In keeping with the NRPA’s“Get Your Play On” theme this month, we are honored to talk with Vicki Basman, Chief of Interpretation for Indiana State Parks. Vicky’s meandering path to her current career is both impressive and inspiring. If ever you thought a particular career path was or wasn’t meant to be, Vicki’s story might bring you hope.

Taylor Studios (TSI): Vicky, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us about your experiences! We’ll begin by first asking what inspired you to pursue a career in the outdoors? 

Vicki Basman (VB): Like many others who have contributed to this blog, I would have to say that a childhood spent playing outdoors was the most formative thing that ultimately lead me to an outdoor career in adulthood. My days were filled with exploration of swampy ditches and finding crawdads to collect, climbing trees to see the view of the neighborhood, using the nooks and crannies of tree roots to make little farmsteads with plastic animals bought at the toy store. But the important thing to know is that I did not grow up on a farm or in a rural setting – this was all in a suburban backyard in Indianapolis. What my friends and I called “the woods” was really just a scrappy piece of land that had not yet been sold by the developer. There was one small creek and some railroad tracks though, and those felt exotic. I was blessed to have parents that allowed us to have unsupervised play time outdoors, and we took full advantage of that. In my pre-teen and teen years, I signed up to attend just about any type of camp experience I could find whether that was residential camp or day camp. I loved all of it. Scouts and my family’s church youth group made up the majority of my camp experiences. When it was time to go to college, I had no doubt but to study natural resources.

TSI: How did you get to where you are today in your career?

VB: After my BS degree at Purdue, which gave me a wonderful education but was very science oriented, I felt I wanted to work more with people outdoors, not data collection. So I returned to college to get my MS in Outdoor Recreation. I really felt that I would work in camps as those days had been some of my favorite times. While working toward both my degrees, I worked at camps. Girl Scouts camps, church camps, camps for kids with disabilities, and private girl’s camps in New Hampshire and Indiana. I loved it all! Never did it enter my mind that the world of park rangers or interpretation was out there basically because my family had never gone to parks of any kind. I had never attended a program nor met an interpreter. Then, shortly after getting my Master’s Degree I took an entire detour with my life plan and found myself doing a host of other things for ten years – renovating old houses, running a whole grain bakery, traveling to Costa Rica and around this country (still never attending a park program), running an auto parts store, being a school treasurer, and eventually starting a family with the birth of my two daughters. Those girls must have come into my life in order to reconnect me with nature, because it was during multiple park outings while they were little that I came to know the park interpreter at a nearby state park in Indiana. She eventually asked if I would work for her the next summer and I said yes – and that was the turning point.

I loved every part of this new job, albeit seasonal and part time. Hikes, talks, special events, brochure development, new exhibits – it was all so exhilarating and rewarding. I happily worked at that job for 8 years before the park approached me and asked if I would change my job duties to help with historic preservation planning. I took up that task and continued on for another 7 years, always part time due to my parenting demands back home. Then, in 2006, the then Chief of Interpretation for Indiana State Parks moved up to administration and the job was opened. Several other interpreters as well as the former Chief asked me to apply and interview, and here I am today. While this journey may not be so unique or outstanding, a couple of things really stand out which I tell young people looking to get into a career path: A.) Don’t be afraid to take detours in life! If you are meant to come back to this path, you can and will. I took a 10 year detour and the things I did during that time all helped me be a better business and people manager.  B.) For the 15 years I worked part time, I stayed involved with all the other state park interpreters and used every opportunity to network and visit with them. It was those interpreters who asked me to apply for the Chief position once it opened. They knew me and I them, we had never lost touch.  C.) Get involved and stay involved with your professional organization! For me that was the National Association for Interpretation. I joined early in my interpreter years and never stopped being involved. I attended as many national workshops as possible, and Region 4 workshops as well. I chaired the 2004 Region 4 workshop, and served on committees for two others. I served as Region 4 treasurer for 8 years, then served as National NAI treasurer for 6 years. I wouldn’t change any of those experiences – they all led me to where I am today in a career I have loved.

TSI:  What is the most challenging issue your organization faces?

VB: Sometimes it feels like all we do it battle for more dollars and there are never enough. Just getting the attention of our legislators and trying to get them to see the importance of our park system can be a challenge, although there are clearly very staunch advocates who carry our voice to the budget agency each year. We have done an admirable job keeping all our sites open even during the recession, although staffing was down to the bare minimum for a few years. It has come back now to healthier times and everyone feels the relief. Besides budget, I would also say that meeting the demands of today’s visitors while still providing the traditional park experience causes a lot of time demands on staff. Keeping trails clean and safe, operating our lodges, swimming pools, nature centers, stables, etc. has always been part of a park’s duties. But add to that the desire to have large events on a regular basis that involve off-site parking and shuttling, outside food vendors, performers, overtime staff hours, etc. create a strain on everyone, but we know we bring in diverse audiences with these events that the public loves. We are charged to increase our audience – yet it takes many hours and dollars to do so. But if we look to the future, it is imperative that we impart a message of public lands and their stewardship to the people who today don’t use our park system. We try to keep the stewardship message at the forefront while working to bring in new users so important to tomorrow.

