Tennessee Promise scholars will soon have an opportunity to acquire needed community service hours.
Tennessee State Parks are offering volunteer events across the state to assist students on Saturday, June 24, and Carter County’s two parks have a variety of activities available.
Over at Roan Mountain State Park, students can join season interpretive rangers Bailey Kitts and Chloe Wolfe for four hours of volunteering. Participants will be removing litter and invasive plant species from around the banks of Doe River through the park.
RMSP encourages students to wear clothing that they wouldn’t mind to get wet and dirty and other items needed for a day of outdoor work.
Preregistration is required to participate in the event. Visit tnstateparks.com/events/details/#/?event=tennessee-promise-saturday online to sign up. The volunteer work will go from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and students will be asked to meet at the park’s conference center.
Nestled in the City of Elizabethton, Sycamore Shoals State Historic Park also has some volunteer opportunities available.
Students will be asked to meet at the visitor center at the park at 10 a.m. before work. Along with assistance from park staff, participants will delve into a variety of chores including cleaning up Fort Watauga and other grounds, invasive plant removal, litter pick-up and other tasks. The park added they expect work to be finished by noon.
Preregistration is also required. Visit tnstateparks.com/events/details/#/?event=sycamore-shoals-tn-promise-student-saturday for more information and to register.
All 56 state parks offer volunteer events that offer a variety of chores to receive their hours.
TDEC Deputy Commissioner of Parks and Conservation Brock Hill said it is important for parks to lend a helping hand.
“Tennessee Promise Saturday is a way for our parks to connect students to the outdoor opportunities available here in Tennessee while supporting their academic goals,” he said in a statement to the Elizabethton Star. “This partnership highlights two of the greatest things about Tennessee: accessibility to higher education and our nationally-recognized state parks system.”
Tennessee Promise is part of Gov. Bill Haslam “Drive to 55” initiative to increase the number of Tennesseans with postsecondary degrees or scholarships to 55 percent by 2025 and provides tuition-free community and technical college to all high school graduates. Students utilizing the program for the fall are required to complete eight hours of community service by July 1.