Alan joined NPCA in 1999 and is currently the Senior Director of Cultural Resources in the Government Affairs department. He serves as NPCA's resident historian and cultural resources expert. Alan is the only staff person to ever be rescued from a tidal marsh by a Park Police helicopter.

Alan worked for NPCA’s Enhancing Cultural Diversity program managing the National Parks Community Partners program from 1999 to 2003. This initiative was designed to connect national parks in Boston, Washington, DC, Atlanta, Miami, Los Angeles, and San Francisco more closely to racially and ethnically diverse constituents. The Community Partners created a ground-breaking youth employment program, a guide to understanding the National Park Service hiring process, and launched a volunteer service initiative in northeast Washington, DC, which ultimately grew into a highly successful friends group. After joining the Government Affairs department Alan gained introduction and passage of the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Funding Re-authorization Act of 2008. More recently, as a part of the Government Affairs department, Alan has led, co-led, or supported five successful national monument campaigns including Fort Monroe, Harriet Tubman, Charles Young, and Pullman. Alan is a graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC, and his writing has appeared in the Civil War Times Illustrated and National Parks magazine.

Articles by Alan Spears