TSI: How do you determine what’s important to your visitors?

VB: We have had several extensive surveys through the years, including one that is ongoing right now asking what is important in the next 100 years at Indiana State Parks (we just celebrated our Centennial last year.) Those surveys are interesting and sometimes enlightening. But to reach beyond a survey, it is important to be present and to listen. To be present, we get out to where the visitors are and interact with them. At one park, we have an interpretive program that simply drives the campground on a Sunday mid-morning and asks campers how their stay was. The visitors are often shocked to have staff come up to them just to ask how things were, yet they always take advantage of it. We hear stories of how much they love that particular park, and sometimes we hear complaints of what might be missing or broken at the park or in the system. We record it all, and share through staff meetings. Another way we know what is important to our visitors is when we become involved in a park’s Friends group. Most of our Indiana State Parks has a Friends group now and they are not only a wealth of volunteer help, but they get close enough to staff that they express views about what could help a park.

TSI: What natural site or museum (anywhere, anytime) has made the greatest impression on you? Why?

VB: I would have to say that the natural site that has had the most impact on me is the Grand Canyon. I have had the good luck to hike it 5 times, one of those times being a rim-to-rim hike. I took each of my daughters when they turned 13 on a mother/daughter hike to the bottom of the canyon and used it to forge a “if I can do this, I can do anything” outlook in their young girl life. Being in that canyon, sleeping at the bottom, sitting in solitude and looking at this most unique site in the world is the closest to a presence of a “god” that I have ever felt. The magnitude of the place really brings home the point that something bigger than us is out there in this world we live in.

As for a museum, I would have a hard time selecting one, but for me any “field museum” that also serves as historic sites are places I am drawn to. Civil war battlegrounds, Native American heritage sites, an early settler’s homestead are places that can have a great impact. When visiting them, and especially if I can have quiet and solitude while walking the grounds, I often feel a presence of people of the past. Not anything strange or otherworldly, but a respect and sacredness for what took place there. In the case of battle grounds or Native American heritage lands, I concentrate on not only what took place there and the subsequent losses, but I ask myself how we can better ourselves for the future to make sure such losses don’t happen again. And I challenge myself on whether I am playing a role in making improvements for the next generations, even in a small way.

TSI: What’s your best advice for someone starting out in this field?

VB: My number one advice would be to get involved in a professional organization (again, for me this would be NAI) and don’t be afraid to serve on committees, or run for the board. It provides such a wide view of what others are doing, what the new trends are, and where to turn to for help. Otherwise, I would also say to a newbie to be a listener to those who have paddled these waters before, but also don’t be afraid to try new things. Young interpreters can have so much enthusiasm and energy yet they fall into pitfalls if they don’t also listen to wise words of the more experienced interpreters. Other advice would be to read everything you can get your hands on that applies to interpretation, natural resources, love of nature. Novels, research, documentaries, biographies. It keeps your brain alive and engaged in this field we love. And finally, especially if a nature center affords an office out of the public eye – get out from behind the desk and go talk to the visitors! Hike the trails, do a little field ID, get outside. It’s so easy to get stuck behind a computer all day, and so hard to break that habit and get out.

TSI:  What is the most challenging aspect of your job?

VB:

1. Having enough time to do everything expected of me, and that I want to do. As mentioned above, I often do get stuck behind the computer all day and don’t get outside or out with our interpreters as much as I would like. In addition, all the car travel around the state can be a challenge to getting work done, yet it is an important part of the job.

2. Keeping up with trends and evaluating quickly what we can/should take on or what we need to let go is challenging. For example, lots of visitors today want zip lines. While we hate to turn them away, we realize that this is not something we have time to develop or operate. We refer them to other places that do offer zip lines.

3. People management. Interesting, because while it is one of the favorite parts of my job, when an employee makes poor choices repeatedly it is hard to figure out why they are hurting themselves and their park. And what to do about it.

4. Giving everyone the time and attention they need and deserve.

TSI:  Which feature of has been the most popular among your visitors? Why?

VB: Since I don’t have one outdoor site, this does not really apply to me. Overall though, looking at our Indiana State Parks, I would have to say that the most beloved things people return to every year are locations with large scale natural features such as Lake Michigan’s shoreline,  the large impressive canyons of Turkey Run State Park or the colorful vistas of Brown County State Park in the fall. I think people like natural expressions of grandeur and beauty the best.

TSI: We’d love to help promote all that you and your site does; is there a book, blog, project, website, or anything else in which you’d like us to tell our readers about?

VB: We have several websites and a lovely book that was commissioned for our Centennial year last year:

Book: http://www.iupress.indiana.edu/product_info.php?products_id=807494

Web: http://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/  (general parks website)

http://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/2410.htm  (history of our park system)

http://www.in.gov/dnr/parklake/2423.htm  (history of our interpretive services)