Welcome to the NRWT Program Webpage!

PAGE INDEX

Overview of the NRWT Program Specialized Courses
Employment Opportunities University Transfer Option
Program Faculty Information Adjunct Faculty Information
Northern Saw-Whet Owl Project North Branch of the Potomac Wetlands Project
Students in Action The Woodmont Experience
Newspaper/Magazine Articles/Letters of Commendation Curriculum/Course Sequence/Course Descriptions
Course Syllabi Useful Websites for Dendrology
Useful Websites for Wildlife Biology NRWT Library Resources
Natural Resources Websites  

WHAT IS THE NRWT PROGRAM?
You can be a part of state, national, and private sector efforts to conserve and manage dwindling resources like wildlife, fisheries, forests, soils, and water.  You can make a significant difference by choosing a career that involves managing natural resources.  Garrett College's Natural Resources and Wildlife Technology Program provides education and state-of-the-art technical training in many natural resources management fields.

The NRWT Program emphasizes experience in practical settings in the field as well as in the classroom.  This makes our graduates especially attractive to employers.  The NRWT Program is also unique because several of the specialized NRWT courses offered are taught by professors who are also natural resources managers employed by State Natural Resources Agencies (see adjunct professor biographies hyperlinks below).  This provides students excellent training opportunities that are based on actual practices in the "real world".

Students can also develop personal contacts with professionals in the field.  This is invaluable for developing your career!  In addition, professors within the program have secured several grants and can provide students with training and summer employment opportunities in a wide variety of fields such as wetland monitoring and restoration and capture, banding, and monitoring of migratory northern saw-whet owls.  These grants are funded by a variety of private and governmental entities, including the state of Maryland's Department of Natural Resources and the Maryland Environmental Trust Fund (see hyperlinks below).  The program also works closely with The Nature Conservancy, a highly successful and respected nonprofit environmental organization.  Join our program and get on the job training using the latest technology and earn college credit in the Natural Resources and Wildlife Technology Program.

For more information about the Natural Resources and Wildlife Technology Program at Garrett College call our admissions office at (301) 387-3010 or contact any of our faculty members.

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NRWT PROGRAM SPECIALIZED COURSES  

General Ecology Fisheries Biology and Management
Wildlife Biology Water Quality Assessment
Wildlife Techniques Soil and Water Conservation
Habitat Management Soil Science
Forest Management Chemistry and Quantitative Methods for Natural Resource Science
Forest Measurement Geospatial Data Collection and Analysis
Dendrology Geographic Information Systems
Plant Systematics Natural Resources Practical Skills
Environmental Science Back Country Living Skills

To maximize your chances of employment in this competitive job market, the NRWT Program provides an education that covers a wide range of subjects directly related to the industry.  NRWT is all about hands-on training and practical field experience. 

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EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
Your education at Garrett College will prepare you for employment with government agencies, private companies, and nonprofit organizations in a variety of natural resources, wildlife,  and environmental fields, including but not limited to the following:

Wildlife Management

Forest Management

Parks / Recreation / Interpretation

Fisheries Management

Ecotourism

Wetlands Management

Soil and Water Conservation

Water Quality Monitoring

Agricultural Inspection

Environmental Consulting

UNIVERSITY TRANSFER OPTION
You may choose to enter the work force after completing the Natural Resources and Wildlife Technology Program or you may choose to transfer to a four-year college. We can help you transfer to a four-year college that offers a program in wildlife, fisheries, forestry, or environmental science.  At Garrett College, you will get the broad based education and experience rarely available at a four year school.  For more information about the Natural Resources and Wildlife Technology Program at Garrett College call our admissions office at (301) 387-3010 or contact any of our faculty members. 

