COUNCIL AND STAFF

Don Yasuda is a Certified Wildlife Biologist® and TWS Fellow. He was elected to Council in 2020. He has a long history of service to the Western Section, having served as Western Section Representative to Council from 2007 to 2013, Section President from 2015 to 2016, Membership Committee Chair from 2000 to 2020, and currently serves as the Section Historian. He was recognized by the Western Section with the James D. Yoakum Award for Outstanding Service.

Don graduated with a B.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries Biology from the University of California at Davis and got hired for a job he didn’t apply for, a seasonal biological technician job with the USDA Forest Service monitoring bald eagles and not surveying spotted owls. Willing to do what it takes, his first permanent federal job was the front desk receptionist on the Ranger District where he later became the District Wildlife Biologist. After spending about half of his over 30 year career with the Forest Service in the field, he began working on regional issues around wildlife habitat, wildfire, and forest management. Don is currently the Regional Analyst for the national forests in California.

A believer in the land ethic, Don is a Land Ethic Leader with the Aldo Leopold Foundation.  When not working or providing service to TWS, Don enjoys birdwatching, woodworking, and doing jigsaw puzzles.  Oh, and also photographing the full moon!

Bob was born just outside Chicago. When he was three, his parents decided they wanted to raise their family in a more rural setting so moved to what at that time was out in the country in central Ohio. As a child, his love of the outdoors was fostered by his involvement in Boy Scouts. In High School, his Biology teacher told him that she thought he had real potential in the biological sciences. A brief encounter that changed his life. He graduated from Humboldt State University in 1982 with B.S. degrees in both Wildlife and Range Management. While an undergrad he took a job with the USFS at Thunder Basin National Grassland as a Range Technician where, in another fortunate twist of fate, he fell in love with Wyoming and the Rocky Mountain west. He graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1985 with an M.S. in Zoology and Physiology (Fisheries). He worked for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department for nearly 33 years as a Wildlife Biologist and Biologist Supervisor before retiring in 2018. He believes strongly in giving back to our professional society, TWS, so has been active at the state (Wyoming TWS) and section (Central Mountains and Plains) levels and with TWS (Section Rep to Council for 6 years) since the mid 1980s. Bob is a Certified Wildlife Biologist® and TWS Fellow and in 2011 was honored with TWS’ Jim McDonough Award. He and his wife Sheila have one son, Aaron, who is living his own life of service as a firefighter for the State of Wyoming stationed at the Wyoming Army National Guard base in Guernsey.

Art Rodgers grew up in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He attended the University of Toronto and York University where he obtained his Ph.D. in Biology. Over the years, his research has taken him from small to large mammals. He began by comparing food and habitat use, as well as population biology, of two species of Arctic lemmings in Igloolik, Nunavut, during his Ph.D. research. Not only did he learn a great deal about the biology of the two species, he learned a great deal about Inuit culture and the challenges faced by Indigenous peoples in Canada—an experience he wishes all non-Indigenous people could have. He then moved on to a postdoctoral position in the Institute for Animal Resource Ecology at the University of British Columbia, where he worked with Dr. Charles Krebs and Dr. Tony Sinclair on the snowshoe hare project at Kluane Lake in the southwest Yukon. He remained at UBC as a sessional lecturer in the Department of Zoology for several years. Art moved back to Ontario where he is currently a Senior Research Scientist with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. His research in Ontario began with an assessment of the effects and effectiveness of forest management guidelines on moose populations. In more recent times, his research has centered on the effects of natural and anthropogenic disturbance, coupled with climate change, on boreal caribou populations.

Art has served at all levels of The Wildlife Society. He was the fourth President of the Canadian Section and represented the Section for two terms on TWS Council, where he served on numerous Council committees. He was then a member of the Canadian Section Board of Directors following incorporation of the Section as a not-for-profit organization in 2019. Art is a Charter member and a Past-President of the Ontario Chapter.

Throughout his professional career, Art has sought to get his science into policy and legislation. He is a strong believer in diversity, equity, and inclusion in the wildlife profession and is motivated by people from all walks of life who are inspired by the beauty of the natural landscapes that surround us, curiosity about the wonders of the natural world, and a desire to conserve our wildlife heritage.

Gordon is a Certified Wildlife Biologist® and TWS Fellow. He was elected to Council in 2019. His prior service with TWS included officer/committee positions in his student chapters (University of Maine, Oklahoma State University), state chapter (New York), and Section (Northeast); six years on the Certification Review Board, and service on the Editorial Advisory Board for The Wildlife Professional.

