Page 43 - September/October Outdoor Oklahoma Magazine

University, 15 from Rogers State University, 7 from Tulsa with the public, teamwork, and technical skills like equip-
Community College, 5 from University of Oklahoma, and ment operation are easily transferable whether an intern’s
10 from other universities passions lie in fisheries,
in Oklahoma or from other wildlife, or other.
“ My time at the PRC was everything a great
states. Interns have ranged The roster of 104 current
internship should be: educational, challenging,
in classification and expe- and former PRC interns is
rewarding, and lots of fun! I left the PRC with a
rience from college fresh- impressive. Eleven former
fresh appreciation of the hard work, dedication,
men to graduates with PRC interns are current full-
and passion that goes into managing our wildlife.”
master’s degrees. Most time ODWC employees
have been traditional stu- — Kayleigh Locke, in Fisheries Division (nine)
dents; however, some Ecologist, Stantec Environmental and the Law Enforcement
interns have pursued the Division (two). An addi-
opportunity in contribution to a second degree or career tional three former interns were hired by ODWC but have
(i.e. post-retirement or post-military service). Interns have since moved on to other careers.
pursued numerous degree programs including fisheries, As a next step in their educational or career develop-
wildlife, ecology, agronomy, integrative biology, zoology, ment, many PRC interns secured additional internship roles
and other natural resource curriculums. Many of the activ- in other Department programs. While we haven’t been
ities and opportunities provided by the PRC, such as data able to keep track of every former PRC intern in a “where
collection and entry, customer service, communication are they now” sort of fashion, many have used their expe-
rience as a steppingstone to graduate-level education and
WILDLIFEDEPARTMENT.COM and entities.
worthwhile careers with other natural resource agencies

LIFE AS A PRC INTERN
The PRC intern team performs two primary functions-
customer service and fisheries data collection. By design,
they are the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed representatives
of the Department who are interacting with the anglers
when they check in a paddlefish, seek information, and
collect their fillets. For these tasks, customer service is key,
and we pride ourselves on the ability to make sure that
the anglers take home positive memories from their fish-
ing trip and their interactions with the Department. The
The “weekday team” from the PRC class of 2018.

WILDLIFEDEPARTMENT.COM

The PRC intern class of 2019, including current ODWC employee Nathanael Hull (third from left).

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 41