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FACULTY INFORMATION
Kevin Dodge - Professor of Wildlife and Biology (NRWT Program Director) 301-387-3328
Kevin Dodge e-mail
Kevin Dodge Biographical Information

Peter Skylstad - Professor of Biology and Natural Resources Technology (Assistant Program Director) 301-387-3332
Peter Skylstad e-mail
Peter Skylstad Biographical Information

ADJUNCT FACULTY INFORMATION

Alan Klotz - Adjunct Professor of Fisheries (biography)
Rick Latshaw - Adjunct Professor of Wildlife and Habitat Mgmt (biography)
Mark Beals - Adjunct Professor of Forestry
Search for the Champion Tree (Mark Beals, NRWT Graduate and Adjunct Professor at work)
NRWT Program Professor/DNR Biologist Rick Latshaw with endangered Allegheny Woodrat
Life Springs Anew in Maryland Woods (article by NRWT Professor Rick Latshaw)
Disappearing Act - The Mystery of Hoyes Run  (article by NRWT Professor Al Klotz)

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"NRWT PROGRAM IMAGES HYPERLINKS"
* Most of the image links below will load in under one minute.  Use the "back button" on your browser to return to the NRWT Homepage after viewing linked images.  If images do not load immediately, use the "view refresh" button on your browser.

Northern Saw-Whet Owl Project
The links below are to the NSWO Project 2002 Field Season and the ProjectOwlNet website.  Each fall, NRWT Program students operate a Northern Saw-Whet Owl banding station in Garrett County.  This project is a multi-state and multi-national effort to gather data on NSWO migratory behavior and breeding success.

To view the video clip below,  click on the link and then scroll down until you see "Watch a video clip of a saw-whet owl" (QuickTime, 34sec, 2.1MB)

Video clip of Professor Dodge discussing northern saw-whet owls for The Nature Conservancy


North Branch of the Potomac Wetlands/Kempton Mine AMD Project Images
The links below are to images of NRWT Program students at work (and play) and information about the Kempton Mine Wetlands Monitoring and Restoration Project.  This project is a $230,000 five year grant to the NRWT Program to restore critical wetlands in the upper reaches of the North Branch of the Potomac River watershed.  Most images are small files and will load quickly, some are large files (size noted in links) and may take some time to download.  Use the "view refresh" button if images do not load and use the "back button" on your browser to return to the NRWT homepage after viewing each linked page.

North Branch Wetlands Project Student Technicians Conference Macroinvertebrates Survey and NRWT Students
Small Mammal Survey and NRWT Students Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and the NRWT Program
Phytoreclamation on the North Branch of the Potomac Wetlands North Branch of the Potomac Vegetation Survey and NRWT Students
North Branch Wetland Seeps / GPS and GIS Technology The President goes to the wetlands
Melissa Williams (at work on a GIS) Ted Moore (water chemistry testing)
Kellee and Jessica collect soil samples Kellee in Mudshoes
Jessica Brewer using the latest GPS technology Jacob Vitak and Ted Moore map seeps in the wetlands
Michael Harvey and Jessica Brewer survey vegetation using GPS Ted Moore collects a water sample
Melissa Williams measures flow at Hoyes Run Trout Unlimited Wetlands Student Presentations 2003
Hoyes Run Hydrogeology Project (2003) Wetland Technicians Conference and End of Field Season Party 2003
Whitetail deer fawn (Odocoileus virginianus) at Hoyes Run 2003 Snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina) at Cherry Creek 2003
Northern Water Snake  (Nerodia sipedon sipedon) at Hoyes Run 2003 NRWT Wetlands Monitoring and Restoration Project: Students at work (10 MB)
California University of PA Partnership (Electroshocking the North Branch of the Potomac)
Amphibian Digital Field Guide (2 MB)  

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NRWT Program Students in Action (Images) 

