By Steve Weisman
Outdoor Editor

Exciting news coming for the Iowa Great Lakes area. An Endowed Graduate Fellowship has been created for students pursuing graduate degrees in fisheries biology, aquatic ecology and related paths. It has been named the Edward Thelen Graduate Fellowship, to honor the career of Edward “Ed” Thelen, who spent his career as a Fisheries Technician for the Iowa DNR.

(Photo courtesy Iowa DNR at the Spirit Lake Hatchery) Ed Thelen enjoyed all aspects of being a Fisheries Technician.

Every year from 1977-2010, during the spring walleye gill netting at the Spirit Lake Hatchery, you would most likely run into the smiling face of Ed Thelen, as a dedicated DNR employee working diligently to maintain, protect and enhance the fisheries across the Iowa Great Lakes. The Graduate Fellowship was funded by private donors to preserve the integrity inspired by Thelen.

The Graduate Fellowship will provide funding and field opportunities for graduate students to conduct research in partnership with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory located in Dickinson County, which is operated by the University of Iowa.

According to Andrew Carlson, DNR Fisheries Management Biologist at the Spirit Lake Hatchery, “In serving the people and natural resources of Iowa for 33 years, Ed left a remarkable conservation legacy that will live on through a fellowship named in his honor. We admire Ed’s contributions to the people and ecosystems of Iowa, and we’re thankful for the years of aquatic research and discovery that the Thelen Fellowship will make possible.”

Mike Hawkins, Regional Fisheries Management Supervisor, expressed his excitement for the new Fellowship opportunity, saying, “The Fellowship will attract the ‘brightest graduate students’ to this unique and valuable ecosystem.” Students pursuing graduate degrees in fisheries biology, aquatic ecology, and related paths can apply for an endowed fellowship with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to conduct research in the Iowa Great Lakes ecosystem.

Students will have the opportunity to focus their research on a wide range of topics such as fish population dynamics, invasive species management, water quality monitoring, and watershed health, according to a press release from the DNR.

A second component of the Fellowship involves the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory located on the shoreline of West Okoboji’s Millers Bay. Fellowship recipients will be awarded both room and board at the Iowa Lakeside Lab for the duration of that student’s Fellowship. “By pairing the strengths of the DNR’s field programs with the academic resources of Lakeside Lab, this fellowship will give graduate students unparalleled opportunities to conduct impactful research,” said Mary Skopec, executive director of Iowa Lakeside Laboratory. “It’s an investment not just in science, but in the future health and sustainability of our lakes, rivers, and watersheds.”

First Edward Thelen Fellowship recipient

Conor Fitzpatrick, who graduated with a B. S. degree in Ecology and Environmental Sciences in 2022 from the University of Maine, has been named the first recipient of the Edward Thelen Fellowship.

For the past several months, Fitzpatrick has worked full time as a Biological Science Technician for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Red Bluff, CA.     

(photo submitted)-A recent photo of Conor Fitzpatrick as he works on the Red Bluff Fish and Wildlife Office’s Steelhead Hook and Line Acoustic Tagging Project

According to Carlson, “We had over 20 extremely well-qualified applicants. We are excited to have Conor arrive in January. He will concentrate his research on paddlefish survival and movement in the Iowa Great Lakes, along with a study of panfish age and growth dynamics. Conor can also expect to become immersed in many of the fisheries research and management activities here at the Spirit Lake Hatchery.”

Fitzpatrick reflects on the Fellowship opportunity. “I am both thankful and excited that I was awarded the Edward Thelen Fellowship. I am excited to start working with the Iowa DNR on the projects in January and learn more about paddlefish movement and behavior, as well as panfish age and growth in the Iowa Great Lakes.

At the same time, Fitzpatrick will spend two to three years pursuing his master’s degree from Nebraska University at Kearney.

According to Carlson, the donors and all those involved hope to make the Edward Thelen Graduate Fellowship an ongoing program so that many more future graduate students will have the opportunity to participate in the program and contribute to fisheries conservation in the Iowa Great Lakes.