A national park superintendent who was highly valued for her performance and skills has been fired by the National Park Service for refusing to accept a job 500 miles away from her home and family.
While Mary A. Miller, superintendent at Sitka National Historical Park in Alaska, initially was successful in appealing her dismissal, a federal appellate court overturned a decision by the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board and Ms. Miller was escorted out of the park by the chief ranger on New Year's Eve.
Park Service officials in Alaska decided in 2010 to shift Superintendent Miller from the historical park to a new position as Alaska Native Affairs Liaison in Anchorage, 500 miles away. When she declined the reassignment, claiming she was not qualified for the role and that it would be a hardship because of her family situation, the Park Service fired her. Ms. Miller then appealed that decision to the Merit Systems Protection Board, which overturned her dismissal.
In gathering testimony on Ms. Miller's appeal, the Merit Board heard from the Park Service how it "had a high regard for the appellant’s performance as the superintendent in Sitka. Indeed, agency witnesses testified that the agency relied upon the appellant’s strengths and accomplishments as a Superintendent as the basis for directing her reassignment to the Liaison position in Anchorage," the board noted.
Furthermore, it added in its ruling in April 2013, "we find that it did not promote the efficiency of the service to direct the appellant to take the position in Anchorage against her will and to remove her from employment altogether when she declined the position. As a result of the agency’s actions, it lost an apparently valued and successful employee, and created two vacancies that the agency had to fill after her removal."
The federal government's Office of Personnel Management then appealed that ruling to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which reversed the Merit Board, holding that the Park Service had legitimate reasons for reassigning Ms. Miller to Anchorage.
Yet the Park Service's determination to transfer Ms. Miller from Sitka was deemed "reprehensible" by U.S. Circuit Judge Evan Wallach. While Judge Wallach agreed with the court's majority that the Merit Systems Protection Board had wrongly approached Ms. Miller's case, he maintained that "it appears obvious to me that the agency’s actions were entirely pretextual and in bad faith."
Specifically, the Circuit judge wrote that the Park Service had crafted the job description for the Alaska Native Affairs Liaison in such a way " ... to obtain the desired result. It is obvious to me that the agency modified the standards and qualifications to make Ms. Miller the only person uniquely qualified, within the pool of employees that were considered for the position; that the agency’s actions were entirely pretextual; and that they were intended solely to present Ms. Miller with an improperly motivated Hobson’s choice. Such conduct by an agency of the United States is reprehensible."
In its ruling, reached in September, the Court of Appeals directed the Merit Systems Protection Board to reverse its decision. A final order supporting Ms. Miller's removal was filed on New Year's Eve and the Park Service appointed Neil Akana as acting superintendent for Sitka.
Stories about:
Story Categories:
A copy of National Parks Traveler's financial statements may be obtained by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: National Parks Traveler, P.O. Box 980452, Park City, Utah 84098. National Parks Traveler was formed in the state of Utah for the purpose of informing and educating about national parks and protected areas.
Residents of the following states may obtain a copy of our financial and additional information as stated below:
- Florida: A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION FOR NATIONAL PARKS TRAVELER, (REGISTRATION NO. CH 51659), MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING 800-435-7352 OR VISITING THEIR WEBSITE. REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.
- Georgia: A full and fair description of the programs and financial statement summary of National Parks Traveler is available upon request at the office and phone number indicated above.
- Maryland: Documents and information submitted under the Maryland Solicitations Act are also available, for the cost of postage and copies, from the Secretary of State, State House, Annapolis, MD 21401 (410-974-5534).
- North Carolina: Financial information about this organization and a copy of its license are available from the State Solicitation Licensing Branch at 888-830-4989 or 919-807-2214. The license is not an endorsement by the State.
- Pennsylvania: The official registration and financial information of National Parks Traveler may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling 800-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.
- Virginia: Financial statements are available from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, 102 Governor Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219.
- Washington: National Parks Traveler is registered with Washington State’s Charities Program as required by law and additional information is available by calling 800-332-4483 or visiting www.sos.wa.gov/charities, or on file at Charities Division, Office of the Secretary of State, State of Washington, Olympia, WA 98504.
National parks and their natural resources belong to you. The National Parks Traveler works to ensure you know how these essential places are being cared for.
Sign Up For Our Weekly Newsletter
Unsubscribe at any time.
INN Member
The easiest way to explore RV-friendly National Park campgrounds.
Here’s the definitive guide to National Park System campgrounds where RVers can park their rigs.
Our app is packed with RVing- specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 national parks.
You’ll also find stories about RVing in the parks, tips helpful if you’ve just recently become an RVer, and useful planning suggestions.
Comments
It would be interesting reading through the the full report on this case. How would this penalty compare to that of the superintendent at Canaveral National Seashore. An IG report found the superintdnent at Canaveral to be a liar (lack of candor) and that she misused government funds/property. However, neither she or other listed staff in the IG report lost their jobs or were forced to move. There appears to be a lack of consistency with this agency in applying penalties.
It is really unfortunate how dysfunctional the NPS is. The agency has an amazing mission and has a lot of employees that really care about the agency. However, there is zero accountability and some rotten eggs who ruin the agency because no one wants to deal with the idiots that do illegal and unethical things. I know there isn't an agency out there that doesn't have issues but NPS has a lot of issues that try to get swept under the rug. The other problem is Superintendents have too much power and don't necessarily use it appropriately. The Director is running the agency into the ground too. It is pretty clear he doesn't care about the agency. No one will man up in the agency and actually address the issues. The Employee Viewpoint survey was pathetic and a sad story. There has been very little done to improve the environment. I hope the next director cares about making the NPS a better place to work.
Kurt, you need to ask for the 2010 Management Review that was done in Sitka, it will start you down the right path for the whole story! People deserve to know what kind of manager this woman really is and then you can piece together the actions of the NPS. She deserved to be fired but for different reasons....
The permance evaluations is not the story. That was how she managed to get reinstated in 2013, not the reason she was terminated in 2010. FOIA the Management Review as previously stated as well as the Employee Viewpoint surveys for the last decade.
That the regional director originally chose this 'pretextual' method to remove her from causing further damage at Sitka instead of doing the hard work necessary to institute a disciplinary or performance action for removal is unfortunate; however, to anyone who is actually familiar with the situation instead of basing their knowledge on a brief blurb by Kurt, the correct result was achieved in the end - with the added benefit that she isn't working at damaging NPS relations and subordinates in Anchorage either. It's just a shame that at least two other employees had their lives uprooted to accommodate the MSPB's erroneous reversal. The lesson learned here is to quit pencil whipping performance evaluations of problem managers just because they threaten to sue you.
The full article is behind a paywall, but this didn't take long:
Former Park Supt. Miller Plans to Appeal Removal
08 Jan 2016 23:20
By Sentinel Staff Mary Miller, who was removed as superintendent of Sitka National Historical Park [ ... ]
And the soap opera continues.
At a certain point, after multiple rulings against you, further appeals appear to be an exercise in spite as much as any realistic hope for an optimal outcome.
Here is the article suggesting a new appeal
http://www.sitkasentinel.com/7/component/content/article?id=9518:sitka-p...
Folks, this is not a forum to launch vitriolic attacks on individuals, and it's been way overdone here so we're going to shut down comments.
Pages