Acadia's full-time staff nearing a white-only workforce, despite promise for diversity
OTHER NEWS: Tremont fills board seats with new members; SWH uses probationary period to fire police officer; introducing QSJ's newest intern
MOUNT DESERT, July 1, 2023 - Now that affirmative action is in the rear view mirror Kevin Schneider may breathe a little easier.
Acadia National Park’s superintendent delivered a passionate promise last July at the Bar Harbor Club on West Street to increase diversity of his workforce, at the annual meeting of Friends of Acadia.
Toward the end of his obligatory report on park traffic, deferred maintenance and workforce housing challenges, he tucked in this curious and apparently unprompted statement:
“And we're also working internally to lift up our diversity and outreach efforts. We must ensure that our national parks reflect the face of America, that being inclusive is a core part of our DNA, whether it's our visitors or our workforce.”
“We have a long way to go on this and we're going to need all the help we can get and partners like Friends of Acadia are going to be critical to us making progress on this.”
I looked around for a member who looked remotely like me. The only non whites in the room were the service staff, dishing out canapes and picking up used plates and glasses.
It was an odd juxtaposition. The room of 200 FOA members gave a polite applause after Schneider spoke. But asking the FOA to help with diversity is like asking ExxonMobil for a solar-power consultation.
The following week I asked for the park’s employment data which verified my fear. Acadia National Park’s full-time staff was among the worst in the nation for diversity in a federal agency which already was among the least diverse. Out of 104 persons, 95.2 percent self identified as whites. There were no Asians, Hispanics or blacks. Two native Americans self identified.
I approached Eric Stiles, who had just started as FOA’s new executive director, and offered to pay the first-year membership for anyone who could help diversify FOA’s membership. He thanked me.
One year later, how are we doing?
The park hired 15 full-time employees (including three promotions) over the winter, according to public affairs officer Amanda Pollack, but its diversity numbers got worse. Out of 109 employees, ANP is down to one native American and one African American who, colleagues say, is leaving after the 2023 season. ANP is close to having no minorities on its full-time staff.
ANP’s diversity record is among the worst, if not the worst, of the 419 parks, and not close to the National Park Service’s own meager performance.
The NPS has about 18 percent more white employees than is represented in the population. Hispanic employees only represent 5.6 percent of the workforce but 18.5 percent of the population. For Blacks, the figures are 6.7 percent and 13.4 percent, respectively. Asians are also under represented at 2.3 percent compared to 5.9 percent in the population. American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaians and Pacific Islanders exceed their representation in the larger population, but their numbers remain very small.
The whole notion of a diverse workforce seems like a quaint throwback now that the Supreme Court is systematically dismantling such nettlesome constructs. An all-white (or all Asian) American institution, company or agency seems okay for six of the “justices.”
As far as I know, nobody forced Schneider to make his public pronouncement last July, as a topic for public consumption.
The cynic in me wondered if this was vaporware for the benefit of his boss, mouthing politically correct sound bites with no intention of actually doing anything.
It’s easy to make a speech. It’s hard to make reality.
His boss, the current director of the national parks, is Charles F. “Chuck” Sams III, who has a very Anglo sounding name but is Cayuse and Walla Walla and is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation in Northeast Oregon, where he grew up. He also has blood ties to the Cocopah Tribe and Yankton Sioux of Fort Peck.
Sams reports to Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo Tribe in New Mexico.
I had always cut Maine some slack, suspending my big-city sensibility each time I crossed the Piscataqua River into Kittery. Since 1984, when I hiked my first trail in Acadia National Park, I had always assumed it would be rare to see another person who looked like me, not to mention an African American.
But Maine is changing.
For decades, minorities made up fewer than 5 percent of the state’s population. But the 2020 census showed a significant shift with the white population declining to 92.7 percent. Hispanics were the fastest growing segment and now stand at 1.9 percent of the population. Blacks make up 1.7 percent.
In recent years I have also detected an uptick among non-white visitors at ANP, especially Asians, the fastest growing ethnic group visiting national parks. (How many rangers at ANP speak a foreign language?)
"The outdoors and public lands suffer from the same systemic racism that the rest of our society does," said Joel Pannell, associate director of the Sierra Club, which is leading an effort to boost diversity in the wilderness and access to natural spaces.
But systemic racism can be many things. Jobs with the park service are highly prized. They are located in beautiful places, come with great benefits and imbue workers with special standing in their communities as they sit on school boards and zoning commissions.
When jobs become available, the park service workers often are the first to alert friends and relatives who are not likely to look like Kerry-Ann Hamilton (above photo).
