MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Superintendent Dan Wenk announced today that Patrick (Pat) Kenney has been selected as the new deputy superintendent of Yellowstone National Park. Mr. Kenney will replace Steve Iobst, who retired at the end of September.
“I am happy that Pat will join our team and provide leadership for Yellowstone,” said Superintendent Dan Wenk. “He comes to us with extensive operational experience, project management skills, and the ability to build relationships both inside and outside the organization.”
Mr. Kenney is currently serving as the superintendent of Cape Lookout National Seashore in North Carolina. In this role since 2011, Mr. Kenney completed many projects and handled issues including major facility improvements, a new concessions contract for a passenger ferry service, storm recovery efforts following Hurricanes Irene and Sandy, management of off-road vehicles to ensure the preservation of shorebirds and sea turtles, and improved energy efficiency in the park.
“I am thrilled to become the deputy superintendent at Yellowstone, the world’s first national park,” said Pat Kenney. “While I’m sorry to leave my staff, colleagues, and partners at Cape Lookout, I am ready for this challenge and am honored to serve on Yellowstone’s management team.”
Prior to managing Cape Lookout, Mr. Kenney served as the planning branch chief at the Denver Service Center (DSC), which is the central planning, design, and construction management project office for the National Park Service. At DSC, he managed numerous planning efforts in a variety of parks including Mount Rainier, Everglades, Big Cypress, and Badlands.
Mr. Kenney began his National Park Service career as a resource management specialist at Big Cypress National Preserve in 1990. He was effective at obtaining funding and successfully completing numerous natural resource restoration projects, as well as being involved in an array of planning issues within the preserve.
Mr. Kenney, a 26-year veteran of the NPS, is a certified project manager and has a degree in zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He and his wife Dyanne are happy about returning to the West and exploring the Greater Yellowstone area.
As deputy superintendent, Mr. Kenney will direct day-to-day operations of the 2.2 million acre park, supervising the largest park operations program in the NPS. Operations include maintenance, law enforcement, search and rescue, emergency medical, wildland and structural fire, resource education, youth programs, resources management, science, research, business management that includes $120 million annual commercial activities, as well as contracting and human resources. The annual park operational budget is $34 million. The annual program of projects averages $40 million. At peak season, 850 employees work in the park.
