OutdoorNebraska

10 Nebraska Game and Parks Commission • 2018 Annual Report C O L L E G I A T E H U N T I N G P R O G R A M S P R O V I D E S U P P O R T F O R Y O U N G H U N T E R S Research has shown that many young hunters stop hunting when they head off to college. While more research is necessary to understand exactly why this is, some students stop hunting in college because they don't know of other collegiate hunters. For others, hunting falls by the wayside because their small dorm rooms don't provide enough storage for blinds and other gear. In 2018, Game and Parks worked with college students and partner organizations to create convenient opportunities for college students. The Collegiate Sportspersons Council was formed in order to advocate for young hunters and to recognize barriers to participation in hunting and shooting sports among college students. The group met for the first time in fall of 2018. Additionally, a new video campaign was developed to remind students at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln that it's easy to continue hunting in college. At the same time, Game and Parks worked with UNL Campus Recreation to set up a new hunting equipment rental program that allows students to check out blinds and decoys for a few dollars. The equipment was purchased with a grant from the National Wild Turkey Federation and the Cabela's Outdoors Fund. Currently, equipment rental is limited to UNL students. C O M M I S S I O N C U S T O M E R R E S E A R C H Y I E L D S I N S I G H T S For the past several years, Nebraska Game and Parks has worked with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on a customer research effort to better understand the purchasing behaviors of customers. This research also allows UNL and Game and Parks staff to identify both growth opportunities and items of concern through purchasing patterns of those who buy hunting, fishing and state parks permits. Throughout the summer of 2018, agency staff met with UNL researchers to better understand project data. Eventually, this data will be used to help ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers, for customer outreach and to form a new recruitment, retention and reactivation plan for Nebraska. FIREARM HUNT AT OAK GLEN WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA IN SEWARD COUNTY

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