“Over the years, my jaunts through some of the nation’s most spectacular wonders — Zion, Yellowstone, Denali and others — have rewarded me with breathtaking views of serpentine canyons and sheer cliffs, prismatic pools and epic glaciers,” Hamilton wrote in the Washington Post. “But I rarely encounter other Black people on these trips. It’s a jarring reminder that the nation’s expansive network of natural wonders and wildernesses has primarily been a sanctuary for middle- and upper-class White people.”
Building a diverse workforce requires persistence, leadership and creativity. There are many ways FOA may help, starting with the seasonal workforce. FOA may start a “finders” fund to pay bonuses to current employees who successfully recruit minority workers. There can be assistance for housing. Diversity consultants may be engaged.
But all such initiatives must start at the top. Schneider has been superintendent for seven years. The QSJ asked how many minorities he hired for his senior team in that time. He did not reply. He also refused to be interviewed for this article.
After the killings of George Floyd and other African Americans sparked widespread protests about systemic racism, focus is also turning to equality in conservation, including whether agencies like the park service have addressed a diversity problem.
"I’ll be very blunt about it: I think there are some institutional racism issues with all the land management agencies, including the park service," said Jonathan Jarvis, who served as NPS director under President Obama from 2009 to 2017.
Racist beginnings
Racism has plagued the park service since its founding in 1916.
The leading conservationists of that era frequently espoused the idea that the country’s natural wonders should be protected largely for the country’s white aristocracy — and other races should be excluded, according to this article in Greenwire, excerpted as follows:
“John Muir, America’s most renowned naturalist whose writings led to the establishment of many national parks, infamously referred to African Americans with the derogatory term ‘sambos.’ And he repeatedly denigrated Native Americans.
"Muir, in his own words, in writing, was racist," said Carolyn Finney, an author who has written extensively on the topic. "He wasn’t simply biased. He was racist."
“Racism was more pronounced among the New York City aristocracy that played a formative role in establishing the parks.
“Madison Grant, a political ally of President Theodore Roosevelt and a prominent conservationist who worked to protect California redwoods and American bison, wrote a book the same year the park service was established. "The Passing of the Great Race, or The Racial Basis of European History" was a white supremacist book that Adolf Hitler later called his "bible."
“Roosevelt called it ‘a capital book; in purpose, in vision, in grasp of the facts our people most need to realize’ in a letter to Grant that appeared as a blurb on subsequent printings of the book.
“One of Roosevelt’s main conservation allies, Gifford Pinchot, espoused similar views. Pinchot, who became the inaugural head of the Forest Service, was a delegate to the first and second international congresses on eugenics, the practice of manipulating reproduction and controlling the population to produce specific hereditary traits.
"For these conservationists, who prized the expert governance of resources, it was an unsettlingly short step from managing forests to managing the human gene pool," Jedediah Purdy, a Columbia Law School professor who has studied the issue, wrote in The New Yorker in 2015.
"There are generations that are still alive that could not go into national and state parks," he said. "And there are Black generations alive that did not want to go — and it was not safe for them to go — into national parks."
Board appointments and resignations: a shift in Tremont’s politics?
By Lucie Nolden, QSJ intern
TREMONT - Changing seats and new blood among the Planning Board and Board of Appeals could mark a new era for the town’s government, or perhaps not.
At the select board meeting June 20, two seats were up for reappointment, and there was no hesitancy in confirming Planning Chair Mark Good’s reappointment. Geoff Young, on the other hand, chose not to seek reappointment after more than two terms, or seven years, of service on the Planning Board.
“It’s time for some new blood,” Young said.
Young, who is an attorney with Young Beck LLP in Seal Cove, did not share whether his decision to leave the Board was influenced by any of the controversy that the Board has been thrust into over the past several years, including the contentious review of two campground applications. Young did not indicate whether he would be seeking involvement with town government in other capacities, but told the QSJ that he is “always inclined to volunteer my time for civic and charitable endeavors.”
Ben Harper, a Tremont native and long-time public servant on the Quietside, will be filling his seat. Harper was confirmed for the appointment, but his new seat means that he had to resign from his position on the Board of Appeals. He declined to be interviewed.
According to Town Manager Jesse Dunbar, his decision to move to the Planning Board from the Board of Appeals was motivated by a desire to effect change in the town. “He feels he can have a greater impact,” Dunbar said; the Planning Board meets more frequently than the Board of Appeals.
Harper officially retired in 2017 after close to four decades as an emergency dispatcher in Southwest Harbor, and has also served as assistant chief of the Tremont Volunteer Fire Department as well as head of the Southwest-Tremont Ambulance Service.
Board of Appeals
Harper’s resignation from the Board of Appeals was not the only departure; Chair Joanne Harris was also not interested in reappointment. Harris served as chair during the appeals process over the Pointy Head campground debate, after the application for the campground was rejected by the Planning Board over noncompliance with a land use ordinance. A hearing is scheduled for July 13.