NRWT Northern Saw-Whet Owl Banding and Migratory Research Project DNR Black Bear Survey and NRWT Technicians
Maryland DNR Deer Check Stations and NRWT Students Fisheries Management and NRWT Students
Advanced Technology and the NRWT Program NRWT Fisheries Biology and Management and Trout Unlimited
Wetland Delineation and the NRWT Program Fisheries Biology Anatomy and Dissection Lab
Trout Biology and Management (Hoyes Run) Northern Saw-whet Owl Banding Project 2002
Royal Walnut Moth Caterpillar Natural History BIO 110 (2002)
Fisheries Biology and Management (seining Deep Creek Lake) Electroshocking at Hoyes Run 2003 (NRW 283)
Stocking trout on the Youghiogheny  

The Woodmont Experience
(click the link below to get an overview of the weekend field trip to an historic hunting lodge)

The Woodmont Experience (weekend field trip to an historic hunting lodge 2002)

The links below will take you to images from the 2003 field trip to the Woodmont Hunt Club.  Use the back button on your browser to return to the main page.

Arrival at the Lodge Archery Chemical Immobilization lab Tree Stand Techniques
Hunter Safety Olympics Fine Dining at the Lodge Dinner and a Movie Trap and Skeet Challenge Course

Newspaper/Magazine Articles and Letters of Commendation Related to the NRWT Program

Jason Zorn (NRWT student) Office of Surface Mining/Trout Unlimited Scholarship Eric Warnick (NRWT graduate) Firefighting in National Forests in Western U.S.
Green Ridge State Forest Project and GIS Technology (Wes Ewing, NRWT graduate) Green Ridge State Forest GIS Project and the NRWT Program
Jacob Vitak (NRWT graduate) Naturalist at Deep Creek State Park Professor Skylstad joins the NRWT Program (2000)
Professor Dodge teaches about the value of wetlands Rick Long (NRWT student) teaches natural history at Rocky Gap State Park
North Branch of the Potomac Wetlands Restoration Project (image 1) North Branch of the Potomac Wetlands Restoration Project (image 2)
Disappearing Act - The Mystery of Hoyes Run  (article by NRWT Professor Al Klotz) Search for the Champion Tree (Mark Beals, NRWT Graduate and Adjunct Professor at work)
Muddy Creek Restoration Trout Unlimited Scholarship (Terri Belasco, NRWT Program student) Life Springs Anew in Maryland Woods (article by NRWT Professor Rick Latshaw)
Potomac-Garrett State Forest GIS Project (NRWT students Melissa Williams and Jason Savage) Professor Dodge teaches wetland ecology to NHS students

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NRWT Program Curriculum, Course Sequence, and Course Descriptions Hyperlinks

NRWT Program curriculum, course descriptions and course sequencecan be found in the college catalog

For NRWT Program Environmental Technology Course Descriptions,check the college catalog

For NRWT Program Biology Course Descriptions, check the college catalog


Hyperlinks to NRWT Program Course Syllabi
CS 180 Introduction to Geographic Information Systems (Skylstad)
ENT 201 Chemistry and Quantitative Methods for NRWT (Skylstad)
NRW 105 and 106 Environmental Science (Skylstad)
BIO 110 Natural History (Skylstad)
BIO 150 General Ecology (Dodge)
NRW 270 Forest Measurement  (Beals)
NRW 275 Forest Management  (Dodge)
NRW 283 Fisheries Biology and Management  (Klotz)
NRW 286 Wildlife Techniques/Habitat Management I (Latshaw)
NRW 287 Wildlife Techniques/Habitat Management II  (Latshaw)

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Useful Websites for BIO 120 (Dendrology)

www2.gcnet.net/weatherview (Garrett County weather information) cahe.nmsu.edu/pubs/_g/g-102.pdf (firewood info)
plants.usda.gov/ (U.S. Department of Agriculture plant info) wetlands.fws.gov/bha/ (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wetland info)
www.cas.psu.edu/docs/CASDEPT/FOREST/TMR/TMR_frame.htm (PA timber prices) www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/tree/ (info about many tree species)
www.fw.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/main.htm (Virginia Tech’s dendrology home page, including fact sheets for many species and a link to the USDA Silvics of North America site for those species) www.na.fs.fed.us/spfo/pubs/silvics_manual/Table_of_contents.htm (the on-line version of the USDA Forest Service Silvics publication discussed above)
www.naturalresources.umd.edu/Stumpage_Prices.html (MD timber prices) www.wvu.edu/~exten/depts/af/ahc/ahc.htm (WVU Appalachian Hardwood Center)
webster.commnet.edu/mla.htm (MLA format information)  

