About Kern Audubon Society
Tehachapi Group

Erin Gates serves as the superintendent of César E. Chávez National Monument in Keene, California. In her most recent role at Redwood National and State Parks, where she served as deputy superintendent, she brought about key park initiatives and partnerships that deepened relationships with Tribal partners, connected new communities to parks, and built a culture of understanding and action around principles of justice, equity, diversity, accessibility and inclusion.

Gates, a Los Angeles native, says she is keenly aware of the obstacles that many people face when accessing parks. She has spent her entire career identifying and working to overcome barriers to access, so parks can be the welcoming spaces that they should be to all people. She continues to foster and build opportunities for connection in her volunteer work and is currently serving a second term as a board member for the National Association for Interpretation.

Gates comes to the National Park Service (NPS) after serving in several leadership roles with California State Parks. She brings innovation and energy to managing campgrounds, providing public education programming, connecting visitors and students to parks via digital education tools, and leading statewide efforts to establish relationships with multiple County Offices of Education with the goal of increasing K-12 access to their parks throughout California.

Gates graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in natural resources planning and interpretation from California State Polytechnic University in Humboldt.