Southeast region, overseeing 66 park units in nine states, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
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Grand Teton’s superintendent post is one of a handful reserved for Park Service employees in the senior executive service, a cadre of specially trained personnel who command higher salaries than other superintendents. Vela graduated from the agency’s SES program in 2006.
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Parks also must become relevant to a more diverse population than they have been historically, Vela said, including “communities of color.” How do we make them accessible to the entire American public, he asked.
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