 While taking precautions for COVID-19, WRD remains at work, including stocking trout. (Chris Shaffer)
A message from Director Rusty Garrison:
Hey, folks,
In these uncertain times, one thing that remains steadfast within this division is that we are all in it together. I want to make sure you have the information and the tools you need to move forward as the COVID-19 response continues to evolve. In an effort to provide a centralized location for the latest information, this newsletter issue will focus primarily on the current health crisis, COVID-19. We will address questions that have been frequently asked internally and give you an update or two.
First and foremost, thank you. You continue to foster wildlife conservation and provide outstanding customer service in spite of a work environment that is rapidly changing and vastly different from the norm. These last two weeks have presented new challenges that you have all handled professionally.
The impact of COVID-19 is far-reaching and I know that you are all dealing with this virus on a personal level as well, whether it is caring for children or elderly parents or just trying to stay well.
As you know, we have implemented precautionary measures for your wellbeing and for the safety our customers. To reiterate my earlier email, we are open for business, but limiting ingress and egress at WRD facilities across the state to maintain social distancing. Additionally, only customers who show no signs of sickness will be permitted inside. Customers also will be asked to utilize all services that are provided online, such as license purchasing and boat registration.
As updates become available, we will continue providing you with the latest information. In the meantime, check out the FAQ below for more details on current operating procedures.
As Gov. Kemp noted in his press conference last week, please continue following the best practices and guidelines we are also urging others to use – wash your hands regularly, distance yourselves socially and disinfect your surroundings frequently.
Stay well and thanks again.
Rusty
- Now is a great time to reduce your FLSA time!
- Make sure that your AOC, region supervisor and any staff working from the office have your work cell phone number as a backup. If you do not have a work cell phone, please make sure they have your personal cell phone number so that you can be reached while teleworking.
Key websites for coronavirus information:
Top
 COVID-19 guidelines and protocols change frequently. As noted, we will update staff of significant changes.
What are we doing to reduce risk? Staff who are able to telework should be teleworking in an effort to socially distance themselves. Also, ingress and egress measures should be implemented to maintain social distancing at all facilities, and documents (emailed previously) should be posted on the front door at each office location. Any service available online or by telephone, such as buying a license or registering a boat, must be done through those methods. WRD will assist customers in these processes. If business must be done in person, only customers showing no sign of sickness will be permitted inside.
How do these rules apply to field work? Field projects can present special challenges due to shared workspaces and group housing. Staff should exercise caution by limiting close contact with other staff members, maintaining good hygiene practices and reporting any illness immediately to the crew leader.
What if ...
I have COVID-19 symptoms (fever, cough, heaviness in chest)? If you are sick, do not come to work! Staff who believe they might have the coronavirus should consider seeking medical attention and be sure to alert their supervisor immediately.
I am diagnosed as COVID-19 positive? Stay home! Alert your supervisor immediately. Supervisors should then immediately alert their section chief.
I have been exposed to someone diagnosed as COVID-19 positive? (This answer was updated March 27.) If the exposure does not involve known fluid transmission (i.e., you are simply near a person who has tested positive), you can continue working but must advise your supervisory staff and self-monitor. If you become ill, have fever or show other symptoms, alert your supervisor immediately and self-quarantine at home for 14 days. If the exposure does involve fluid transmission (e.g., you are coughed on), alert your supervisory staff immediately and self-quarantine at home for 14 days. If you are able to telework, you may do so instead of taking time off.
A family member of my spouse or a co-worker was diagnosed as COVID-19 positive? Please use your best judgement in cases like these and assess your own health regularly. If you are not already teleworking, you may self-quarantine, but make sure you understand your leave options (see below) if you are not able to telework or if you become sick.
What will WRD do to clean facilities where there has been a confirmed case of COVID-19? First, all staff still at this facility will be sent home. Plans are in place for hiring a cleaning crew to come in immediately and disinfect appropriately. Once the facility is clean, through coordination and approval with the Director's Office that site's essential staff will be permitted back to work.
My kids are out of school! How do I handle the use of sick, annual or comp time when caring for kids at home and teleworking? If approved by a supervisor, annual leave, Georgia comp and holiday deferral can all be used to care for children. Sick leave can be used only if the employee or their family is sick.
