Corey Mason moves on to Wild Sheep Foundation

[mdwest]

Im going to guess Corey was not fired at all... He tenured his resignation and made a change....

If he were terminated, he wouldnt have landed another job within the matter of a couple of days.. and frankly if he were terminated by the board of an organization the size of DSC, it would be VERY challenging to get the board of another organization in the same industry to be willing to consider him for a position..

Not to mention.. WSF didnt just happen to need a new EVP/COO at the moment Corey suddenly needed a new job...

With what I know about the DSC board, and the handful of conversations Ive had with Corey over the last couple of years.. Im going to guess he realized a while back that he needed to make a change.. and probably had been looking for a little while... and when the WSF job opened up, he moved on it as quickly as possible..

 

[Ontario Hunter]

This guy is a bit of a mystery. He is from Texas. He is advertised as having published many popular and peer reviewed publications ... yet a diligent extensive search has turned up only one possible publication on waterfowl in an ornithology journal and if it was him, he was only a joint author well down the list for contribution. He had thirteen years as head of Texas Parks before joining SCI as its CEO. But he's not a very old guy. I'm guessing from photos maybe forty-ish? Sure climbed the ladder fast. He supposedly has a masters in wildlife biology but never indicates where he obtained that degree which as a former professional job seeker myself, I found a bit odd. He does advertise himself as "a Certified Wildlife Biologist [registered trademark]" I saw this repeatedly in my searches for him so that registered trademark symbol must have some meaning. Well, it does. But maybe not what you'd think. The Texas "Wildlife Society" sells certifications for Associate Wildlife Biologist (R) and Certified Wildlife Biologist (R). These quasi-professional certication organizations abound, as I'm sure any professional on here knows. Usually their certificates are pretty wallpaper.

It seems Mr Mason is a gifted lobbyist with significant connections. I am surprised he's not still with SCI. Seems to be a good fit. Maybe the Club leaving Texas had something to do with it?

 

[K-man]

This guy is a bit of a mystery. He is from Texas. He is advertised as having published many popular and peer reviewed publications ... yet a diligent extensive search has turned up only one possible publication on waterfowl in an ornithology journal and if it was him, he was only a joint author well down the list for contribution. He had thirteen years as head of Texas Parks before joining SCI as its CEO. But he's not a very old guy. I'm guessing from photos maybe forty-ish? Sure climbed the ladder fast. He supposedly has a masters in wildlife biology but never indicates where he obtained that degree which as a former professional job seeker myself, I found a bit odd. He does advertise himself as "a Certified Wildlife Biologist [registered trademark]" I saw this repeatedly in my searches for him so that registered trademark symbol must have some meaning. Well, it does. But maybe not what you'd think. The Texas "Wildlife Society" sells certifications for Associate Wildlife Biologist (R) and Certified Wildlife Biologist (R). These quasi-professional certication organizations abound, as I'm sure any professional on here knows. Usually their certificates are pretty wallpaper.

It seems Mr Mason is a gifted lobbyist with significant connections. I am surprised he's not still with SCI. Seems to be a good fit. Maybe the Club leaving Texas had something to do with it?

Wow what a load in your comments. Have you ever met Corey? And also,DSC has not “left” Texas, just changed convention sites while a new arena is being built. I seldom reply to that kind of statement but you need to do a lot of research before you type. Also, “poaching” of ceo types is fairly common in this industry and others.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

Wow what a load in your comments. Have you ever met Corey? And also,DSC has not “left” Texas, just changed convention sites while a new arena is being built. I seldom reply to that kind of statement but you need to do a lot of research before you type. Also, “poaching” of ceo types is fairly common in this industry and others.

Okay, so what can you find on the guy? Anything different? His professional qualifications are a bit mysterious. That was my point. If you can shed more light, please do. I don't doubt he's a "nice guy." Most lobbyists are. Or they are out of work.

 

[K-man]

My point is not that I need to do more research or convince you of anything. Your whole post was full of inaccurate statements and YOU need to do more research before you post. I’m done.

 

[BigHill]

wow.