Gordon is a career wildlife biologist with the State of New York, retiring as Chief of Wildlife in 2015. He currently serves as the Executive Secretary for the Northeast Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies, Inc., and also works part time for the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies in their legal strategies program. He specializes in wildlife policy at the state, national, and international level.

Gordon and his wife Mary have three grown children, and nine grandchildren. Mary also has a wildlife degree from the University of Maine, and homeschooled all three of their children. Gordon enjoys fly fishing, deer hunting with a rifle, and turkey hunting, especially in the fall. He is an ardent firearms aficionado, and recently acquired a .54 caliber flintlock rifle modeled from a ca. 1800 design from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Besides hunting, Gordon enjoys foraging for wild edible mushrooms, and sailing all types of sailboats, but especially gaff-rigged sloops, including a boat built in 1902 that has been in the family since the early 1920s.

Evie made a right-hand turn into the wildlife profession in the mid 1970s and never looked back. She has been a member of 4 US and 3 Canadian TWS chapters including being president of the Alberta Chapter and the Canadian Section. She was first elected to Council as the Canadian Representative in 2019. She is a Certified Wildlife Biologist®, a TWS Fellow, and served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Wildlife Management. She was honored by the Alberta Chapter with the William Rowan Distinguished Service and by TWS with the Special Recognition Service Award.

Evie got degrees from the University of Idaho and the University of Washington tracking elk in remote areas.  She spent her early career working in management agencies, but then stepped into the world of academia at the Universities of Wyoming, Wisconsin and now Alberta. She delights in doing field research with her students on the trophic dynamics of ungulate populations, but turned to the dark side of chronic wasting disease in recent years.

Evie and her husband split their time between exploring the biodiversity-rich Beaver Hills east of Edmonton, Alberta, trapping the Canadian Rockies, and fishing the BC coastal shores. Her life is filled with the adventures of 3 grown boys, 2 grandkids, and a duck-enthusiast yellow lab. In her off hours, she is horseback riding or gardening.

After growing up in the outdoors of New England, Andrea moved to Colorado and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Biology from Colorado State University, and a Master of Science degree in Zoology from the University of Wyoming.  Andrea’s thesis focused on white-tailed prairie dogs in Shirley Basin, Wyoming to determine if the population was robust enough to support black-footed ferret reintroduction, which it was!

Andrea has worked for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department since 1992 as the statewide Nongame Bird Biologist, specializing in monitoring and management of avian Species of Greatest Conservation Need.  In her spare time, Andrea likes to watch wildlife, hike, horseback ride, fish, camp, cross-country ski, and visit with family and friends

Andrea’s participation in The Wildlife Society began as an undergraduate at CSU, where she served as Legislative Affairs Committee Chair, Treasurer, and President of the Student Chapter.  At the state level with the WY Chapter of TWS, Andrea participated in the Legislative Affairs Committee; served as Newsletter Editor; chaired the Information and Education, Nominations, Resolutions and Position Statements, and COWCH Committees; and served as Secretary, President-Elect, and President.  At the Section level, Andrea served as a Board Member At-Large, President-Elect, and President for the Central Mountains and Plains Section, and she continues to act as an ad hoc CMPS historian.  Andrea was inducted as a TWS Fellow in 2019, and is currently serving as the CMPS Representative to TWS Council (2020-2023).

Through her wildlife profession and TWS, Andrea enjoy engaging with others in topics that are relevant to wildlife management and conservation, both historically and in today’s world.  TWS involvement allows Andrea to contribute to a strong, steadfast, science-based voice for wildlife conservation.

Lisa is a Certified Wildlife Biologist® and TWS Fellow.  She became the Southeast Section Representative in Fall 2021.  She has worked with many levels of TWS over her career and has enjoyed interacting with all the amazing professionals. Lisa is currently a Professor of Wildlife Science at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  She received her B.S. and M.S. degrees in wildlife biology at Auburn University and her Ph.D. in wildlife management at the University of Georgia.

