After months of waiting, Mary Tullius has been notified she will be director of the Division of Parks and Recreation.

Tullius, who has been interim director the past 14 months, will become Utah's first woman director of the division and one of only six women nationwide holding that position.

Mike Styler, executive director of the state Department of Natural Resources, is scheduled to announce the appointment today.

Tullius said when she accepted the interim position 14 months ago she planned to go "full-steam ahead" as if she were the director, "knowing, in the back of my mind all the time, someone else could come in and may decide to go in another direction."

She said one of her first priorities will be to stabilize funding for the division. Prior to this past legislative session, the division had lost close to $8 million in state-supported funding and revenue following a drop in the number of parks visitors after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In addition, the state's 42 parks need $67 million in facilities improvements, she said.

"The Legislature was good to us this year," Tullius said. "We received $2 million for renovation work. Now, we'll meet this week and go over our list and prioritize those projects. This does not involve new acquisitions but simply taking care of what we have."

Being the first woman in the job is a fact but not a factor in her tenure nor in her plans for the division, Tullius said.

"Up to this point, (gender) has not been an issue," she said. "I've been well received. People have been very open and receptive to what we're doing. My goal this year with the Legislature was to gain some awareness and credibility for state parks, and I think I accomplished that."

The parks system must remain affordable and "a place where people can go and enjoy their surroundings — whether it's boating or cross country skiing or fishing or camping," she said, noting that visitors expect to do so with access to running water, power, hot showers, comfortable camping spots and convenient access.

Tullius grew up in Idaho, graduated from Brigham Young University. She took a job with the state in 1979 and in 1987 was hired by the state parks public affairs office.

In 1992, then-director Courtland Nelson created a position for a deputy director and encouraged Tullius to apply. She was named interim director in January 2004 when Nelson accepted a park directorship in Minnesota.

Tullius will oversee 280 full-time employees and 220 seasonal workers at 42 state parks. She headed a task force that recently drafted a five-year strategic plan to improve park services, operate efficiently on sometimes shaky funding, retain veteran employees and make certain every park has a resource management plan.

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Contributing: Associated Press

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