If my child or loved one is sick, what is the best way to use leave? Sick leave should be used in this situation. All Family and Medical Leave requests submitted by the employee after three consecutive days of using sick leave for the employee or a loved one should be sent directly to the WRD Human Resources representative for evaluation. FML rules for COVID-19 sick leave are currently being reevaluated and we will be notified if they change.
How do I handle leave if my job responsibilities are hourly and there is no work for me? Hourly employees do not earn leave. If there is no work, that person is still an active employee unless their supervisor terminates their employment. Their regular hours will resume when there is work. However, hourlies designated as 168-day employees are still limited to 168 calendar days of employment whether they work or not.
If I need to use leave and have none stored up, are there options? Full-time employees with no leave stored should inform their supervisor. Supervisors should contact their section chief and the WRD Human Resources representative for each scenario.
Are there any exceptions to Standard Operating Procedures? Currently, there are no exceptions to the Human Resources Standard Operating Procedures, but this situation is unique and evolving with new federal legislation. Employees will receive updates as available.
How are we addressing programs and group events? Indoor programs and group events of more than 10 participants will be cancelled or rescheduled. Scheduled WRD outdoor events of 50 attendees or fewer will remain in place at this time, provided attendees maintain the 6-foot dispersal recommendation. Additionally, staff should implement ingress and egress measures at education center facilities that will maintain 10 or fewer people in common-space areas and still allow for the 6-foot dispersal recommendation. Guests with reservations for events, lodging and camping can contact WRD for rescheduling or refund options. Visit www.georgiawildlife.com/closures for updates on agency event cancellations because of COVID-19.
Top
Please advise customers that any WRD service provided online or by phone, such as license purchasing or boat registration, must be done through the methods listed below. We will, of course, help customers in these processes.
RECREATIONAL HUNTING, FISHING AND RELATED LICENSES
Purchase at GoOutdoorsGeorgia.com or by phone at 1-800-366-2661.
LIFETIME SPORTSMAN LICENSES
Email the completed application and any required documents to weblbru@dnr.ga.gov, or fax to 706-557-3565. Call 1-800-366-2661 if these options are not available.*
WRD COMMERCIAL LICENSE APPLICATIONS
Email the completed application and required documents to weblbru@dnr.ga.gov, or fax to 706-557-3565. Call 1-800-366-2661 if these options are not available.*
BOAT REGISTRATIONS
Register at GoOutdoorsGeorgia.com or by phone at 1-800-366-2661. Mailed registration applications will not be delayed, but mail is not usually as fast as the online and phone options.
* For commercial and lifetime licenses, if scanning applications and documents and emailing them as attachments is not an option, emailing clear photographs works.
More on WRD’s COVID-19 preparedness plan.
Top
One tool that can help you collaborate with coworkers online is Microsoft Teams. This platform is available on WRD computers and being used by many in the division. New to Teams? Here’s a brief how-to-meet guide (also check out this site).
- Make sure the people you want to include have the app and are signed into it.
- To create a meeting, open your email (Outlook).
- Click the "New Items" drop-down (top left) and then click "Teams Meeting."
- Enter a meeting name (ex.: 11:00 interview with Bob Jones).
- Enter all email addresses you want to include and meeting details (i.e., date, time and topic), as you would for a normal meeting invite.
- Send the invitation.
- Each team member will need to click on the calendar invite from their device.
- At the meeting time, they will click “Join Microsoft Teams Meeting” (which opens Microsoft Teams) and “Join Now.”
You can also create teams for easy access to chat, upload files and hold video and phone conferences. FYI: On video meetings, only four members are shown at a time. If a member off-screen speaks, they become one of the four video feeds. Microsoft says it's working to expand the number of feeds shown simultaneously.
Questions? Contact Public Affairs' Lacey Creech or Aubrey Pawlikowski.
Top
Now let's shift from the focus on coronavirus to highlight some accomplishments and recognition involving fellow employees.
Garden & Gun named Wildlife Conservation Section senior biologist Clay George (right) one of its 30 “Southern heroes” for his and DNR’s work to conserve North Atlantic right whales, one of the world's most imperiled whale species. The Charleston, S.C.-based magazine, which touts a readership topping 1 million, includes Clay, “the whale watcher,” among the likes of novelist and poet Wendell Berry, singer/songwriter Darius Rucker, and Wormsloe Foundation President and heirloom seeds advocate Sarah Ross.