Kathy Granillo earned a BS in Forestry from the University of California Berkeley, and a MS in Wildlife Resources from the University of Idaho. She recently retired after almost 40 years of Federal service. For the last 11+ years she worked for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service as the Refuge Manager at Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, located in central New Mexico. Main refuge projects include invasive species control, riparian restoration, reintroducing Gunnison’s prairie dogs to the shortgrass prairie, and several bird research projects (wintering birds, gray and Bell’s vireos breeding biology, Breeding Bird Survey). Prior to becoming a refuge manager, she was immersed in climate change – first as a member of the team that developed the FWS Strategic Plan and Action Plan for Climate Change, and then as the Acting Regional Climate Change Coordinator for the Southwest Region. She was the Regional Refuge Biologist in the Southwest Region from 1993 to 2008, providing support to the 46 refuges in the region (Arizona, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas) and serving on the national refuge biological leadership team. Prior to coming to work for the FWS, she worked for the Forest Service as a Forest Wildlife Staff Officer on the Klamath National Forest, as a District Biologist on the Coronado National Forest, and spent 5 years as a biologist for the Research branch of the Forest Service in California.

Kathy has been a member of TWS since the early 1990s, the New Mexico Chapter since 1993, and the Southwest Section since 1998. She is currently the Southwest Section Representative to Council. She chairs the Women of Wildlife Community Team, within the IDEA Working Group of TWS.

She was a member of the local committee for the first-ever TWS Annual Conference in 1994 held in Albuquerque, NM. She chaired the Exhibits and Trade Show Committee. She has organized several symposia and panel discussions at annual conferences.

She has served on the NM Chapter Board as both Secretary/Treasurer and as a Board Member at Large. She has assisted several times with putting on the joint annual conference of the AZ and NM Chapters of TWS and the AZ/NM Chapter of the AFS (JAM) when organized by the NM Chapter TWS.

She is married and has two cats and a gopher snake. She loves to bird and dance, but usually not at the same time.

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Duane is a Certified Wildlife Biologist® and TWS Fellow. He has been active in TWS at the state, section, and national level where he has served in elected positions with the Pennsylvania Chapter, Northeast Section, and the Biometrics Working Group.

Duane is a research wildlife ecologist and adjunct professor of wildlife ecology at The Pennsylvania State University where his research interests are methods of monitoring population dynamics, game harvest management, and population restoration. He reintroduced bobcats in 1989 to Cumberland Island National Seashore and has been monitoring their genetic and population dynamics ever since. He also has a long-term research project investigating the influence of deer herbivory, soil conditions, and competing vegetation on forest understory plant communities (https://deer.psu.edu).

Duane and his wife, Lisa, have 2 grown children and live in 19^th-century limestone farmhouse in Central Pennsylvania that they restored. His hobbies include cutting trees into lumber (and firewood) and making 18^th-century style furniture using predominantly hand tools. He lives with 2 English setters that help with ruffed grouse and woodcock hunting, along with a sort-of-annual trip to pursue prairie grouse. Living in Central Pennsylvania he also cannot avoid flyfishing and deer hunting.

The Wildlife Society has been an important part of his career and Duane appreciates the opportunity to give back to the organization in support of the wildlife profession and wild things.

A.J. Kroll grew up in Chicago-land and resides in Corvallis, OR. He has a B.A. in Philosophy from St. John’s College, Annapolis, MD; a M.S. in Wildlife Science from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, NM; and a Ph.D. in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Montana, Missoula, MT. He served as the President of the Washington Chapter of TWS and is the President of the Oregon Chapter. He served 9 years as an Associate Editor of The Journal of Wildlife Management.

A.J. provided research, operational, and policy support to Weyerhaeuser timberlands in Oregon and Washington for 18 ½ years before retiring in July 2023. His research focused on the conservation of biological diversity on managed landscapes. A.J. teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife at Oregon State University, including a course on scientific evidence.

His hobbies include growing as much food as he can, gardening, walking, backpacking, reading, writing, and practicing the guitar.

Jason grew up in rural Virginia. He attended The College of William and Mary, Appalachian State University, and North Carolina State University. He swore he would never leave the South, but he and his family have loved living in the Midwest since 2009. Jason has been a professor in The College of Natural Resources at the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point (UWSP) for the past 13 years. He teaches courses in applied ecology, statistics, and wildlife research and management. His research interests are primarily in avian ecology and conservation as well as in statistics. In 2017 he was named the Gerald and Helen Stephens Professor of Wildlife.

Jason has been the advisor to the UWSP Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society since 2010. He considers the student chapter to be “the heart of the Wildlife Ecology and Management major” at UWSP. He also is a past-president of the Wisconsin Chapter of TWS and the North Central Section of TWS.

