Former USFWS Trailblazer Mamie Parker Voted Chair of SCA Board

Eight New Directors Also Seated at SCA Annual Meeting

(ARLINGTON, VA) March 30 2021 —- The Student Conservation Association (SCA), a national leader in youth service and stewardship, has announced its board of directors unanimously elected Dr. Mamie Parker as chairwoman at its annual meeting on March 25, 2021.

Dr. Parker (above) was a pioneer with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service through a career spanning nearly three decades. She was the first African American to serve as regional director with the agency before rising to the level of assistant director. Since retiring from the USFWS in 2007, Dr. Parker has remained active as an environmental consultant, executive coach, and nonprofit trustee. She succeeds previous SCA Chair Kathy Bonavist, who was voted to a second three-year term to the board, as was director Don Winsett in a virtual session.

SCA’s board also approved the appointment of eight new directors:

• Deanna Archuleta, senior director for federal relations, ExxonMobil, Albuquerque, NM. Also served as deputy assistant secretary for water and science at the Department of the Interior during the Obama administration.
• Ethel Branch, partner, Kanji and Katzen,  LLC, Flagstaff/Window Rock, AZ. Formerly attorney general for the Navajo Nation, specializes in Tribal law. Harvard Law graduate.
• Gail A. Carmody, Panama City, FL. Retired career employee with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, where she led both the ecological services and fisheries resources programs.
• Steve Howell, chief operating officer, Best Friends Animal Society, Arlington, VA. More than 20 years as CFAO at The Nature Conservancy, also worked with the accounting and consulting firms Deloitte, Haskins and Sells and Coopers & Lybrand.
• Natalie Mebane, associate director of United States Policy, 350.org, Silver Spring, MD (alumni seat). Also active with PowerShift Network, Zero Hour, and Young Voices for the Planet; previously worked at the Sierra Club.
• Andrew Sutherland, entrepreneur, San Francisco, CA. Three-time SCA alumnus and founder of Quizlet, the online learning business that has grown to become one of the largest educational platforms in the world.
• Bob Vogel, Fernandina Beach, FL. Former career employee with the National Park Service, most recently served as NPS southeast regional director. Previously appointed as director of the National Capital Region.
• Anna Wadhams, consultant; chair, SCA Alumni Council, Ann Arbor, MI (alumni seat). Previously worked with the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) and the Rock Creek Conservancy.

“SCA is delighted to welcome these accomplished individuals to the board,” stated Dr. Parker. “Together, we will continue to advance the legacy of SCA Founder Liz Putnam and the cause of youth stewardship in every corner of our nation.”

The SCA board also thanked the following sunsetting directors for their leadership and commitment: Mark Asbury, Priya Cook, Chris Dhanraj, Mary Gibson Scott, Carrie Gonzalez, Steve Prusky, and JJ Pryor.

About the Student Conservation Association

The Student Conservation Association (SCA) is America’s oldest and largest youth conservation organization. SCA conserves lands and transforms lives by co-powering young people of all backgrounds to plan, act, and lead, while they protect and restore our natural and cultural resources. Founded in 1957, SCA’s mission is to build the next generation of conservation leaders, and seven in 10 of alumni worldwide are employed or studying in conservation-related fields. For more, visit www.thesca.org.

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