President Barack Obama recently launched an “Every Kid in a Park” initiative, an effort that will give fourth-grade students and their families free admission to national parks and other federal lands and waters for a full year.
The program begins in September for the 2015-16 school year, marking the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service next year.
Obama also is backing efforts that will help more kids visit national parks, including funding for youth education programs and transportation support for field trips to parks for students from low-income areas.
“We enthusiastically support the White House initiative to connect all fourth graders to our public lands,” Sarah Milligan-Toffler, Executive Director, Children &Nature Network, wrote in a press release. “Connecting children to nature is critically important to their health and well-being, and to the future of our public lands. We commend the efforts within this initiative to provide transportation support, one of the factors limiting too many children’s opportunities to benefit from nature in their everyday lives.”
In our area, Olympic National Park and Mount Rainier National Park both charge admission. Both parks charge $15 per vehicle for a day pass or $30 for a yearly pass, which is only good for the single park. An $80 annual pass covers entrance at all national parks and on many federal lands. North Cascades National Park does not have an entrance fee.
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