Jeff Hagener, a 20-year veteran of Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, took the helm as the director of Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks last week after his recent appointment by Gov. Judy Martz. Hagener, 46, leaves his DNRC post as Trust Land Management Administrator which he’s held since 1995. Upon legislative approval, Hagener will officially replace Pat Graham, who served eight years as FWP director under Gov. Marc Racicot. Hagener will become FWP’s 22nd director since the agency was established 100 years ago. "I’m honored Gov. Martz has asked me to serve the people of Montana as the director of this critical natural resource agency at this critical time in our history," Hagener said. "FWP is responsible for managing fish, wildlife and cultural resources that are world-renowned and vitally important to nearly everyone who calls Montana home." Hagener said hunting and fishing access, sportsman and landowner relations, threatened and endangered species conservation and management, parks funding, and game damage will be among the top issues confronting the agency. "These issues have an enormous impact on recreation in Montana and on the quality of our lives," Hagener said. "FWP has an admirable track record of being open and proactive and it’s my intention to build on and improve that record as we tackle problems that face Montana’s sportsmen and women, landowners, and our visitors." Hagener was born and raised in Havre, is a graduate of Havre High School, and received degrees in wildlife biology from the University of Montana and in agriculture from Montana State University. After brief stints as a packer and guide in the Bob Marshall Wilderness and along the Rocky Mountain Front in the late 1970s, Hagener carried out range and wildlife inventories for the federal Bureau of Land Management. "I have been a hunter and angler since I was old enough to accompany my dad and brothers to the field," Hagener said. "It was these outdoor experiences that shaped my goals to become a natural resource manager, particularly in wildlife management." He began his career in Montana state government in 1981 as a range/reclamation specialist with the former Montana Department of State Lands. In 1986 he became chief of the Surface Management Bureau and in 1989 he was promoted to the Lands Division administrator, which evolved into the Trust Land Management Division when DNRC and State Lands consolidated in 1995. Over the course of his career, Hagener served on several statewide committees including the Natural Resources Damage Technical Task Force, the Governor’s Private Land/Public Wildlife Advisory Council, and the Total Maximum Daily Load Advisory Group. He has been an active participant in the Western States Land Commissioners Association and for the past five years has served on the association’s executive committee and, most recently, as its president. Hagener and his wife, Debbie, live in Helena with their two teen-aged children.
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