R.W. Jenkins, chief of maintenance for the Virgin Islands National Park on St. John, has been named park acting deputy superintendent.
Acting Supt. Judy Shafer, who holds the title of deputy superintendent, said Jenkins began overseeing daily operations effective Sunday. "He will be taking care of certain operational matters," she said.
Shafer took over management of the park upon the retirement of Supt. Russell Berry Jr. last month. She said Jenkins' temporary appointment frees her to work more closely with the National Park Service Southeast Region office in Atlanta, the NPS national office in Washington, D.C., and the Department of Interior and to deal with external matters relevant to the V.I. National Park.
Meanwhile, regional director Jerry Belson is considering about 45 applications for the vacancy created by Berry's departure. "He still has it under consideration," NPS spokesman Paul Winegar said.
According to Winegar, a decision on who the new superintendent will be could be reached within the next two weeks. The deadline for submitting applications was July 17, Shafer had said earlier that the NPS selection process "can take months."