WMI Staff

Dr. Steven Williams is the President of the Wildlife Management Institute (WMI). As President of WMI, Steve serves on the Board of Directors of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, American Wildlife Conservation Partners, Wildlife and Hunting Heritage Conservation Council (a federal advisory committee to the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture), Council to Advance Hunting and Shooting Sports, and Chair of the National Conservation Leadership Institute. He is a professional member of the Boone and Crockett Club and The Wildlife Society.

Prior to joining WMI, Steve served as Director of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Kansas Governor's Cabinet Secretary of the Department of Wildlife and Parks, Deputy Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Game Commission, and Assistant Director for Wildlife and Deer Project Leader of the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.  He received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees from The Pennsylvania State University and a M.S. Degree from the University of North Dakota.

Scot Williamson is Vice President of the Wildlife Management Institute. Scot has been with WMI since 1994 and has assisted Northeastern states and conservation groups on a number of wildlife and land management initiatives. The WMI publication, "Feeding Wildlife, Just Say No!" was authored by Scot and received the Wildlife Society Conservation Education Award in 2003. Scot's current duties include coordination of multi-state habitat conservation initiatives dedicated to conservation and restoration of shrubland-dependent wildlife, and advancement of landscape level science collaboratives (Landscape Conservation Cooperatives).

Prior to joining WMI, Scot was Big Game Director for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and White-tailed Deer Project Leader for NH Fish and Game Department. Scot received a MS in Wildlife Science from the University of Vermont and a Bachelor of Science in Forestry from the Pennsylvania State University.

Chris Smith is the Western Field Representative for the Wildlife Management Institute. Chris has over 34 years experience in planning, management, research, supervision and administration of resource conservation programs throughout Alaska and Montana.  He has extensive involvement with the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and inter-agency teams. Chris has specialized training and experience in wildlife policy and law, public involvement, conflict resolution, personnel management, and strategic planning.

Prior to joining WMI, Chris served as Deputy Director for the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Parks for 11 years. Prior to working in Montana, Chris worked for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. In his 23 years working for Alaska, he rose from Fisheries Technician to Assistant Director of the Division of Wildlife Conservation. Chris holds a B.S. Degree in Wildlife Management from the University of Alaska and a M.S. Degree in Wildlife Biology from the University of British Columbia.

Jon Gassett served as Commissioner for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) for eight years. As Commissioner, he provided general supervision and control of all activities, functions, appointments, and employees of the KDFWR. Primary responsibilities included oversight of all agency divisions including, but not limited to, strategic planning, personnel management, program oversight, budget development and tracking, and statutory, regulatory, and policy development. Prior to his appointment as Commissioner, Jon served as Wildlife Division Director (four years) and Big Game Coordinator (two years) with the KDFWR. Jon has served as President of the Midwest Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and has chaired numerous committees in all three Associations. Jon serves on the Board of Directors of the National Conservation Leadership Institute and the Northern Bobwhite Conservation Initiative. 

Jon is a graduate of the inaugural class of the National Conservation Leadership Institute and holds a Ph.D. and M.S degree in Forest Resources from the University of Georgia and a B.S. degree in Biology from Kennesaw State University.

Matt Dunfee is the Director of Special Programs for the Wildlife Management Institute. In his past and current positions with WMI, he has served as the Conservation Program Specialist in WMI's Washington D.C. Headquarters where he worked on numerous projects related to North American wildlife conservation, private lands programs, and hunting heritage. He also serves as the Director of the Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance, the Project Coordinator for the North American Hunting Heritage Action Plan, and the Chair of the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference, and Co-Chair of the National Hunting and Shooting Sports Action Plan. In his current roles, Matt serves on numerous professional committees and boards including the AFWA Fish and Wildlife Health Committee, national and regional AFWA Hunting and Shooting Sports Participation Committees, the Hunting Heritage Steering Committee, the Conservation Leaders for Tomorrow Advisory Committee, the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Meeting Steering Committee, and the International Hunter Education Association Standards Committee. Following his leadership in developing evaluation toolkits for hunter and shooter R3 efforts, Matt has conducted numerous multi-day training and information workshops for state and federal wildlife agency staff and administrators on R3 strategies, program development, evaluation, and best practices.

Previous to his work with WMI, Matt worked as a program coordinator for the Center for Environmental Management on Military Lands and research associate with the National Park Service's Bison Management Working Group.  He received his B.S. in Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology from Colorado State University.

Bill Moritz has a B.S. in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology from Iowa State University, a M.S. in Fish and Wildlife Management from Montana State University, and a Ph.D. in Zoology and a Master of Public Affairs from Southern Illinois University.  Bill formerly served as the Michigan Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Natural Resources Deputy.  Previously, Bill was the Executive Director of the Safari Club International and Safari Club International Foundation.  Prior to those positions, Bill worked for Michigan DNR in various positions including Chief of the Wildlife Division.

The Midwest Field Representative serves as WMI’s liaison with the Midwest Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies.  In addition, Bill works with federal, state, and non-governmental organizations to advance conservation efforts in the Midwest as well as serving on WMI teams that review and evaluate national, regional, and state conservation programs.

Meghan Gilbart has worked for WMI since 2010, handling project and account administration for multiple Federal grants programs. Meghan works closely with project investigators and administrators to track project deliverables and coordinate payments. She manages online content for one of the grant programs WMI administrates, the Regional Conservation Needs program. Meghan prepares monthly invoices and handles accounts for several grants and agreements with WMI. She follows the Federal reporting requirements for the Federal awards to WMI.

Meghan received her M.S. degree in Restoration Ecology from California State University, Chico and her B.S. from the University of California, Davis, in Biology with an emphasis in Restoration Ecology. While in California she worked for River Partners as a Restoration Fellow. After moving to Vermont, she worked as a Habitat Restoration Specialist in Vermont for the Winooski Natural Resources Conservation District.

Meghan currently lives in Vermont with her husband and three boys.

Ann Forstchen joined WMI in January 2022 after more than 32 years with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission working in a variety of research and administrative roles. Her current work focuses on helping conservation agencies improve conservation outcomes by identifying, engaging and serving broader constituencies. This will help conservation and conservation agencies be more relevant, valued and supported by the public. She has collaborated in the development of and co-led training efforts for wildlife conservation agency staff, such as Wildlife Governance Principles, Application of Social Science in Wildlife Management, Public Trust, Integration of Human Dimensions into Fish and Wildlife Management, Basis for Wildlife Governance, Systems Thinking, Habits and Practices of Effective Wildlife Professionals and Ethical Considerations in Fish and Wildlife Conservation.

Her work has emphasized how staff can think more inclusively and holistically, how to broaden diversity of perspectives in decision-making processes and how to improve individual staff practices to better serve the increasingly diverse interests, needs and concerns of the public. She is a frequent special session organizer and presenter about state agency relevance at the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference. Ann is a member of the Fish and Wildlife Relevancy Roadmap Coordination and Implementation Team. Ann has co-authored several book chapters and published in the Journal of Wildlife Management, Wildlife Society Bulletin, Conservation Letters, The Wildlife Professional, Society and Natural Resources, Human Dimensions of Wildlife; and the Transactions of the North American Wildlife Conferences. She is a National Conservation Leadership Institute (NCLI) Fellow (Cohort 7) and Peer Coach for NCLI Cohorts 10,11, 13 and 15.