TSU program is designed to get more HBCU students involved in the outdoors

 

TSU program is designed to get more HBCU students involved in the outdoors

Transcript¹

The outdoor recreation industry is overwhelmingly white. A new program at Tennessee State University aims to change that by getting more HBCU students involved in the outdoors.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Hiking, camping, fishing - the people who participate in these kinds of activities tend to be white. One report found that in 2020, white Americans made up nearly three-quarters of all outdoor recreation participants. It's a phenomenon known as the nature gap. And a new program for college students is aimed at closing it. WPLN's Alexis Marshall brings us this report from the depths of a cave in central Kentucky.

UNIDENTIFIED CAVE GUIDE: Right now, we are about 130 feet underground. Oh, by the way, do not fall in the hole.

ALEXIS MARSHALL, BYLINE²: It's mid-November. And a guide is leading us through Mammoth³ Cave about an hour and a half south of Louisville.

(SOUNDBITE OF WATER RUSHING)

MARSHALL: Descending⁴ deeper into the ancient passageways, we flip⁵ on our headlamps.

UNIDENTIFIED CAVE GUIDE: This is a crawly passage.

MARSHALL: Folks start to pull up their kneepads and adjust their helmets to army crawl across the cave floor. Blake Wright, a sophomore⁶ at Tennessee State University, says this is unlike anything he's ever done before.

BLAKE WRIGHT: I grew up around suburbs. So I wasn't in, like, any rural areas.

MARSHALL: This tour for Tennessee State students is part of a partnership⁷ between the National Park Trust and the organization HBCUs Outside. The groups provide funding and help build relationships to get more HBCU students involved in the outdoors. TSU is one of four historically Black schools where the program is rolling out.

RON GRISWELL: I wanted just to be a part of elevating and changing the tapestry⁸ that's already extremely rich at HBCUs.

MARSHALL: That's Ron Griswell, the founder⁹ of HBCU's outside. He says segregation¹⁰ barred many Americans from having equal access to public green spaces and, in turn, created generations of folks who may not feel safe or comfortable in the outdoors.

GRISWELL: A lot of us don't have the connections like our ancestors did, you know, when we were so tied, you know, spiritually and physically¹¹ to nature, you know? It's kind of disheartening.

MARSHALL: That's why Griswell says reestablishing historic bonds with nature is especially important for Black students.

GRISWELL: I wanted HBCUs to be the first step in not only diversifying¹² the outdoors, but reclaiming¹³ these spaces for joy and ushering¹⁴ in a new, diverse population of stewards¹⁵.

MARSHALL: Stewards like Tennessee State junior Aria¹⁶ McElroy. She's a student ambassador with HBCUs Outside and organized this trip for her classmates.

ARIA MCELROY: So it was just, like, an opportunity for me and other students to get back outside and, like, rekindle¹⁷ the love that they may have had or just have a new love that they didn't even know that they had.

MARSHALL: In addition to learning about the rocks and wildlife, guides also tell students about the caves' sometimes dark history. Native Americans explored it hundreds of years ago and mined gypsum. Many enslaved African Americans were forced to mine the cave for a mineral to make gunpowder¹⁸. Others were forced to give tours of the cave in the mid-1800s. Here's Blake Wright again.

WRIGHT: It was a good experience, and learning about what the people used this cave for, what the Native Americans used it for. It was sad to learn how slaves were used to mine in here.

MARSHALL: But Wright says he appreciated the opportunity to experience a part of the country he'd never seen before. Now he says he's eager to discover other parks and return to this one.

WRIGHT: I want to explore this cave again, just to get another experience, and explore around the cave, like, outside and above, see what the nature has to offer above ground.

MARSHALL: In fact, he says he's coming back to Mammoth Cave National Park later this semester for a fishing trip.

For NPR News, I'm Alexis Marshall in Mammoth Cave, Ky.

(SOUNDBITE OF ODDISEE'S "BEACH DR")

 

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 mammoth   

n.长毛象；adj.长毛象似的，巨大的

参考例句：

• You can only undertake mammoth changes if the finances are there.资金到位的情况下方可进行重大变革。
• Building the new railroad will be a mammoth job.修建那条新铁路将是一项巨大工程。

4 descending   

n. 下行 adj. 下降的

参考例句：

• The results are expressed in descending numerical order . 结果按数字降序列出。
• The climbers stopped to orient themselves before descending the mountain. 登山者先停下来确定所在的位置，然后再下山。

5 flip   

vt.快速翻动；轻抛；轻拍；n.轻抛；adj.轻浮的

参考例句：

• I had a quick flip through the book and it looked very interesting.我很快翻阅了一下那本书，看来似乎很有趣。
• Let's flip a coin to see who pays the bill.咱们来抛硬币决定谁付钱。

6 sophomore   

n.大学二年级生；adj.第二年的

参考例句：

• He is in his sophomore year.他在读二年级。
• I'm a college sophomore majoring in English.我是一名英语专业的大二学生。

7 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

8 tapestry   

n.挂毯，丰富多采的画面

参考例句：

• How about this artistic tapestry and this cloisonne vase?这件艺术挂毯和这个景泰蓝花瓶怎么样？
• The wall of my living room was hung with a tapestry.我的起居室的墙上挂着一块壁毯。

9 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

10 segregation   

n.隔离，种族隔离

参考例句：

• Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初，许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
• They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。

11 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

12 diversifying   

v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的现在分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• Some publishers are now diversifying into software. 有些出版社目前正兼营软件。 来自辞典例句
• Silverlit is diversifying into new markets, such as Russia and Eastern Europe. Silverlit正在使他们的市场变得多样化，开发新的市场如俄罗斯和东欧国家。 来自互联网

13 reclaiming   

v.开拓( reclaim的现在分词 )；要求收回；从废料中回收（有用的材料）；挽救

参考例句：

• People here are reclaiming land from the sea. 这儿的人们正在填海拓地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• How could such a man need reclaiming? 这么一个了不起的人怎么还需要别人拯救呢？ 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

14 ushering   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They were right where the coach-caller was swinging open a coach-door and ushering in two ladies. "他们走到外面时，叫马车的服务员正打开车门，请两位小姐上车。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Immediately the two of them approached others, thanking them, ushering them out one by one. 他们俩马上走到其他人面前，向他们道谢，一个个送走了他们。 来自辞典例句

15 stewards   

（轮船、飞机等的）乘务员( steward的名词复数 )； （俱乐部、旅馆、工会等的）管理员； （大型活动的）组织者； （私人家中的）管家

参考例句：

• The stewards all wore armbands. 乘务员都戴了臂章。
• The stewards will inspect the course to see if racing is possible. 那些干事将检视赛马场看是否适宜比赛。

16 aria   

n.独唱曲，咏叹调

参考例句：

• This song takes off from a famous aria.这首歌仿效一首著名的咏叹调。
• The opera was marred by an awkward aria.整部歌剧毁在咏叹调部分的不够熟练。

17 rekindle   

v.使再振作；再点火

参考例句：

• Nothing could rekindle her extinct passion.她激情已逝,无从心回意转。
• Is there anything could rekindle his extinct passion?有什么事情可重燃他逝去的热情呢？

18 gunpowder   

n.火药

参考例句：

• Gunpowder was introduced into Europe during the first half of the 14th century.在14世纪上半叶，火药传入欧洲。
• This statement has a strong smell of gunpowder.这是一篇充满火药味的声明。