Learning curve was steep at Effigy Mounds

I spent 30 years with Iowa State Parks for the old Iowa Conservation Commission and the Department of Natural Resources.

During that time, I was involved in park management as well as planning activities. In the early 1990s, I became the first Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator and worked to ensure that agency facilities and programs were accessible to visitors. This was a learning process that yielded very positive results.

My colleagues and I also coordinated with the State Historic Preservation and state archaeologist offices and also, on occasion, with the American Indian community, to ensure that park projects did not damage sensitive cultural features; again, a process with a steep learning curve.

It is amazing that senior Effigy Mounds staffers admit to ignorance of what should be basic understanding/ elements of both area management and project development activities. The 'ignorance is no excuse” adage certainly applies here. I hope that future activities at Effigy Mounds do not result in any further damage to its unique cultural resources as well as embarrassment to the National Park Service.

James Scheffler

Des Moines