The Board of Appeals had also faced an appeal from citizen’s group Concerned Tremont Residents on the Planning Board’s approval of a permit to Acadia Wilderness Lodge in spring 2022. That ultimately was settled in an out-of-court agreement when AWL reduced the size of the project. As of this week, the owners have yet to apply for any permits.
A vacant seat on the Board of Appeals will be filled by seasoned executive and consultant David Edson, who had a long career with the James W. Sewall Corporation, an Old Town-based timber consulting firm. Edson currently serves as President of volunteer group MDI Wheelers, a nonprofit that supports access to Acadia’s wilderness for disabled people through carriage road rides on electric-assist tricycles.
In his seat on the Board of Appeals, Edson hopes to be a voice of fairness. His aim is to “be considerate and make sure that both parties are satisfied that good judgment is rendered.”
Edson’s application was supported by Select Board Chair Jamie Thurlow. “I think he’s a really good guy. I think he’d do an awesome job for sure.” Edson was quickly appointed, with unanimous agreement from the Select Board.
Thurlow’s support for Edson was a break from the past, when nominations of non-Tremont natives were met with less enthusiasm. In 2021, Joanne Harris’s nomination of retired judge Richard Cohen to the Board of Appeals initially failed, despite his illustrious qualifications. Cohen’s first bid won only one vote from the Select Board: Kevin Buck was in favor, while Thurlow, as well as Vice Chair McKenzie Jewett and member Howdy Goodwin opposed. Cohen was later confirmed to the board and currently serves.
“I’ve been on a number of boards over the years, and I think that I’m a good listener, and have an an ability to understand the challenges,” Edson replied when asked what attributes he will bring to his new role.
“While we have been residents of Tremont for a number of years, I’ve not engaged in any of these appeals, nor have I spent a lot of time studying them, so I’m not suggesting that anything untoward happened before. I just know that looking forward, there are serious matters that are going to come before the Board, and I’d just like to make sure that I have an opportunity to serve the town.”
Harbor Committee
Two seats on the Harbor Committee were up for reappointment. Richard Helmke has been reappointed to the Boat Storage/Repair seat. Larry Albee has been reappointed to the at-large seat. Both terms will expire June 30, 2026.
Library Trustees
Melinda Rice-Schoon and Rebecca Keefe have been reappointed to their seats, with both terms expiring June 30, 2026. Pete Madeira did not elect for reappointment, and Jayne Ashworth has been appointed to his seat. Her term will expire June 30, 2026.
Ashworth, along with Jim Bradford, competed for seats on the Select Board this spring, after a narrow loss in 2022. Incumbents McKenzie Jewett and Howdy Goodwin were re-elected in May. Ashworth also is a member of the Comprehensive Plan Task Force.
Comprehensive Plan Task Force
Each seat on the Comprehensive Plan Task Force had been set to expire June 30, but as the bylaws had been amended to extend the task force’s tenure until Dec. 31, reappointment was required. The board voted to reappoint each of the members to their current seats. Selectmen Kevin Buck and Eric Eaton, Pete Madeira from the Library Trustees, Lawson Wulsin and Brett Witham of the Planning Board, Larry Albee from the Harbor Committee, Jessica Bass of the School Board, and Mark Good, Sarah White, and Jayne Ashworth (At Large members) will continue to serve.
Lincoln Millstein contributed to this report.
Meet Lucie Nolden, QSJ’s newest paid intern
Tremont resident Lucie Nolden, who is currently serving as an AmeriCorp VISTA member addressing community food security on Mount Desert Island and throughout Hancock County, has joined the QSJ as an intern. Before arriving on MDI, she was a staff writer at the Bowdoin Orient, agricultural apprentice in central Maine, and organizer with Environment Massachusetts.
She grew up in Lexington, Mass.
In 2020, as a rising junior and Earth and Oceanographic Sciences major at Bowdoin College, she studied the effect of fishways and fish lifts in Maine’s rivers on salmon migrating upstream to spawn, since even when salmon can bypass a dam, the delay associated with the bypass and the thermal conditions below dams can force salmon to allocate more of their energy reserves towards survival, likely compromising their ability to spawn lots of large eggs.
Outside of work, she can be found gardening, exploring Acadia's crags, and practicing the banjo.
Lucie graduated from Bowdoin College in 2022.
POSTSCRIPT: How SWH removed police officer
SOUTHWEST HARBOR - The mechanism used to remove police officer Richard Strout Friday was that the job offer was withdrawn by the town, Police Chief John Hall stated.
Select chair Carolyn Ball added in an email, “His conditional offer of employment was withdrawn. There are a number of steps that any police officer must go through before he or she is permanent.”
