Penn State students, faculty connect with wildlife leaders at annual meeting

LANCASTER, Pa. — Students and faculty from Penn State DuBois and University Park took their learning beyond the classroom and into conversations with fish and wildlife professionals from across North America during the 116th Annual Meeting of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), held Sept. 14-18 in Lancaster.

The meeting brought together more than 700 leaders from fish and wildlife agencies and conservation organizations from across the United States, U.S. territories, Canada and Mexico. For the Penn State group, the gathering offered a firsthand look at the issues shaping the field while providing opportunities to share perspectives, explore career possibilities and build relationships with professionals.

Keely Tolley Roen, associate teaching professor and program coordinator for Wildlife Technology at Penn State DuBois, and Andrew Mowen, professor of recreation, park and tourism Management in Penn State's College of Health and Human Development, led the group of 11 students from DuBois and University Park.

Mowen was invited to speak at the meeting and bring students to participate in a discussion about how state agencies can support and engage students in higher education. He asked Roen to join the presentation, building on connections between recreation, park and tourism management and wildlife technology while highlighting how partnerships with wildlife agencies can benefit students and professionals.

During their presentation, Mowen discussed the role agency professionals have played in his hunting and fishing special topics courses, particularly as fewer students enter college with previous experience in those activities. Roen highlighted the wildlife technology program's history of working with state and federal agencies and the mutual benefits those relationships can provide. The students then joined a panel discussion to share their own experiences and perspectives with those attending the meeting.

“Our students spend a tremendous amount of time learning through hands-on experiences in the field, but being part of a professional meeting like this adds another dimension to their education,” Roen said. “They were able to sit alongside professionals who are addressing real wildlife management challenges, ask questions, share their own experiences and begin building relationships within the profession. Those connections help students see where their education can take them and begin to picture themselves as professionals in the field.”

The 11 students who participated represented both Penn State DuBois and University Park. DuBois students were Elena Aquino, Emilie Gardner and Brooke Kelty. University Park students were Isaac Anthony, Alex Caraynoff, Jackson Fereday, Noah Gibble, Kameron Knisley, Brooke Person, Emma Sanford and Christian Shedlock.

The group represented several areas of study across Penn State, including wildlife and fisheries science; recreation, park and tourism management; plant sciences; Spanish; and labor and human resources. Anthony, Gibble, Knisley and Sanford are also alumni of the wildlife technology program at Penn State DuBois.

Throughout the annual meeting, students had opportunities to experience different aspects of the fish and wildlife profession. In addition to participating in the faculty presentation and student panel, they attended committee and working group meetings, took part in a workshop focused on emerging technologies in fish and wildlife management, and interacted with representatives from agencies, businesses and other organizations.

One of those connections between classroom learning and professional practice emerged during the plenary session. Kat Hoenke, coordinator for the National Fish Habitat Partnership, discussed the National Aquatic Connectivity Collaborative (NACC), which trains professionals and students to assess barriers to aquatic organism passage. Roen and fellow DuBois faculty member Emily Thomas had previously been trained on the same assessment protocol by Dave Dippold of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and have since taught it to wildlife technology students.

The connection was especially meaningful for Roen, she said, because the students sitting with her at the meeting had already used the protocol to assess culverts in the field — the same work being discussed before an audience of wildlife professionals.

“It was a true full-circle moment,” Roen said. “Our students were sitting there hearing about a protocol they had already used in the field, and later that day I was presenting a photo of Dave training me on that same protocol. It was such a clear example of how what students are learning connects directly to the work professionals are doing.”

For Gardner, a wildlife and fisheries science student at DuBois and wildlife technology alumna, one of the most memorable experiences came during a Human Wildlife Conflict Working Group meeting, where representatives from different state wildlife agencies discussed challenges they face in their respective states.

“My favorite part of attending the AFWA annual conference was sitting in on the Human Wildlife Conflict Working Group Meeting in the morning,” Gardner said. “In the meeting, all the different state wildlife agencies got the chance to voice their individual struggles with wildlife species they have been dealing with in their state. From whales being an issue in Oregon to alligators in Florida, it was extremely interesting to hear how each state deals with different wildlife conflicts.”

Students also attended the meeting's plenary session and heard from leaders in the field, including Brian Nesvik, director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Tim Schaeffer, executive director of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. Schaeffer recognized the Penn State students during his remarks and later met with the group during a break, giving students another opportunity to interact directly with a leader in the profession.

The access to professionals made an impression on Emma Sanford, a wildlife and fisheries science student at University Park and alumna of the wildlife technology program at Penn State DuBois.

“I did not expect all the professionals to be as welcoming and willing to network when walking into the room,” Sanford said. “Getting to hear from the professionals through their discussions and presentations helped me consider an area I may want to pursue that I had never thought about before.”

Mowen said the collaboration helped broaden what students could gain from the annual meeting.

“Bringing students from Penn State DuBois and University Park together for this experience demonstrates what we can accomplish when we connect programs, campuses and professional partners,” Mowen said. “Students had the opportunity not only to learn from leaders in fish and wildlife management, but to engage with them, ask questions and contribute their own perspectives. Experiences like this help students build professional networks and better understand the range of careers and opportunities available to them.”

For Brooke Person, a University Park student studying Spanish and labor and human resources with a minor in recreation, park and tourism management, those connections were among the most meaningful parts of the annual meeting.

“Aside from the fun I had, I made so many wonderful professional connections and learned new things that will help me in whatever future career I land in,” Person said. “I felt so at home surrounded by people who share the same passion for the outdoors and conservation as I do.”