Glacier Deputy Superintendent Tapped to Lead NPS Sites in Texas
Eric Smith leaves Glacier after three years as the park’s second-in-command
By Justin Franz
Glacier National Park Deputy Superintendent Eric R. Smith has been tapped to lead two National Park Service sites in Texas. Smith has been second in command at Glacier since 2015.
Smith will become superintendent of both Lake Meredith National Recreation Area and Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument on Nov. 11.
“While leaving Glacier and its great team will be hard, I feel very privileged to join our NPS colleagues and partners at Lake Meredith and Alibates Flint Quarries,” Smith said. “I look forward to continuing close relationships with the local communities, affiliated tribes, and the State of Texas, in managing our two parks for recreational opportunities and cultural experiences.”
Smith grew up in Georgia and Florida and studied criminal justice and aviation maintenance. After working as a sheriff’s deputy and correctional officer, Smith enlisted in the Navy, where he served on a nuclear submarine. He then returned to Florida and joined the Justice Department where he trained as a hostage negotiator and served on the department’s crisis negotiation team. Smith came to the National Park Service in 2000 as a maintenance supervisor at Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. After working for the U.S Public Building Service for four years, Smith returned to the Park Service in 2011 as deputy superintendent at Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska.
Park spokesperson Lauren Alley said it is too soon to say when the deputy superintendent position will be filled at Glacier.