Ph.D. Auburn University
Dissertation: Wild by Design the Technological Construction of Authenticity, Wilderness, and Nature in America’s National Parks, 1890-1945
Jonathan Shafer serves as the public affairs specialist for Zion National Park. In this role, he is the park's on-the-record spokesperson, an advisor to the park's senior management team, and the liaison among park staff, neighbors, and the press. Jonathan's staff manages park publications as well as web and interpretive media development. His early professional experience was as a historical interpreter at Greenfield Village, a living history site in Dearborn, Michigan.
Jonathan is a class of 2015 Presidential Management Fellow alumnus who formerly served in the Lead, Heavy Metals, and Inorganics Branch at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). While at EPA, he managed review of the Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule and worked to implement the 2016 Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act.
Jonathan entered public service in 2012 as a Student Conservation Association intern at Shenandoah National Park. In the years that followed, he worked at Wright Brothers National Memorial as well as Isle Royale, Death Valley, Denali, and Yellowstone National Parks.
Academic background and affiliations: Jonathan holds bachelors degrees in chemistry and history from the University of Detroit Mercy, a masters degree in history from Wayne State University, and a masters degree and doctorate in history from Auburn University. Jonathan is a member of the Society for the History of Technology, the History of Science Society, the George Wright Society, and serves on the board of directors for the Association of National Park Rangers.