Jason’s family instilled a love of birds in him at a young age. While most of his research is on non-game and upland species, he especially enjoys pursuing waterfowl during the fall months. He also enjoys spending time with his family, kayaking, and Judo.  Hajime!

Jim is Professor Emeritus from the University of Nevada Reno, where he taught and conducted research for 18 years, following 16 years at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. While in Fairbanks, he served as Director of the Institute of Arctic Biology for three years. Jim is a past-president of the Nevada Chapter, twice served as an Associate Editor for The Journal of Wildlife Management, and spent four years as a Senior Editor for The Auk (now Ornithology).

During his time in Alaska, Jim focused on waterfowl ecology: he initiated the Tutakoke River Black Brant Project on the Bering Sea coast in 1984 and managed the project until 2018. He continues to remain involved in the project. Since moving to Nevada, Jim and his students have conducted two long-term studies of greater sage-grouse, one addressing the impacts of human infrastructure and the more recent study addressing the effects of grazing by livestock and feral horses on sage-grouse. During his career, he advised 32 graduate students (15 PhDs) and three postdoctoral scholars.

Jim and his wife, Connie, continue to reside in Reno. They have two grown children and they are enjoying their grandchildren. Jim remains active in research and since his retirement has added volunteer efforts with the Coalition for Healthy Nevada Lands and the Nevada Waterfowl Association

Morgan Register was elected as the chair-elect of the Student Development Working Group (SDWG) in November 2021 and subsequently as the Chair and Student Liaison to Council in November 2022. Register will serve this one-year term from 2022-2023. She graduated from North Carolina State University in May 2020 with dual degrees in B.S. Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology and a B.S. Agricultural Sciences, with a minor in Agricultural Business Management. In August of 2022, she completed her Master’s at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in Natural Resources-Applied Ecology. With a human dimension’s focus, her thesis worked with conservation specialists to communicate precision agriculture for conservation use.

Morgan’s role on the council is to communicate and advocate for the students’ perspective in council meetings and give a voice on important discussions that could impact our student role in TWS. Having recently transitioned from a student to an early career professional, Register is passionate about building pathways and opportunities for students to gain proficiency in and professional development within the students’ involvement in TWS. Alongside the Early Career Professionals, the hope is to bridge the gap between individual’s education and their desired career paths to reach their full potential.

Morgan has a background working in inland fisheries, agriculture, private lands, and business management. Her current position is with the National Wild Turkey Federation as the Michigan R3 Coordinator.

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Ed Arnett joined The Wildlife Society staff as the CEO in November 2021. He also is an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Conservation Biology at Colorado State University and host of the public television conservation series This American Land. He holds an Associate in Applied Science degree in natural resources management from Colorado Mountain College, a B.S. in fish and wildlife management from Montana State University, an M.S. in zoology and physiology from the University of Wyoming, and a Ph.D. in forest science from Oregon State University.

Prior to joining TWS, Ed served as chief scientist for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership for nearly a decade, and worked for the U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Weyerhaeuser Company, and Bat Conservation International as a field and research biologist earlier in his career. He has worked with numerous species of wildlife and studied bats for more than 20 years, including research on these unique mammals for his doctorate degree. Ed has been a member of TWS since 1984, served as a board member, secretary, treasurer, and president of the Oregon Chapter of TWS, served as an Associate Editor for the Wildlife Society Bulletin for 10 years, and is a TWS Fellow. He also currently serves on the Sustainable Use and Livelihoods Committee for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is a professional member of the Boone and Crockett Club.

An avid outdoor recreationist, hunter, angler, and dog trainer, Ed lives in Colorado with his wife Glenda and their dogs.

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Keith Norris is the Director of Wildlife Policy and Communications at The Wildlife Society, where he advances policies, publications and communications that inspire, empower, and enable wildlife professionals in science-based management and conservation of wildlife and their habitats.

Keith joined The Wildlife Society’s staff in February 2014, and has been involved with the organization since he first joined the Purdue Student Chapter during his undergraduate studies. He served on the board of the Student Chapter for a couple of years, including a year as President when Purdue hosted the regional Student Conclave. He also got involved in the North Central Section during his graduate studies, and presented at several chapter, section, and TWS conferences.