WRD leadership has seen a number of changes lately. WRD Assistant Director Mark Whitney retired after 23 years with the agency, a career that included serving as Game Management chief, the section’s northeast Georgia regional supervisor and a wildlife biologist. Ted Will has been promoted from Game Management chief to division assistant director. A 19-year employee, Ted also has worked as assistant chief in both the Game and Fisheries Management sections.
In Fisheries Management, Clint Peacock will become an assistant chief starting April 1. Clint joined WRD in 2011 as hatchery biologist at the Go Fish Center, where he developed the smallmouth bass spawning and production program and other aspects of the fish culture program. Scott Robinson also has been promoted to assistant chief. A WRD employee since 1995, Scott has served in many capacities, including hatchery and region biologist, Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership coordinator and most recently as operations manager.
In Game Management, Tina Johannsen has been promoted to assistant chief. Tina left Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Resources in 2014 to become program operations manager for the WRD section, supervising the statewide game species management, hunter development and private lands programs.
|
 WRD’s Jerome Hay (center), NWTF Joe Kurz Wildlife Manager of the Year
WRD’s Jerome Hay is the National Wild Turkey Federation’s Joe Kurz Wildlife Manager of the Year for 2019. Jerome, a wildlife technician, revived the prescribed fire regime on Clarks Hill WMA, increased wildlife openings by more than 100 acres and helped improve access to the WMA. In the photo above from the federation’s Georgia chapter banquet on Jan. 11, he is pictured with WRD Wild Turkey Program Coordinator Emily Rushton and federation district biologist Ricky Lackey.
TERN board members Russ and Whit Wright and Patty Deveau volunteered along with DNR staff as part of The Nature Conservancy’s Altama Day, held March 6 at Altama Plantation WMA near Brunswick. With free activities varying from longleaf pine and gopher tortoise tours to discussion of herpetology and historical ruins, the event celebrated coastal conservation at Altama, which The Nature Conservancy helped protect and where the nonprofit's coastal office is now based.
Top
WRD We Are DNR recipients for the previous quarter include:
Bruce Chandler, groundskeeper 2, WRD headquarters and Wildlife Resources Conservation Center – Bruce keeps everything running at HQ and WRCC. He has dealt capably in recent months with recurring plumbing, landscaping and other issues. He is kind, calm, always has time and is always willing to help, even with odd tasks from coworkers! While Bruce makes sure things get fixed, his job also includes handling any emergencies in stride, which he does well.
Aaron Gray, Hugh Gillis PFA manager, Fisheries Region 4 (Waycross) – Aaron goes out of his way to ensure that visitors to Gillis PFA feel welcomed and have an enjoyable experience. He has gone above and beyond, as well, to develop new relationships with local businesses and organizations, often after-hours and on his time, and with schools to foster opportunities for students to use the PFA.
While managing Gillis, Aaron handles much of the field work at Dodge County PFA, his previous post (where WRD awaits a new manager), and is maintaining both facilities to excellent standards.
Don Harrison, senior biologist, Fisheries Region 4 (Waycross) – In his 20-plus years with DNR, Don has consistently provided top-notch service to customers, external and internal. He demonstrates excellence in field work, educational events and other responsibilities. From modifying gear to make it more effective to suggesting ways for improving data gathering, he also uses innovation to streamline work and increase efficiency. His accountability, hard-work ethic and readiness to help co-workers enhance WRD’s ability to effectively manage fishery resources.
Blaine Tyler, wildlife technician 3, Game Management (Sapelo Island) – Since arriving on Sapelo, Blaine has participated in or directed multiple habitat projects. One was reconstructing the Reynolds Duck Pond’s southern pool, which required considerable coordination and resulted in improved habitat quality and diversity. Blaine also excels at the critical work of managing the WMA’s equipment, facilities and vehicles. He organized the shop for efficiency, identified key needs and started a pre-service program. He also has established himself as a reliable partner to others on Sapelo – agencies, UGA and Hog Hammock landowners. Sapelo is fortunate to have Blaine on staff and as part of the community.
We Are DNR awards allow all WRD employees to recognize associates for exemplary work. Just click the button above and answer the brief questions.
Top
 Fun, enthusiastic and knowledgeable, Adam Mackinnon, far left, leads a school group on Sapelo.
