Kirsten Talken-Spaulding has been appointed superintendent of Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park.
She succeeds Lucy Lawliss, who retired in December 2015.
Talken-Spaulding comes to the position from Fort Monroe National Monument, where she served since 2011 as the first superintendent of the new national park.
“We look forward to Kirsten taking the helm at Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park,” said Mike Caldwell, National Park Service Northeast Regional director. “Her outstanding work in leading the startup operations at Fort Monroe demonstrates her ability to work with partners and stakeholders to preserve our shared history.”
Kirsten Talken-Spaulding began her National Park Service Career (NPS) in 1988 at Shenandoah National Park. She then worked at NPS headquarters in Washington, D.C., Mojave National Preserve in California, National Mall and Memorial Parks in Washington, D.C., and Haleakalā National Park in Hawaii. She returned to the mainland in 2003, and held positions in the National Capital Region, including Prince William Forest Park and National Capital Parks-East.
In 2010, Talken-Spaulding was selected for the Bevinetto Congressional Fellowship, a two-year training and development program based in D.C. She served as a staff member of the U.S. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee, as special assistant to the director of the NPS, and then with the NPS Office of Legislative and Congressional Affairs.
Talken-Spaulding received a Bachelor of Science degree from the College of William & Mary, and a Master of Divinity degree from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary.
Since 2003, Talken-Spaulding and her her spouse have maintained a home in Stafford County. “Coming to be a part of the Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania team is coming home,” Caldwell said.
Talken-Spaulding is a member of the Fredericksburg Area Running Club. She also enjoys long distance endurance motorcycling, including an 11,80-mile trip visiting 68 national parks in 26 states during a two-week rally in 2015.
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