His positions at TWS have varied over the years, with service in most of the Society’s programs including policy, professional development, publications, fundraising, business relations, organization unit management, and communications. He currently leads the government affairs team that works with partners, coalitions, and policy-makers to advance legislation and regulations in support of the wildlife profession and science-based conservation of wildlife populations. Keith manages TWS’ peer-reviewed scientific journal portfolio and the organization’s partnership with Wiley.  He also leads the communications team and serves as the editor-in-chief of The Wildlife Professional, a magazine delivered six times annually to all TWS members in more than 30 countries that presents timely research, news, and analysis of trends in the wildlife profession.

Keith holds a B.S. degree in Wildlife from Purdue University, an M.A. degree in Public Policy & Management from the John Glenn College of Public Affairs, and a M.S. degree in Environment & Natural Resources – Wildlife and Fisheries at The Ohio State University. Keith is certified as an Associate Wildlife Biologist® and is an alumnus of the National Conservation Leadership Institute. His career has included positions in wildlife research, education, policy advocacy, leadership development, communications, and program administration.

Keith grew up in the Midwest and now lives in Salem, Oregon, with his wife and son and enjoys birdwatching, hunting, hiking, and most all other outdoor pursuits.

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Cameron Kovach joined The Wildlife Society staff as Assistant Director of Government Affairs and Partnerships in February 2016 and now serves as Director of Operations. Cameron began his career focused on advancing wildlife science through field research on a variety of wildlife species and holds a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation from the University of Florida. Driven by a desire to become a stronger advocate for wildlife conservation, Cameron eventually transitioned to environmental law and policy and also holds a Juris Doctorate and Master of Environmental Law and Policy from Vermont Law School.

Throughout his career, Cameron has used his interdisciplinary background and collaborative focus to advance the use of science in policy and decision-making through congressional and federal agency engagement. As Director of Operations, Cameron oversees a diverse portfolio that includes professional development, organization unit services, conferences, business relations, membership services, finances, human relations, and peer-reviewed publications. In addition to working to strengthen all operational components of The Wildlife Society, Cameron also seeks to support a safe, welcoming, and inclusive profession for all members and beyond. Cameron currently lives with his wife and three young children in a 110-year-old church rectory in Vermont. He enjoys birding, hiking, and home renovations.

Maranda joined The Wildlife Society in March 2023. With more than 15 years in the non-profit sector, Maranda has held positions of increasing responsibility from Staff Accountant, to Senior Director/CFO and served as Acting Division Chief for one of the largest parks systems in the state of Maryland. She holds separate Bachelor of Business Administration degrees in Accounting and Business Management. She also holds two advanced degrees: Master of Science with a concentration in Accounting and Masters of Business of Administration. Maranda has managed over half a billion in assets, developed and mentored staff, led smart and responsible fiscal policy and implemented innovative accounting technologies to leverage and increase performance margins.

She enjoys reading, visiting national landmarks and is active in her community as a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Maranda resides in Upper Marlboro, Maryland with her husband and children.

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Mariah joined The Wildlife Society staff in 2014. Initially, she served the organization as the Unit Services Manager, but now oversees membership engagement, manages TWS’ social media accounts, and is the primary contact for TWS’ Working Groups.

Mariah received her B.S. in Wildlife Ecology and Management from the University of Maryland. Prior to joining TWS, she worked as an intern and biological science aid for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. She also co-founded a student chapter of The Wildlife Society at UMD, serving as Vice President and then President.

In her free time, she enjoys birding, yoga, thrifting, and cheering on her Terps. She lives in Maryland with her husband Sam and their yellow lab Wren.

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Jennifer Murphy joined the TWS staff in 2020. Initially, she served the organization as the Operations Coordinator, but she now oversees the Wildlife Biologist Certification Program as well as Section and Chapter activity.

Jennifer first became a member of TWS in 1993 when she joined the student chapter at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst where she earned her B.S. in wildlife biology. She earned her M.S. in wildlife biology at Utah State University in 2000. Jennifer became an AWB® in 2000, and upgraded to CWB® status in 2007.

Jennifer has worked as a wildlife biologist in both the government and private sectors, mainly focused on wildlife hazard management at airports. She has worked with dozens of airports across the country from tiny one-runway airports with elk migrating across the airfield to the country’s largest and busiest airports such as Denver International and Boston’s Logan where the wildlife impacts are very diverse. She also spent two years on Guam helping to manage the invasive brown tree snake.

Jennifer’s other interests include birding, kayaking, photography and most sports involving a racquet and a ball. She lives in western Massachusetts with her husband, Kevin, and her Shih Tzu named Levi.

