B&C Establishes Chair in Wildlife Conservation at Colorado State University

The chair will enhance the opportunities for research in the Warner College of Natural Resources' Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology and encourage the creation of collaborations to solve state, national and international issues facing wildlife populations.

CSU will raise private support to match the $3 million gift from Boone and Crockett to endow the chair completely.

Colorado State's Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology is one of the oldest and most prestigious in the country and has consistently ranked as one of the top programs in terms of scholarly productivity.

"The Boone and Crockett Chair is a unique opportunity to help solve a number of pressing wildlife issues such as chronic wasting disease and impacts of oil and gas development that are affecting Colorado and the Rocky Mountain region," said Ken Wilson, head of the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology.  

The Charles C. Gates Boone and Crockett Chair will create a tenure-track faculty position that will allow the department to continue and expand its research into wildlife and big game conservation.

The department has a long and distinguished history in education and research of wildlife populations and in cooperation with federal and state agencies such as the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Such research has provided shared learning and training of future wildlife professionals to ensure the management and conservation of wildlife.

The Boone and Crockett Club is a non-profit organization founded in 1887 by Theodore Roosevelt. The organization is a coalition of conservationists and sportsmen who provide the leadership needed to address the issues that affect hunting, wildlife and wild habitat.

The Colorado State University Foundation permanently invests funds that are given to establish endowed chairs, and the interest generated is used to support the chair. The principal is never used, so endowments allow continuous funding to supplement the chairholder's salary, graduate student work, and research and activities tied to the chairholder's program.