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

This guy is a bit of a mystery. He is from Texas. He is advertised as having published many popular and peer reviewed publications ... yet a diligent extensive search has turned up only one possible publication on waterfowl in an ornithology journal and if it was him, he was only a joint author well down the list for contribution. He had thirteen years as head of Texas Parks before joining SCI as its CEO. But he's not a very old guy. I'm guessing from photos maybe forty-ish? Sure climbed the ladder fast. He supposedly has a masters in wildlife biology but never indicates where he obtained that degree which as a former professional job seeker myself, I found a bit odd. He does advertise himself as "a Certified Wildlife Biologist [registered trademark]" I saw this repeatedly in my searches for him so that registered trademark symbol must have some meaning. Well, it does. But maybe not what you'd think. The Texas "Wildlife Society" sells certifications for Associate Wildlife Biologist (R) and Certified Wildlife Biologist (R). These quasi-professional certication organizations abound, as I'm sure any professional on here knows. Usually their certificates are pretty wallpaper.

It seems Mr Mason is a gifted lobbyist with significant connections. I am surprised he's not still with SCI. Seems to be a good fit. Maybe the Club leaving Texas had something to do with it?

Mason, Corey - Department of Rangeland, Wildlife and Fisheries Management

Title: Executive Director, Dallas Safari Club; member of the RWFM External Advisory Committee; Undergraduate Education: B.S. Forest Wildlife Management, Stephen F. Austin State University; Graduate Education: M.S. Forest Wildlife Management, Stephen F. Austin State University

rwfm.tamu.edu

Corey Mason​

Executive Director, Dallas Safari Club; member of the RWFM External Advisory Committee

Education​

Undergraduate Education B.S. Forest Wildlife Management, Stephen F. Austin State University

Graduate Education M.S. Forest Wildlife Management, Stephen F. Austin State University

Areas of Expertise​

• Wildlife biology
• Wildlife management

 

[Doug Hamilton]

lol!!! As a senior business executive it is rare for a CEO to be fired…they have “chosen” to move to a new opportunity

Yes, organizations often force lead people to resign and word it to.look like it was their idea, but people also do decide to make changes on their own. I've done it, as has nearly everyone at one time or another. Until more information is available, I'd wait to see before I stated that he was fired.

 

[Red Leg]

This thread, with its title, comes up on google at the moment as one of the leading sources on his departure and the only one declaring termination. It will be interesting to see if AH hears from his attorney.

I have had at least half a dozen conversations with him, and from my experience, he is generally very well thought of within the organization. I have certainly heard no plans afoot for a Putsch. Many of us were in attendance at the DSC Foundation dinner in June and there was certainly no speculation among that group.

He is indeed a fairly young man, and DSC would be the sort of job one would take on the way up - not as a working retirement. I would bet real money that he notified DSC of his departure once he closed the deal at WSF. Changing jobs at that level, unless truly let go (which is relatively rare and often expensive), is like wing walking. You never let go of a strut without a firm grip of the other.

 

[mdwest]

Its pretty clear he wasnt fired at this point...

as stated earlier.. it is statistically and from a time line perspective nearly impossible that he would have landed a senior executive job at WSF within days of being terminated from DSC..

guys pretty close to the center of DSC know Corey, or have at least met him and spoken with him a few times.. and also know members of the DSC board and/or have at least met and spoken to them a few times..

without going into what would be improper details.. there is extremely good reason to believe that Corey was very likely looking for another position for some time.. and when that position came available, he went through the process to obtain it, which likely took months to do.. when the offer was made, he likely went through the proper process to notify DSC.. and DSC then in turn notified their membership (which would also be proper)...

edited to add.. it looks like @Red Leg and I were posting at the same time...

 

[Green Chile]

Corey's future is brighter than DSC's...you can see the wisdom in making the move. Corey could read the tea leaves.

 

[DillonG]

Appears that he spent time at the DSC and realized that he wanted to look elsewhere. I hope he makes a large impact on wild sheep conservation within a short period of time. I know the numbers for some species aren’t looking great right now.

 

[wesheltonj]

I personally don’t know him. What I do know is there is a lot of turmoil going on at DSC, starting with the “Save DSC” to present. I would guess he saw an opportunity and took it. I wish him well in this new job.

 

[WAB]

There’s a whole lot of character assassination on this thread based on rumor, innuendo and very few facts. I would think that a little more discretion would be in order. As Red Leg points out, you may be protected behind your ‘anonymous’ internet presence, but then again, you may not be.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

My point is not that I need to do more research or convince you of anything. Your whole post was full of inaccurate statements and YOU need to do more research before you post. I’m done.

