{"id":4771,"date":"2025-06-10T14:45:11","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T18:45:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/?p=4771"},"modified":"2025-07-03T12:49:34","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T16:49:34","slug":"rooted-in-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/2025\/rooted-in-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Rooted in Community"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A

Alumnus Dont\u00e9 Gibbs is vice president of the Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park, the park\u2019s philanthropic partner. | Photo by Kofi Amponsah<\/p><\/div>\n

Dont\u00e9 Gibbs<\/b><\/a> began working at the <\/span>Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park <\/span><\/a>less than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, and his mission\u2014as it has been since childhood\u2014is to build relationships and elevate his community.<\/span><\/p>\n

As vice president of community partnerships at the conservancy\u2014the <\/span>park\u2019<\/span><\/a>s philanthropic partner\u2014Gibbs (CWR ’10, SAS ’12) runs many programs to ensure that one of the area\u2019s precious resources is accessible and welcoming to all. The East Cleveland native recently\u00a0 spoke with <\/span>art\/sci<\/span><\/i> about how he\u2019s contributing to the region that raised him.<\/span><\/p>\n

How has growing up in Northeast Ohio shaped the way you approach your work?<\/h2>\n

Many of my peers at Case Western Reserve came from backgrounds with far more resources, at least on paper, but I was rich in relationships. I had a strong familial foundation, and I was able to seek out [campus] mentors quickly\u2014folks I still talk to today.<\/span><\/p>\n

As a sociology major, I studied urban sprawl and loss of population and explored their impact on physical community spaces. I then took that into my [graduate] studies at [CWRU\u2019s Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences] and combined it with what I learned about building community beyond bricks and mortar.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Being able to incorporate all of that knowledge with my lived experience gives me an enormous sense of pride.<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you create experiences that help everyone feel welcome?<\/h2>\n

Cultural relevancy is everything. It\u2019s not just saying a place is welcoming, it\u2019s showing it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cuyahoga Valley National Park was established 50 years ago because of environmental protections initiated during the [Richard Nixon presidential] administration to establish \u2018parks for the people.\u2019\u00a0 Today, we\u2019re looking at those words and asking: <\/span>How do we ensure green spaces remain relevant and accessible to everyone?<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

When I joined the conservancy in January 2021, people were turning to outdoor spaces for connection, and Cuyahoga Valley had just ranked in the top 10 most-visited national parks. We launched Rhythm on the River that June\u2014a free outdoor concert series.<\/span><\/p>\n

From the start, we prioritized the visitor experience [with] parking attendants and golf carts, wide-open space for playing flag football and kickball, and local food trucks. We also have a \u2018kid zone\u2019 run by two young men I mentored at Cleveland recreation centers when they were teenagers, as well as park rangers who engage with families and introduce kids to careers in the conservancy and national park. And it\u2019s all happening in the midst of a concert.<\/span><\/p>\n

More than 22,000 people have visited Rhythm on the River since it started. We\u2019re going into our fifth year, and it just keeps getting better. It\u2019s eye-opening and reassuring to see thousands of people enjoy their national park, some for the first time.<\/span><\/p>\n

What upcoming projects are you most excited about?<\/h2>\n

Cuyahoga Valley National Park is vast\u201433,000 acres between Cleveland and Akron\u2014and it crosses different communities, each with unique experiences.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019re in conversation with transportation agencies and local officials about expanding the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad to Tower City [in downtown Cleveland]. Maybe you hop on [the public transit system] with a special pass that takes you to the railroad, and you can visit the park for the day. That\u2019s just one of many things we\u2019re working on.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s exciting to explore all of this potential looking to the next 50 years. It allows me to wake up, go to work and not feel like it\u2019s work\u2014it\u2019s purpose.<\/span><\/p>\n

Gibbs\u2019 community leadership spans far beyond his work with the conservancy. <\/span><\/i>Read about some of the other initiatives<\/span><\/i><\/a> that earned him the 2024 Ella Mae Johnson Service Award from the campus <\/span><\/i>African American Alumni Association<\/span><\/i><\/a> of CWRU.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cEducation and experience matter, but how you connect with people is the determining factor in your success. How you make people feel is what they will remember.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014 Dont\u00e9 Gibbs<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dont\u00e9 Gibbs<\/b><\/a> began working at the Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park <\/a>less than a year into the COVID-19 pandemic, and his mission\u2014as it has been since childhood\u2014is to build relationships and elevate his community. …Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":481,"featured_media":4772,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[70],"tags":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2025\/06\/10143919\/P40_D-Gibbs.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/481"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4771"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4929,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4771\/revisions\/4929"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}