NPS - National Park Service

09/03/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 09/03/2024 10:53

J. Tracy Stakely Named Superintendent of Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park, Shenandoah National Park

News Release Date:
September 3, 2024

Contact:John Harlan Warren, 215-908-3159

Luray, Va. - J. Tracy Stakely has been selected as the next superintendent of both Shenandoah National Park and Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park. A proven leader with 26-years of National Park Service experience, Stakely will begin his new assignment on October 7.
"Tracy brings a wealth of experience and a deep commitment to community engagement, resource protection and employee development to this position," said Northeast Deputy Regional Director Cinda Waldbuesser. "Working in partnership with the park's many dedicated supporters, partners, and local communities, he will ensure the ongoing protection and enjoyment of this incredible national park."
"I am thrilled to be named the superintendent of Shenandoah National Park," said Stakely. "I look forward to engaging with the park's staff, supporters and local communities and tapping into their expertise, skill and wisdom to help preserve, protect and share this magnificent park."

Since 2018, Stakely has served as the superintendent for Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park and Charles Pinckney National Historic Site in Charleston, South Carolina. Projects initiated under Stakely's leadership include a Great American Outdoors Act replacement of docks at Forts Sumter and Moultrie, rehabilitation of the historic Lifesaving Station on Sullivan's Island for employee quarters, installing new interpretive exhibits at Charles Pinckney that provide a more inclusive history and planning for drainage infrastructure improvements at Fort Moultrie to address climate change impacts.

Stakely has held a variety of positions during his NPS career. Prior to his current superintendency, he served for five years as superintendent of Congaree National Park. For the ten years prior, he led the Cultural Landscape Program for the NPS Southeast Regional Office in Atlanta. Stakely began his NPS career at the Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation as a landscape architect. He has also served detail assignments as acting superintendent at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve and New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park, Mammoth Cave National Park, and Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park. Stakely holds a master's degree in landscape architecture from Louisiana State University.
Both Stakely and his wife Cheri, who is a special education teacher, are originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee. They are the parents of two young adults, Bryson and Bella.


About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 430+ national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.