Yes, he was with Texas Parks for sixteen years, not thirteen. Still looking for those peer reviewed publications. Or anything in popular literature. No inaccuracy. I just can't find anything and I do have professional experience searching for scientific peer reviewed publications. The programs at Stephan Austin U do appear to have credibility. At least their MA program still requires a thesis. Sad to see so many graduate programs these days, especially in field science, going to non-thesis diplomas.

He clearly is moving up the ladder very rapidly. Must have something going for him.

 

[Ontario Hunter]

It does seem odd that someone at the top of SCI, arguably the most prominent hunting outdoors organization in the world, would choose to take what would appear to be a step down with the sheep org. Or at best a step sideways. It's possible he just wants to live in Bozeman rather than Texas. Can't blame him for that. His chosen field is forestry related and the forests in Montana blow away anything in Texas. Bozeman sure isn't my cup of tea anymore (old time Montanans call it Boz Angeles) but I would still prefer it to SCI conventions any day of the week. Who knows, if he can slap GOP onto his curriculum vitae, in a year or two he could easily have a crack at Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks director. Or sooner (hope springs eternal!). He's certainly much more qualified than the last two clowns. Or maybe he'll do the usual transplant thing and run for Montana governor or senator. I know little about the guy but he could only be a step up above what that state has now. The bar is pretty low!

 

[mdwest]

He was never at SCI.. he was the CEO of DSC.. SCI's prime competitor..

DSC of late has been rife with problems (as many have discussed here in many threads)..

DSC brought in $7.9M in 2023 (non profit financials are a matter of public record)..

Wild Sheep brought in $7.5M in 2023... theyre not very different in size at all in terms of the number of dollars each organization brings in, the value of each organizations net assets, the size of the staff/team that are on payroll, etc..

DSC is just more high profile with this particular crowd and has a much larger annual conference..

This was very likely not a step down in pay/benefits.. and while it is a lessor title, it is also probably not that much of a step down in terms of responsibility (DSC only gave Corey the CEO title in the last couple of years.. he was the "Executive Director" like his predecessor when he was hired... and in many organizations a COO is responsible for the daily operation of the business while a CEO is responsible for the strategic/long term initiatives and is the conduit between the business and its board)...

This thread has really been much ado about nothing... the title is inaccurate and inappropriate, and the discussion has gone off track and is largely speculation rather than any discussion of facts..

 

[mdwest]

He was never at SCI.. he was the CEO of DSC.. SCI's prime competitor..

DSC of late has been rife with problems (as many have discussed here in many threads)..

DSC brought in $7.9M in 2023 (non profit financials are a matter of public record)..

Wild Sheep brought in $7.5M in 2023... theyre not very different in size at all in terms of the number of dollars each organization brings in, the value of each organizations net assets, the size of the staff/team that are on payroll, etc..

DSC is just more high profile with this particular crowd and has a much larger annual conference..

This was very likely not a step down in pay/benefits.. and while it is a lessor title, it is also probably not that much of a step down in terms of responsibility (DSC only gave Corey the CEO title in the last couple of years.. he was the "Executive Director" like his predecessor when he was hired... and in many organizations a COO is responsible for the daily operation of the business while a CEO is responsible for the strategic/long term initiatives and is the conduit between the business and its board)...

This thread has really been much ado about nothing... the title is inaccurate and inappropriate, and the discussion has gone off track and is largely speculation rather than any discussion of facts..

I actually need to correct myself.. Wild Sheep brought in over $10M last year.. their program expenditures were about $7.5M..

from a donations/revenue position Wild Sheep is a good bit bigger than DSC

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

As head of DSC, do they have to live in the Dallas area?

As an exec with WSF, do they have to live in the Bozeman area?

I know which one I'd pick.

 

[dchum]

It does seem odd that someone at the top of SCI, arguably the most prominent hunting outdoors organization in the world, would choose to take what would appear to be a step down with the sheep org. Or at best a step sideways. It's possible he just wants to live in Bozeman rather than Texas. Can't blame him for that. His chosen field is forestry related and the forests in Montana blow away anything in Texas. Bozeman sure isn't my cup of tea anymore (old time Montanans call it Boz Angeles) but I would still prefer it to SCI conventions any day of the week. Who knows, if he can slap GOP onto his curriculum vitae, in a year or two he could easily have a crack at Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks director. Or sooner (hope springs eternal!). He's certainly much more qualified than the last two clowns. Or maybe he'll do the usual transplant thing and run for Montana governor or senator. I know little about the guy but he could only be a step up above what that state has now. The bar is pretty low!

Just stop old man