Page 10 - 2020 Jan/Feb Outdoor Oklahoma

DEPARTMENT STANDOUTS HONORED NATIONALLY, LOCALLY

Several Wildlife Department employees and programs have
earned notable recognitions recently.
The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation Don P. brown/oDwc
(ODWC) received the 2019 Diversity Outreach and Education
Award from the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife
Agencies (SEAFWA). The Department was recognized for
forging fruitful partnerships to introduce students from diverse
backgrounds to the outdoors through fishing.
“At a time when young people in cities are increasingly dis-
connected from nature and the outdoors, especially those from
diverse backgrounds who may lack access or opportunity for time
in nature, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation
is providing a model for many other organizations facing similar
challenges across our nation,” said J. D. Strong, ODWC Director.
In 2017 the Department partnered with the Paul George SEAFWA AWARDS: Executive Assistant Rhonda Hurst, SEAFWA Special
Award; Department Director J.D. Strong; OKFITS Coordinator Daniel
Foundation to help introduce the Oklahoma Fishing in the Griffith, SEAFWA 2019 Diversity Outreach and Education Award.
Schools Program into more urban classrooms. In addition
to being a professional basketball player (formerly with the
Oklahoma City Thunder), George is also an avid angler. Since Don P. brown/oDwc
2011, the Fishing in the Schools Program recruited nearly 400
schools, and George saw a way to use this established platform
to reach more diverse urban audiences.
The Department and the foundation picked 13 new schools in
the Oklahoma City metro area to be part of the new PG13 fish-
ing program. Teachers received training to teach the Fishing in
the Schools Program in their classrooms. The partnership grew
in 2018-2019, with the foundation providing $8,000 to cover
transportation costs for participating schools.
Additionally many of those kids will have a new opportunity
for fishing access, thanks to a partnership with the Oklahoma FISHERIES PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR AWARD: Fisheries Assistant Chief
Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Paul George Foun- Ken Cunningham; Wildlife Department Director J.D. Strong; honoree
dation, the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Foundation and Senior Biologist Jason Schooley; Assistant Director Wade Free.
the City of Oklahoma City Parks and Recreation Department. ODWC with an annual attendance of between 40,000 and 60,000.
This partnership is leveraging $50,000 to build an accessible “I've had the privilege of working directly and daily with
fishing dock for South Park Lake in Oklahoma City. Rhonda over the past three years,” said ODWC Director J.D.
The Department has since secured equipment grants for the Strong. “During that time, Rhonda has been an invaluable asset
2019-2020 school year to add up to 40 new schools to the pro- to me, the Department, and particularly in her role as our Expo
gram in urban areas. coordinator. She is the kind of person whose commitment to our
SEAFWA presented Rhonda Hurst with a special recog- outdoor heritage and lifestyle shines in everything she does.”
nition. Hurst is the Executive Assistant to the Director of the In addition to her duties with ODWC, Hurst is a certified
Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (ODWC). She hunter education instructor and certified National Bowhunter
also serves as coordinator of the ODWC Wildlife Expo, one of Education Foundation instructor. She has also served as an
the largest wildlife expos in the nation. instructor for numerous workshops and programs designed to
“Rhonda lives and breathes for sharing her love of the out- introduce others – especially women – to the outdoors. Among
doors with friends, family and neighbors across Oklahoma,” those are such programs as the Oklahoma and Texas Becoming
said Chuck Sykes, SEAFWA President. an Outdoors Woman programs, Becoming an Archery and
Hurst began her career with ODWC in 1992 as a secretary for Bowhunting Enthusiast, Project Eagle Outdoors Woman, Out-
the agency's Information and Education Division. She trans- doors Woman One-Day workshops and many more.
ferred to the agency's Wildlife Division in 1996 and was promot- The ODWC Fisheries Division selected Senior Biologist
ed to the role of Administrative Assistant in 1999. Since 2013, Jason Schooley as the 2018 Fisheries Professional of the Year.
Hurst has served as Executive Assistant to the ODWC Director. He is heavily involved in operation and maintenance of ODWC’s
In 2005, Hurst took on the challenge of serving as ODWC's first Paddlefish Research Center near Miami, Okla., and conducts
Oklahoma Wildlife Expo Coordinator. That first expo unexpect- constant research focused on paddlefish in Oklahoma. In 2018,
edly drew more than 45,000 visitors. Under her leadership, the Schooley received the Professional of the Year Award from the
Expo has become a key public relations and outreach event for Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.

8 Off the Beaten Path

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