Alumni welcomed by Secretary Babbitt

Two graduates of the recreation and leisure studies program, one of whom is pursuing a graduate degree at Old Dominion, were among a group of four students chosen to meet on Jan. 7 with Department of Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, who welcomed them to the department's Bureau of Land Management career training program. Caryl Turner '95 (left) began a co-op position as a program analyst trainee in BLM's Washington, D.C., office at the start of the spring 1998 semester and continues her work there this summer. She is pursuing a master's in physical education with an emphasis in outdoor recreation and park administration at Old Dominion. Stephanie Bolen '96 (second from left) also began a co-op in the spring, which she is continuing this summer, as a recreation specialist in BLM's Washington headquarters as part of the Student Career Experience Program. A graduate student at the University of Kentucky, she is studying forestry and recreation. The Old Dominion graduates are among approximately 30 students who have been promised full-time jobs with the Bureau of Land Management upon their graduation and successful participation in the career training program. As part of a cooperative relationship between Old Dominion and the Bureau of Land Management which he established in 1994, Michael B. Brown, assistant professor of recreation and leisure studies at the university, is a recruiter for BLM's Student Career Experience Program initiative.