The recent WRD champions chosen by section chiefs are:
Game Management
Adam Mackinnon, Education Program coordinator, Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve – Adam is the epitome of a skilled, productive and thoughtful public servant. But his willingness to always go the extra mile is what makes him a champion. Adam does an exceptional job of educating thousands of K-12 students each year in field classes on Sapelo. Using hands-on methods and an extensive knowledge of coastal and marine organisms, he teaches students with enthusiasm, humor and dedication. He also educates thousands of adults, including schoolteachers, and is acknowledged as a top naturalist/biologist, one who is always willing to help colleagues and visiting scientists with projects.
Fisheries Management
Go Fish Education Center staff – Go Fish employees have worked together to provide great educational programming and experiences to thousands of people this year. The hatchery has produced more than 1.2 million walleye fry while also spawning smallmouth bass and preparing for other spring fish crops, such as shoal bass. The center began 2020 with a full slate of field trips and school group visits and employees have continued so far to provide services throughout the coronavirus pandemic. It has been a great effort by the entire staff this year to keep the center open, safe, enjoyable and productive.
Wildlife Conservation
Margie Dent, administrative assistant 1 at Headquarters – Margie provides critical support for office functions and does an exceptional job interacting with the public. Answering questions on topics varying from nongame to injured wildlife, she is always patient and courteous, connecting customers to subject experts when needed. She has taken part in a Birding Boot Camp, helped with the Claxton Rattlesnake and Wildlife Festival and joined the bat crew for a recent culvert survey. Margie also has played a vital role in providing customer service at headquarters during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her knowledge of WRD operations, dedication to customer service and keen support for conservation make her a champion!
Congratulations to all of these employees. Thanks to each for helping WRD excel at customer service and continue to pursue its mission.
Top
Changes from October through early March (hourly positions not included).
HIRED
- Sarah Marie Baker, Fisheries Management (North Region 1 Operations), fisheries biologist 2
- Shane Donald Boehne, Game Management (administration), wildlife technician 2
- Megan Sarann Boswell, Game Management (administration), administrative assistant 1
- Matthew Jesse Leo, Game Management (administration), wildlife tech 2
PROMOTED
- Patrick C. Goble, Game Management (Calhoun), wildlife tech 3
- Tina Johannsen, Game Management (administration), assistant chief
- Thomas L. Litts, Fisheries Management (Headquarters Operations), senior manager 1
- Clint Peacock, Fisheries Management (Headquarters Operations), assistant chief
- Scott Robinson, Fisheries Management (Headquarters Operations), assistant chief
- Brett Daniel Tyler, Game Management (Calhoun) wildlife tech 3
- Theodore A. Will, Director's Office (administration), assistant director
RESIGNED
- Amy M. Cottrell, Fisheries Management (Southeast Region 3 Operations), fisheries biologist 2
- Mitchell B. East, Game Management (administration), GIS specialist 3
- Jenna Michelle Haag, Fisheries Management (Statewide Programs), fisheries tech 3
- Sarah Elizabeth Hanson, Public Affairs (administration), communications specialist 4
- Hannah Joy Loso, License and Boat Registration, customer service representative 2
- Noah Sean McCoard, Bobwhite Quail Initiative Program, wildlife biologist 2
- Leanna Denise McMillan, Game Management (Hunter Education/Shooting Sports), training and development spec 3
- Kenneth Dale Story, Game Management (Fort Valley), wildlife tech 3
RETIRED
- Scott A. Bardenwerper, Game Management (Gainesville), manager 2
- Edward A. Bettross, Fisheries Management (Central Region 2 Operations), fisheries biologist 3
- Alice G. Carson, Sapelo Island Natural Estuarine Research Reserve (Visitors’ Center), administrative support 1
- Mark D. Lancaster, Fisheries Management (North Region 1 Operations), fisheries tech 2
- Francis Michael Lewis, Sapelo Island operations, vessel captain supervisor
- Johnny K. Ray, License and Boat Registration, manager 2
- Matthew Earle Thomas, Fisheries Management (Headquarters Operations), senior manager 1
- Mark Whitney, Director's Office (administration), assistant director
TRANSFERRED
- Sarah Ellen Love, Game Management (Forest Management), curator/preservationist 3
WRD also remembers Lisa DeLong, administrative support 2 with the Wildlife Conservation Section, who passed on Feb. 25.
Top
|