Allison Cox is the content editor for The Journal of Wildlife Management and Wildlife Monographs. She joined TWS in 2011 and is responsible for editing and production of both journals. Allison obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology from the University of Florida in 1996. After a few years in the insurance industry, she worked as a zookeeper at the Jacksonville Zoo and then as an avian field technician in Arizona, Hawaii, and Venezuela. She obtained a Master of Science degree in Fisheries and Wildlife from the University of Missouri in 2011 with research focused on natal dispersal of woodpeckers.

Allison currently lives in Gainesville, Florida with her husband and their deservedly spoiled dog and cat. She enjoys hiking, staring at birds, kayaking, snorkeling, attempting to grow native plants, and oversharing pet photos.

Anna Knipps first joined The Wildlife Society in 2006 as an Editorial Assistant for The Journal of Wildlife Management. Navigating through the dissolution and reemergence of the Wildlife Society Bulletin, 7 EIC tenures, and hundreds of Associate Editor changes, she is the point person for the journal and handles the review process and other pre-acceptance tasks for manuscripts submitted to JWM and Wildlife Monographs. In 2020, Anna joined the Wildlife Society Bulletin in a similar capacity, but with a larger role in manuscript post-acceptance duties.

Anna received a bachelor’s degree in Natural Resource Management from Rutgers University in 1996, a Master’s in Wildlife Science from Texas A&M University in 2008, and a PhD in Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences from Texas A&M in 2011. Native to Colorado, Anna grew up camping, hiking, boating, and enjoying the Rocky Mountains with her family and now enjoys the same activities as well as backpacking, birdwatching, and Jeeping.

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Aniket Gajare joined TWS as Database Administrator in December 2011. Currently serving as a Software Developer, he primarily manages TWS’ Association Management System and other technology needs of the Society.

David Frey, M.A. is the managing editor at The Wildlife Society. He has worked for TWS since 2017, where he is responsible for editing The Wildlife Professional and wildlife.org. He holds a master’s degree in nonfiction writing from Johns Hopkins University. When he’s not working, you might catch him shooting nature photography with a vintage large-format camera.

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Dana Kobilinsky joined The Wildlife Society staff as an editorial intern in January 2015. As she learned more about wildlife and science and gained more writing and editing experience, she climbed up the ladder at TWS to associate science writer, science writer and eventually associate editor. As associate editor, Dana writes and edits articles for www.wildlife.org and The Wildlife Society’s membership benefit magazine The Wildlife Professional. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communications/journalism from Towson University in Baltimore.

Prior to joining TWS, Dana interned at Defenders of Wildlife in Washington, D.C., where she developed her passion for wildlife conservation. When she isn’t writing, Dana enjoys preparing Jewish students for their Bar/Bat Mitzvahs, exploring new breweries, doing yoga and spending time with her two dogs—a Rottweiler and coonhound mix. Dana lives in Maryland with her husband Andrew.

Joshua Rapp Learn has encountered back alley hyenas in Ethiopia and wrangled an anaconda in the Brazilian Pantanal. He covers wildlife management and conservation news stories for wildlife.org — the website of The Wildlife Society. He also writes and proofs staff articles for the membership magazine, The Wildlife Professional.

As a science writer, Josh has contributed wildlife articles to publications such as National Geographic, The New York Times, Hakai Magazine, Canadian Geographic, Smithsonian Magazine, New Scientist and The Washington Post. An Edmonton native, he completed a master’s degree in journalism at Ryerson University in Toronto. He is now based in Washington, D.C.

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Kelly O’Connor joined The Wildlife Society’s policy team in October 2021 and leads TWS’ Conservation Affairs Network and grassroots policy engagement efforts. She holds a B.S. in natural resources and an M.S. in natural resources and the environment from the University of Connecticut.

Before joining TWS, Kelly spent several years working for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) focusing on permitting and policy development for state-listed species. During this time she served as the stakeholder coordinator for FWC’s imperiled species policy program, where she worked to engage stakeholders across the state in the process of rule and guidelines development associated with the state’s Imperiled Species Management Plan. Prior to this role, Kelly was the gopher tortoise conservation biologist for southwest Florida. She has also worked as a research biologist monitoring gopher tortoises and other reptiles and amphibians in Florida and Alabama, and currently serves as the Newsletter Editor on the executive committee of The Gopher Tortoise Council. Kelly lives near Gainesville, Florida, with her husband and their two dogs. She is an avid birder and amateur nature photographer, and spends most of her free time hiking and canoeing around north central Florida.