NCAC023: Fisheries and Wildlife
Annual/Termination Reports (SAES-422): [08/23/2005] [12/26/2007]
Date of Annual Report: 08/23/2005
Report Information:
Participants:
- Taylor, Bill (taylorw@msu.edu) and Winterstein, Scott (winterst@msu.edu) - Michigan State University
- Perry, Jim (jperry@umn.edu) and Tanner, Dawn - University of Minnesota
- Jones, Jack - University of Missouri
- Gates, Bob (gates.77@osu.edu)- Ohio State University
- Scalet, Chuck (Charles.Scalet@sdstate.edu)- South Dakota State University
- Craven, Scott (srcraven@facstaff.wisc.edu)- University of Wisconsin
- Menzel, Bruce (bmenzel@csrees.usda.gov) - CSREES
Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting:
The meeting was held at the University of Wisconsin's Kemp Field Station near Rhinelander WI, May 13-15, 2005. Chairman Jim Perry (MN) presided. Minutes of the 2004 annual meeting were approved as presented. Bruce Menzel reported on behalf of CSREES. There was general discussion on topics of federal and state budgets, Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units and Cooperative Ecosystems Units, Cooperative Extension, and others. A special discussion topic was field experiences in the undergraduate curriculum. Jim Perry described the required pre-sophomore year experience in Cloquet MN, Scott Craven (WI) mentioned elective field courses at Kemp Station and at Cloud Forest Camp in Mexico. Bruce Menzel reported the semester-long immersion course in the Iowa State Forestry program. Others reported that while they did not have a dedicated field course, students gained practical experience in other ways such as "techniques" courses, summer employment, and internships. Institutional representatives made annual reports for their programs. Each provided a written report and expanded upon it in verbal remarks. Another special discussion topic concerned departmental and college merger issues and opportunities. Nationwide there has been a trend for merging fisheries and wildlife units with others to form broader natural resources and similar units. A recent example is at Iowa State where the Animal Ecology and Forestry departments merged to form the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management. College-level mergers are also happening. At Minnesota, the Agriculture and Natural Resources colleges are about to be joined. Other examples with longer histories include Missouri, Ohio State, and Purdue. There was general discussion about the reasons for this trend, and experiences on different campuses. The future location of NCAC-23 meetings and the committee's direction was considered. Tentatively, the meeting will be held at Max McGraw Wildlife Foundation in Illinois next year. This had been the traditional meeting site of the committee for most of its existence. The target date for next year's meeting is the week before Memorial Day. Scott Craven will look into arrangements. Concern was expressed about dwindling attendance at NCAC-23 meetings. All member institutions are encouraged to send a representative to the annual meeting even if the regular institutional representative cannot attend. It was noted that participation by designated administrative advisors has been limited in the past. Consideration was given to a joint meeting with NCAC-10, as has been done periodically in the past. Consensus was to not meet with that committee in 2006. The meeting continued with discussion of assistantship stipends and benefits. Examples showed that a variety of systems exist among member programs, owing to individual institutional histories. This discussion prompted consideration of administrative demands for "revenue enhancement" by academic units. Jim Perry reported on the value of offering distance education courses for this purpose. This led to consideration of developing a regional consortium to deliver distance education and share the profits. Some representatives reported institutional pressure to increase graduate student enrollments, which has financial implications at the departmental level. Currently, there is one north central multistate research project (NC-1005) concerning landscape ecology of white-tailed deer in agro-forest ecosystems. It is going well. Its last annual meeting was held on January 21 in Nebraska City NE, and the group has frequent conference calls. The NCAC-23 discussed other possibilities for regional projects including topics of riparian management, CRP and wildlife disease. A meeting to form an NCT committee on disease might be convened at the annual TWS meeting in Madison in September. Given the rapid expansion of disease issues, consideration should be given to the breadth of the project. A meeting to plan a riparian management project might be held at the next Midwest Fish and Conference in December. Discussion of a possible CRP project was wide-ranging. Consensus of the committee was to pursue establishment of a disease project first. Bill Taylor volunteered to convene a planning meeting, perhaps at Wingspread Conference Center in Racine. Scott Wintersteen will generate a list of potential participants. Meeting adjourned.
Accomplishments:
NCAC-23 provides for fisheries and wildlife departmental administrators in the region to meet annually to discuss matters of mutual interest and especially to organize and manage multistate research projects and other cooperative ventures. Historically, the committee has held a multi-day springtime meeting that includes an established agenda. A report from the CSREES representative updates committee members on relevant issues at the national level. Institutional reports are useful for following regional trends in matters of common concern such as staffing, enrollments, and financial issues. Typically, each meeting includes discussion on one or more special topics of current interest. For example, at the 2005 meeting, there was discussion on field experiences for undergraduates and the issue of college and departmental mergers. The committee shares interests with NCAC-10 Forestry and periodically meets jointly with that group to promote integrated natural resources programming. At each meeting, progress of ongoing regional multistate research projects is reviewed and evaluated, and needs for future such projects are discussed. Currently, one project exists, NC-1005, Landscape Ecology of White-Tailed Deer in Agro-forest Ecosystems. When there is agreement on need for a new project, the committee takes the initiative to organize activities to plan it and to move the proposal through the NCA project approval process. At its 2005 meeting, the committee determined to investigate establishing a new multistate research project on the topic of wildlife disease. It will organize a meeting of potential project participants during the next year.
Impact Statements:
Last Modified:
unknown
Date of Annual Report: 12/26/2007
Report Information:
Participants:
URL: Copy of participant list
Brief Summary of Minutes of Annual Meeting:
Accomplishments:
Impact Statements:
Last Modified:
26-Dec-2007
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