Denver Urban Ranger Program | P17AS00152

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00152

The Denver Urban Ranger Program is a discretionary National Park Service (NPS) grant opportunity from the U.S. Department of the Interior designed to expand meaningful outdoor access and career-linked experiences for youth in the Denver metro area, especially those who have historically had fewer opportunities to connect with parks and public lands. Offered as a cooperative agreement, the program emphasizes hands-on engagement, mentorship, and service-oriented learning that ties recreation and education to real-world conservation and community outreach work. In practical terms, the project is meant to create a structured, supportive pathway that helps young people build skills, confidence, and familiarity with natural and cultural resources while also strengthening their sense of belonging in outdoor spaces.

A central goal of the opportunity is to provide safe, fun, and educational outdoor activities for Denver-area youth who would not typically have regular access to nature-based experiences. This points to programming that goes beyond a single field trip and instead delivers consistent, well-supervised activities that make outdoor learning approachable and relevant. The intent is both experiential and developmental: youth should come away with positive experiences in outdoor settings, greater comfort and competence in nature, and a stronger understanding of the parks and public lands available to them.

The grant also focuses heavily on youth development outcomes such as education, job training, responsible citizenship, and productive community involvement. Rather than treating outdoor activities as purely recreational, the NPS frames them as tools for building workforce readiness and civic engagement. The program is expected to further understanding and appreciation of natural and cultural resources by involving youth and young adults directly in activities on public lands, which can include conservation-related projects, interpretation and education efforts, and community-facing outreach. This aligns with the broader idea that participants learn best by doing, especially when they can see the community value of their work.

Another major purpose is to support long-standing NPS priorities connected to initiatives like the Urban Agenda. The opportunity is positioned as part of a wider effort to increase public service opportunities, create youth employment and training experiences, and engage young adults in outreach, education, and conservation work that benefits communities near parks. The cooperative agreement structure signals that the NPS expects an active partnership with the award recipient, not just a pass-through of funds, with coordination likely needed to align activities with NPS goals and to ensure work on public lands complements existing park and community strategies.

Equity and targeted recruitment are explicit requirements. The program is intended to recruit and hire youth and young adults primarily from underrepresented groups, including individuals from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds and from low- and moderate-income families. Beyond recruitment, the opportunity stresses direct mentoring with concrete long-term goals: supporting participants so they graduate from high school, pursue college, and are prepared to apply for positions with the NPS and other land management agencies if they want to continue in this field. This makes the program not only a short-term outdoor engagement effort, but also a career exposure and pipeline strategy aimed at diversifying and strengthening the future conservation workforce.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00152) was posted on March 29, 2017, with an original closing date of April 7, 2017. The award ceiling was $55,634, and the NPS anticipated making one award. Eligibility was limited to nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status (excluding institutions of higher education). The funding activity category is Natural Resources, and it is associated with CFDA number 15.931. Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a focused, single-award partnership to deliver youth-centered outdoor programming and workforce-development experiences in Denver, with a strong emphasis on inclusion, mentorship, and building durable connections between urban communities and public lands.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Denver Urban Ranger Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.931.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 29, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 07, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $55,634.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

Apply for P17AS00152

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