GW Parkway Superintendent Charles Cuvelier
Through the years along the George Washington Memorial Parkway and Mount Vernon Bike Trail, Superintendent Charles Cuvelier has been there as the National Park Service representative, taking it all in from the trail enthusiasts, families, bicyclists and the commuters who live along the George Washington Parkway.
He was recently selected to the Senior Executive Service and will join the National Park Service Washington Office senior leadership team as the Associate Director for Visitor and Resource Protection. In this position he will lead nine divisions that encompass nearly 30 national programs, including public health, law enforcement, fire and aviation, regulations and special park uses, as well as the United States Park Police.
He will continue as Park Superintendent through Aug. 24 and aid in the transition at which time Christine Smith will serve as the Acting Superintendent.
“My time at GWMP is transitioning, and I’d like to share this with you. I want to extend my sincere gratitude for the opportunity to work with you and your organization. Park partnerships are essential for achieving shared vision and goals, and your efforts provide direct benefits to park visitors for which we are very grateful. Together, we have realized many priorities and actions outlined in the GWMP handbook, enhancing our stewardship of the park,” he said.
Cuvelier has been with the National Park Service for 32 years and since 2019 he has served as the Superintendent of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, managing a workforce of over 100 employees. Under Charles’s stewardship, the George Washington Memorial Parkway has hosted over 7 million visitors annually to notable sites including the Mount Vernon Trail, Theodore Roosevelt Island, Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve, Lyndon Baines Johnson Memorial Grove, Lady Bird Johnson Park, Arlington House (the Robert E. Lee Memorial), the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial, Glen Echo Park, Clara Barton National Historic Site, and Great Falls Park, the NPS said. With the NPS, he has also worked at Sequoia Canyon, Kings Canyon, Yosemite, the Natchez Trace, and Great Smoky Mountains.
Christine Smith, an Alexandria resident, will be taking over temporarily while the job is announced through the Federal government channels. Smith worked with Cuvelier through the years. “He absolutely earned it,” she said.