In June of 2018, a steering committee of NASP graduates assembled to discuss the idea of a NASP Alumni Association. After a very positive response from the steering committee, the decision was made by NASP leadership to move forward with a pilot program in the state of Kentucky. Courtnie Carr led the way as director in helping organize and get the first Alumni Association off the ground.
As the NASP begins the new 2019-2020 school year, the organization announced the selection of Chace Wallen as its new alumni association director.
Wallen has held a number of professional careers within the state government and currently serves as an information specialist with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. He is a Wayne County High School alumni and a graduate of Lindsey Wilson College. Chace as spent a lifetime in the outdoors, pursuing and developing skills in every form of recreational archery. Chace is a Mossy Oak Prostaff representative and is an avid traditional bowhunter and bow fisherman. He has worked with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife’s R3 (Recruitment, Retention, and Reactivation) Branch since 2012, serving as a mentor and instructor for numerous educational programs, including Field to Fork and Hook and Cook. Chace has introduced countless people to the joys of hunting, fishing, and shooting sports.
Chace said, “It’s both an honor and a privilege to have the opportunity to work with and advance a program that has the potential to connect and create a network encompassing over 1 million NASP Alumni. Through this network, we are going to be able to provide opportunities to these alumni that will give them the skills and experience necessary to participate in outdoor recreational sports such as recreational shooting, bowhunting, and bow fishing. The R3 initiative is quickly sweeping across the nation and has taken the outdoor industry by storm. We hope that by joining in with this nationwide effort that we too can further the skills of alumni obtained through NASP, then applied to the outdoors. By providing techniques to grow the seeds, planted by NASP, we are ensuring that these alumni will pass on the passions and traditions of archery to future generations. I’m excited for what the future holds.”
In March of 2019, NASP graduates were given the opportunity to participate in the first-ever NASP Alumni Tournament held in conjunction with the KyNASP State Tournament. NASP graduates joined the new NASP Alumni Association online for as little as $15 and given the opportunity to shoot in the Alumni Tournament. Alumni teams from across the state, along with individual alumni members had a wonderful time competing for the chance to donate NASP equipment to a school of their choice. The top team donated a startup kit to a new NASP program in a school of their choice.
KY NASP Coordinator Lisa Frye said, “NASP has been a driving force in the increase of shooting sports participation nationally. Since 2002, KY NASP has graduated nearly a million archers in Kentucky alone. A recent survey tells us that due to participation in NASP, these archers want to be introduced to other outdoor related activities including hunting, fishing, and bowfishing. Chace Wallen is the perfect choice as alumni director to organize these young adults and help them continue their education in the great outdoors.”
NASP Vice President Tommy Floyd said, “We are excited about Chace coming on board to continue what was a tremendous start for our NASP Alumni effort. He has the energy and passion to help us continue to grow in year two. Based on our 2017 NASP Student Survey, we know that NASP is already working for education, conservation, and the sport of archery. We also know that our NASP archers want other outdoor and shooting sports opportunities. In reconnecting with these young adults through the alumni association, we can not only connect them with each other and the fun of archery, but also with R3 opportunities and outdoor events near them. Through the alumni effort, we can gladly assist the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife with the promotion of R3 activities that are exactly what our students say that they want! The potential of reconnecting with Kentucky’s 1 million NASP alumni and this becoming the model to eventually reach the remainder of the 18+ million former NASP archers (in other jurisdictions) should be very important to all of us who care about the outdoors, archery and conservation!”
For more information, visit www.naspschools.org
