The National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, WV is a world-class natural resources conservation training facility that is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In this position, I work in the Service's headquarters in Falls Church, VA to facilitate communication between NCTC and its internal and external customers to ensure that we are effectively meeting customer needs for training, conference facilities, and communications technology; to ensure that customers are aware of our existing products and services and know how to access them; and to serve as an ombudsman to help customers find answers to inquiries and resolution to any issues that may arise. I also serve as a senior advisor to the NCTC Director and Deputy Director on policy matters. https://training.fws.gov

Supervised a staff of analysts in the Division's Presentation Branch, which reviewed and tracked appropriations bills that impact the agency. We developed communications messages, materials and presentations to present and defend the President's annual budget proposal to Congress and coordinated technical and policy responses to Congressional inquiries across the jurisdiction of the USFWS, including Ecological Services, Migratory Birds, Fish and Aquatic Conservation, and International Affairs. We developed and coordinated Congressional briefings and site visits/trips to inform appropriations staff and Members about the work of the agency. We also prepared and delivered presentations and webinars for agency staff about the Federal budget process and the work of the Division.

Served as liaison for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to Congress in the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs (CLA). Drafted legislation, provided technical assistance and responded to a wide array of requests for assistance from Congressional Members and Committees. Consulted with FWS experts, explained key elements of policy and controversy to leadership and relevant stakeholders, managed information and communications, reconciled differences, and provided an informed response, particularly regarding migratory bird statutory policy, Native American policy/Alaska subsistence policy, invasive species, Farm Bill, and Congressional issues for the Office of the Science Advisor. Understood, communicated and implemented rules and responsibilities with regard to ethics and the role of the federal agency in the context of legislative policy development. Led teams within FWS to draft legislation or policy. Led teams of interagency personnel to develop responses to inquiries from Members or Committees in Congress. Prepared FWS witnesses for hearings, coordinated drafting and approval of testimony through OMB, developed Question and Answers, briefing papers, and other information for the witness, worked with Congressional staff to gather information for the witness and to respond to Congressional inquiries associated with a hearing. Assisted FWS Program and Regional leaders and staff in developing legislative or other policy initiatives.

Served on a detail as a budget examiner in the Environment Branch, which oversees the annual budget preparation and approval for the Environmental Protection Agency. Drafted and reviewed policy documents and reviewed FY 2015 budget documents pertaining to EPA's Office of Air and Radiation and the EPA Office of the Inspector General, as well as the White House Council on Environmental Policy and NEPA. Served as the Scorekeeper for the FY 2015 budget preparation season. Coordinated the OMB review of the 2014 U.S. Climate Action Report to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Proactively pursued Member's legislative initiatives for environmental policy. Drafted legislation, engaging stakeholders, working with staff on committees of jurisdiction to negotiate changes in preparation for mark-up sessions, coordinating or working with committee staff to help coordinate relevant committee hearings, advocating policy initiatives of Member to other Member offices through dear colleagues, bill summaries, briefings, and individual staff meetings, and developing media materials. Prepared briefings for Member on legislation of interest to him and his district. Provided staff support for Member’s chairmanship of the House Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife and Oceans. Served as lead staff for the Congressman's co-chairmanship of the House Oceans Caucus, the Congressional Climate Change Caucus, and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Task Force, including researching, drafting, and organizing annual appropriations request letters. Led coordination and organization of certain House Natural Resource Committee hearings.

Appointed by Secretary of the Department as Special Assistant to the Secretary for Invasive Species Policy. Developed multi-stakeholder processes and facilitated groups of conflicting stakeholders over contentious invasive species management issues, such as mute swan management and nutria control and eradication in the Chesapeake Bay. Served as the Chair of the Chesapeake Bay Program's Invasive Species Working Group (pre-Mid Atlantic Panel) and led an effort to clearly prioritize and develop management plans for the Chesapeake Bay's top invasive species issues. Serviced as Chesapeake Bay at-large member of the national Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force and worked to ensure nutria eradication remained a Federal priority. Worked on temporary assignments with the Northeast-Midwest Institute to draft national invasive species legislation and to brief staff of Congressional Committees and Members of Congress on the need for and contents of legislation being proposed (reauthorization of the National Invasive Species Act).

Recruited and led Maryland’s Teaming With Wildlife (TWW) Coalition, which advocated for long-term, consistent federal funding for state wildlife programs, including: facilitating mutually agreed upon goals among very diverse Coalition membership that included sportsmen; gun enthusiasts, garden clubs, birders, local government, academia from more than 130 groups; established an MOU between the Coalition and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to ensure the Coalition’s involvement in decisions about how to spend new funding; briefed Maryland delegation and other Congressional Members and staff on needs for funding; detailed to the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies several times to help coordinate the efforts of the national Teaming With Wildlife Coalition; coordinated Congressional staff trips to show the need for the Federal funds being sought, and developed media presentations, including writing and directing a news piece for a local TV news program. Served as the Watchable Wildlife Coordinator, including: drafting and implementing a marketing strategy, developing criteria for selection of priority watchable wildlife sites in the state; working with local government leaders and organizations to promote support for the sites chosen; led workshops on marketing wildlife recreational experiences; led coordination of the Delmarva Birding Weekend on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Led facilitation of agreement of a diverse Secretarial advisory task force on the controversial management of mute swans (Cygnus olor) in the Chesapeake Bay, served as task force spokesperson for the media.  Coordinated drafting and editing of the state hunting and trapping regulations book, working with game program managers.  Developed budget plans for programs I was working on and presented budget plans and program accomplishments to the Maryland Wildlife Advisory Committee.

Developed several award-winning programs to cultivate new constituencies for the Maryland Wildlife and Heritage Service, including Natural Design in Development, a series of workshops (200 participants each) to help establish relationships between developers, planners, landscape architects, wildlife biologists and foresters toward more wildlife-friendly residential development design. Also developed the Wild Acres Program, a backyard wildlife habitat certification program with thousands of participants across the state and through which I worked with schools, local parks, and other owners/managers of open space to improve habitat for wildlife in Baltimore and other Maryland cities. Developed a nature trail in Baltimore County on the Gwynnbrook Wildlife Management Area to demonstrate wildlife habitat improvement strategies/projects for small and large properties. Hired and supervised staff to support the Urban Wildlife Program. In addition, I helped develop and facilitated several processes to help resolve multistakeholder conflicts over natural resources policy, including policy to manage white tailed deer, waterfowl, oysters, forests, nutria and mute swans. Participated in monitoring and surveys for a wide range of bird species, including cannon netting, mist netting, and banding. Developed marketing and communications strategies, designing and carrying out/contracting focus groups and surveys and assisting with writing, directing and participating in radio and television programs and reassessed and revised service and educational programs in response to stakeholder input.

Raised whooping crane and sandhill crane chicks, managed aviculture of masked bob-white quail, reared bald eagle chicks for release to the wild.

Served as a volunteer keeper of monkeys and Great Apes and then of birds in the Zoo's Department of Ornithology, where I provided care as a part time keeper (periods of full days on weekends, holidays, or school breaks). In addition to preparing food, feeding birds and cleaning cages, I designed and carried out behavior research on the Australian brush turkey toward captive propagation of this species at the zoo. Ultimately, we were successful in hatching 3 young. I also researched bird communities in the South African/East African savannah and helped the Zoo create an exhibit that included nest parasites (wydahs) and the birds species they typically parasitize.

Edited data summaries for the Breeding Bird Survey and did data entry, assisted in survey routes in Maryland and in mist-netting and banding birds at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center and on Falcon Island in Long Island Sound.