VIRGINIA
TECH'S NATURAL RESOURCES
PROGRAM ADDRESSES
COMING FEDERAL STAFF
SHORTAGE
BLACKSBURG,
Oct. 27, 2003 -The
35 to 50 percent projection
of government employees
(1.6 million full-time
workers) in the natural
resources profession
retiring within the
next several years
has prompted Virginia
Tech's College of
Natural Resources
to focus its Northern
Virginia program to
meet the upcoming
educational needs.
"In
addition to a major
expansion of distance
learning offerings,
we are starting a
master's in natural
resources to meet
the technical brain
drain quickly coming
with many retirements
in the nation's capital,
which is the headquarters
for federal and many
non-profit natural
resource agencies,"
said David Trauger,
director of Virginia
Tech's natural resources
program at the Northern
Virginia campus.
"The timing is perfect
to grow our program,"
he explained, "and
students are recognizing
the local opportunities
that are available.
Our hallmark is flexibility,
so we can tailor the
program to meet specific
needs of the mid-career
student."
Trauger, who is in
his third year as
program director,
said, "Our courses
focus on sustainable
development in urban
environments and sustainable
management of natural
resources on adjacent
rural lands." The
program offers a Master
of Forestry and now
a Master of Natural
Resources, as well
as a Certificate of
Graduate Study in
Natural Resources,
which is often the
best way for a working
professional to start.
With an enrollment
of 63 students during
the spring of 2003,
the program has grown
rapidly since its
establishment in 1997
and is expected to
reach 150 soon. Trauger
sees the Northern
Virginia campus as
very different from
the Blacksburg campus.
"We have some students
who have just received
their undergraduate
degree, but most of
our students are older
adults who have either
been working in or
are moving over into
the profession," he
said.
Trauger
works with each student
individually to design
a course plan to meet
his or her needs and
expectations. "Offering
this program in the
capital region where
it is needed makes
a difference in teaching
and research," adds
Trauger. The D.C.
area continues to
be one of the most
rapidly developing
areas in the United
States.
"A large percentage
of these students
will be transitioning
from other disciplines,
which is good for
the profession. Conservation
issues are complex
and finding solutions
will require all disciplines,"
Trauger said, who
spent 32 years with
the Department of
the Interior's U.S.
Geological Survey
and Fish and Wildlife
Service.
Teaching,
research, and outreach
are the main interests
of the program with
a focus on sustainable
natural resources
in rapidly urbanizing
environments. Courses
address the complexities
of ecological issues
related to land and
natural resources
in rural-urban transitional
environments in Northern
Virginia. The Natural
Resources Program
is located in close
proximity with the
related Virginia Tech
programs in urban
and regional planning,
landscape architecture,
and public administration
and policy.
"A new partnership
with the USDA's Forest
Service and Virginia
Tech's College of
Natural Resources
and its Institute
for Distance and Distributed
Learning will have
global impact on developing
the next generation
of natural resources
leaders," Trauger
said. "In the next
three years, we will
have the best professors
and courses in the
nation on the distance
learning website."
Trauger
has been working with
the Renewable Natural
Resources Foundation
and the American Association
for the Advancement
of Science, which
will hold a conference
on Personal Trends,
Education Policy,
and Evolving Roles
of Federal and State
Natural Resources
Agencies. The Washington,
D.C. conference, slated
for Oct. 28 and 29,
will showcase how
to prepare for the
many upcoming retirements
and other changes
rapidly occurring
in the natural resources
profession.
The
program at Virginia
Tech's College of
Natural Resources
has been recognized
by peers as among
the top five. Areas
of studies include
environmental resource
management; fisheries
and wildlife sciences;
forestry; geospatial
and environmental
analysis; natural
resource recreation;
urban forestry; wood
science and forest
products; geography;
and international
development.
For
more information on
the conference or
and the Virginia Tech
graduate program contact
Dr. David Trauger
at dtrauger@vt.edu
or (703) 706-8130.
