Chance Finegan

I am a member of the University of Tennessee at Martin Class of 2012, and I am majoring in natural resources management with a park and recreation administration concentration and minoring in history. I hope to become an interpretive ranger with the National Park Service after university. One day, I would like to earn a law degree and master's of public policy from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

I believe there is inherent value in the environment, and the observation of nature in a setting removed from the hectic world of day-to-day life uplifts the human spirit. I also believe there is value in our history – without history, there is nothing to base neither one’s understanding of the present nor one’s dreams of the future. These resources – natural, cultural, and historical – are found in communities throughout the world. Their intrinsic worth is beyond monetary value, and I so value these things that I intend to protect them, even in the face of insurmountable obstacles, so that all citizens, rich or poor, may enjoy them forever.

Throughout high school, I served as the president of CHS SPEAK (CHS Students Promoting Environmental Action and Knowledge) and the founder and president of the CHS Campus Greens during high school. I organized a statewide volunteer event at Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, for which I received an award for special services to the park. I am a former Campus and Community Organizer for the Sierra Student Coalition, and a member and former chair of the SSC's Conservation Committee and SSC Publishing Group. I had the privilege and honor to serve the public as a park guide at Big South Fork in 2008. Finally, I have served as a naturalist for the Tennessee Wildlife Federation's Great Outdoors University. TWF/GOU brings inner-city Memphis students on field trips to local parks for hiking, fishing, camping, and other experiences. Without TWF/GOU, many of the kids wouldn't have seen a fish, walked through the woods, or been to a campfire. Spending time with Great Outdoors University was one of the most rewarding things I've ever done.

Now, in college, I am employed as the administrative assistant and volunteer coordinator for WaysSouth (http://www.wayssouth.org), a non-profit based in Asheville, North Carolina that seeks to promote sustainable transportation solutions, planning, and infrastructure in Southern Appalachia. I am also a member of the award-winning UT-Martin soil judging team and a student ambassador for the university.

The views and materials contained in my comments and posts are not, and should not be construed as, those of the National Park Service, the Department of the Interior, the United States Government, the University of Tennessee at Martin, the UT System, the State of Tennessee, WaysSouth or as those of any entity other than myself except where expressly stated. And yes, that second paragraph is pretty darn close to that of the Tennessee State Park System, because Tennessee's state parks are amazing, even if TDEC does some strange things every now and then.