Hall apologized publicly Friday for hiring Strout, who was fired in 2011 from the Town of Machias after after he failed a psychological exam, according to press reports. The psychologist who conducted the exam later told Machias officials that Strout could not be certified “as being fit for duty for typical, armed, minimally supervised law enforcement work.”
He filed a federal lawsuit against Machias the following year and later received a $50,000 settlement from the town.
The following year Strout was sued, along with other Machias officials, in three separate federal lawsuits filed by different women who accused him of assaulting and inappropriately touching them while placing them under arrest.
All three lawsuits filed by the woman were dismissed in 2014 — two by agreement with the women involved and one because the plaintiff could not find a new attorney and stopped communicating with court officials. It is not clear if the two women who agreed to dismissals received any monetary settlement with the town.
Hall received thanks on the police department’s Facebook page after he apologized, but many also said his action warranted an investigation by the select board.
The board will continue to allow a public discussion of the matter at its meeting July 11 at 6 p.m. even though Strout’s job has been terminated, Ball said. The meeting will be at the firehouse to accommodate a bigger crowd than the conference room at the town office building can handle.
MRC closes sale of Hampden plant
REPRINTED FROM FRIDAY
HAMPDEN, June 30, 2023 - More than three years after shuttering the $90 million “waste-to-energy” plant here, the regional agency which handles trash from 115 towns, including all four towns on MDI, announced today it closed on the sale of most of the assets to a firm created to re-imagine the entire enterprise and to develop solutions which its investors hope will be marketable to municipalities all over the world.
The agency, Municipal Review Committee (MRC), and Innovative Resource Recovery (Innovative), the pioneering materials management company, signed an agreement to become co-owners of Municipal Waste Solutions' Hampden Facility.
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“This collaboration marks a significant step forward in advancing sustainable waste management practices and promoting a circular economy in Maine,” said MRC Director Michael Carroll.
“The Hampden plant has long been recognized as a crucial hub for effective waste processing and recycling in the region. By bringing together the expertise and resources of MRC and Innovative, this partnership aims to enhance operational efficiencies, expand recycling capabilities, and further reduce the environmental impact of municipal solid waste,” he said.
MRC Board President Karen Fussell expressed her enthusiasm for the collaboration, stating, "This partnership between MRC and Innovative represents a powerful synergy in our mission to build a more sustainable future. By combining our knowledge, experience, and resources, we are poised to transform waste management practices, maximize recycling rates, and promote environmental stewardship within our communities."
It will be another two years before Innovative estimated it can bring the plant back to full operation - almost five years after the plant closed.
The municipal waste situation for MRC member towns is dire because an incinerator in Orrington used as a backup to the closing of the Hampden plant is now in foreclosure and scheduled to be auctioned off July 21. If that plant stays closed, all of the trash will be trucked to landfills.
James Condela, CEO of Innovative Resource Recovery, expressed his optimism for the partnership, stating, "Joining forces with Municipal Review Committee is a significant milestone for us. We are excited to contribute our expertise in resource recovery to the Hampden Facility, working alongside MRC to revolutionize waste management practices and foster a circular economy. Together, we are creating a partnership that is a model for other regions and communities to take for a more sustainable future for generations to come."
Innovative was created by the multi-billion-dollar West Coast investment firm, White Oaks Advisors, which did not need to raise the $20 million needed to restart the plant. It is hoping the Hampden plant can be transformed into a solution which can be replicated around the world.
Pots calling kettles copper? After delivering a rousing call for more racial and cultural diversity within both ANP and FOA one would have expected the editor of the QSJ to have selected an intern from one of Maine's many blue collar institutions of higher learning. Surely some deserving candidate could have been found outside the hallowed halls of Colby, Bates, and Bowdoin colleges? Even a scholarship student from COA would have provided at least a hint of equality of opportunity. Instead we are advised that yet another "from awayer" has been selected from of all places, Bowdoin College. Better yet the young lady comes to us via Lexington, Massachusetts a prosperous village of 2,119 citizens just outside of Boston. With a typical household income of $202,852 Lexington ranks 8th highest in income of all towns in America! The town also seems somewhat lacking in terms of racial and cultural equality with a population 68.6% white, 25.4% Asian, 1.5% Black and 0.1% Native American. As "interns" are often expected to work for free it may well be that only the children of the well to do are eager to join the ranks of this seemingly ever expanding category of employment? Might I suggest that problem could be solved by diverting funds promised to FOA for a more ethnically diverse member's membership fees to a paycheck for a bluer collared intern.
Maine only has diversity in the summers and that would be the fine and good folks doing all the hard work in the fields, kitchens and cleaning rooms. Racism seems to be thriving here on the liberal coastline.