Record Number of Competitors Registered for the 2014 Archery in Louisiana Schools (ALAS) State Tournament

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 02.21.14

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ Archery in Louisiana Schools Program (ALAS), a member of the National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP), announced that a record setting 721 archers will compete at the 2014 ALAS State Tournament on March 1 in Alexandria.

Students will compete for awards and prizes at the state level, and the opportunity to compete in the NASP National Tournament. Two archers will receive $1,250 scholarships provided by Central Louisiana QDMA.

Only students who have participated in the ALAS program as part of their in-school curriculum during the current school year are eligible to participate. Teams and individuals compete in one of three divisions that include 4th and 5th grades, 6th through 8th grades, and 9th through 12th grades.

Volunteers are needed to assist with the March 1 tournament competition which will be held at the LSU AgCenter Storm Shelter, 8125 Hwy. 71 in Alexandria. Call 318-484-2276 to sign up as a volunteer. All volunteers must be 18 years of age or older, and will receive a state tournament t-shirt and lunch on the day of the competition.

The ALAS state tournament is conducted using National Archery in the Schools Program (NASP) rules. Those rules can be found at www.nasparchery.com. Awards will be presented to the top three teams in each division and the top five individuals in each division. The state archery competition allows Louisiana archers to qualify for NASP national and world tournament competitions.

For more information, contact Robert Stroede, ALAS program coordinator, at 318-484-2276 or rstroede@wlf.la.gov.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.