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Useful Websites for NRW 181 (Wildlife Biology)

www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov//id/framlst/infocenter.html
www.natureserve.org/explorer/
www.dnr.state.md.us/wildlife/hntgp.html (Maryland hunting and trapping information)
www.dnr.state.wv.us/wvhunting/default.htm (West Virginia hunting and trapping information)
sites.state.pa.us/PA_Exec/PGC/hunting/index.htm (Pennsylvania hunting and trapping information)
webster.commnet.edu/mla.htm (MLA format information)

Hyperlinks to NRWT Library Resources

Library Research Databases
Web Search Engines
Library Databases by Subject
Library Web Research Links

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"HYPERLINKS TO USEFUL AND INTERESTING NATURAL RESOURCES WEBSITES"

Long Term Ecological Research Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management
Society of Wetland Scientists Center for Disease Control - Wildlife
The Wildlife Society North American Wolf Association
Ecological Society of America Wolf Education and Research Center
GAP Analysis Program Wild Canid Survival and Research Center
Wildlife Management Institute Maine Wolf Coalition
Wildlife Management Information American Black Bear Association
Wildlife Management Library Bears.org
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service North American Bear Center
U.S. Office of Surface Mining Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center
Acid Mine Drainage Treatment Strategies International Association for Bear Research and Management
Acid Mine Drainage in Maryland Wild Turkey Management
National Wetlands Inventory Grouse Management
Fisheries and Habitat Conservation (USFWS) U.S. Geologic Survey - Geographic Information Systems
Maryland Department of Natural Resources Geographic Information Systems - Info
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Environmental Systems Research Institute (GIS)
West Virginia Department of Natural Resources GIS Jobs Clearinghouse
Quality Deer Management Association GIS Portal (lots of links to GIS sites)
Mountain Lion Foundation Global Position Systems Information (GPS World)
National Wildlife Research Center GPS Overview (What is a GPS?)
Hunters and the USFWS Trimble GPS
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles Garmin GPS
Center for North American Herpetology Trout Unlimited
USGS North American Amphibian Monitoring Program National Marine Fisheries Service
Cornell Lab of Ornithology American Fisheries Society
All About Birds Northeast Fisheries Science Center
All About Ornithology Alaska Fisheries Science Center
American Birding Association USGS - Water Resources of the U.S.
National Museum of Natural History Water Science for Schools
Birding.com Water Environment Federation
Ornithological Information Source American Water Resources Association
Partners in Flight Water Quality Association
Raptor Research Foundation Water Education Foundation
Western Atlantic Shorebird Association The Nature Conservancy
Wings of the Americas - The Nature Conservancy Environmental Defense Fund
Maryland Ornithological Society Defenders of Wildlife
Audubon Naturalist Society Natural Resources Defense Council
Bird Monitoring in North America World Wildlife Fund
The Raptor Center Sierra Club
Ducks Unlimited Greenpeace
Society of American Foresters Federal Agencies Job Search
Citizens for Responsible Forest Management Earthnet jobs and Internships
Natural Resources Research Information Environmental Careers Organization
USDA Forest Service Environmental Jobs and Careers
USDA Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry Conservation and Natural Resources Jobs
Forest Measurement and Modeling Environmental Careers
Harvard Forest Environmental Measurement Site Natural Resources Job Search
Soil Science Society of America USDA Forest Service Jobs
Natural Resources Conservation Service Wildlife and Fisheries Jobs
Hydric Soils of the U.S. Employment with the USGS
USDA Plant Database Garrett County Weather Forecast

* For questions or comments about this webpage, email the webmaster: Peter Skylstad

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