National Visitor Use Monitoring Forest Coordinator Training Managing the Program – During the Fieldwork Year National Visitor Use Monitoring Forest Service

Managing the Forest NVUM Program Chapters 1-3 and many of the Appendices of the NVUM Guidebook are essential reading for Coordinators. Review fieldwork schedule Coordinate transfer of supplies from other forests/RO Ensure Forest Support Make workforce decision Train the workforce Prepare various documents Obtain permission from resort owners, special use permit holders and others to survey at the designated sites and inform them of proxy information needed Gather all tools, equipment, and forms and distribute as needed Complete survey site inspection to identify safe interview locations and appropriate site set-up Submit forms and quarterly reports in a timely manner Quality assurance and control of data collection Wrap-up the survey year

Throughout the Survey Year Submit forms and reports Quality assurance & control of data collection Wrap–up the survey year Send them to Susan Schexnayder with University of Tennessee – David Bowler has retired.

10. Submit Forms/Reports There are due dates for submitting forms and reports It’s the coordinator’s duty to keep up-to-date on all form submittals

Due Dates Item Due Due Date Daily Summary Forms (make a copy for backup before you mail) & completed interview forms EVERY 2 weeks Proxy Reports Every Quarter: Jan. 31, April 30, July 31, Oct. 31 Recreation Special Events / Organization Camp Use Reports

10. Submit Forms/Reports, cont. Set up procedure for interviewers to submit forms to coordinator. Interviewer should review forms before submitting. Coordinator will need to review forms. More detail in the next unit: Preventing Mistakes

10. Submit Forms/Reports, cont.. Copy (at least the daily summary forms) Can copy all forms, but very time intensive Can scan forms and have electronic versions Consider sending certified mail May be helpful to have an established day (i.e. pay day) to complete above

Quarterly Reports Send reminder 2 to 3 weeks before due date. Proxy data collected from special use permit holders. Report what the proxy data asks for – don’t calculate anything. Regional Coordinator’s should be doing this Enter proxy numbers into inventory design application. Coordinator will need edit access for survey year.

Entering Proxy Data

Requesting Edit Access https://nrmprodb.fs.usda.gov/nrm/amt/ui/request/nrm_prod/fs_nris_nvum

Proxy Info, cont.

Don’t Forget… Recreation Special Events & Organization Camps Collect info from districts, SUDS, or permit administrator Forest managed proxy sites Collect the info from districts Enter directly into Inventory Design Application

Special Events & Org Camps Report Send reports to Don English Electronically (scans) via email.

11. Quality Assurance & Control Begins before the first interview…. … and continues throughout the entire NVUM year.

11. Quality Assurance & Control, cont. Coordinators are responsible for conducting at a minimum: 6 friendly mentoring inspections. 2 Secret Shopper inspections. Document these inspections on forms in Appendix K Email to Don Note: Good to do inspections early in the year and/or early in the interviewer’s season of work

QA Mentoring Perform 6 Mentoring Days throughout the season. Management tool for training purposes. Help to ensure that interviewers understand protocols. Assist the interviewer, answer questions and provide advice. Identify potential problem areas and provide constructive criticism.

QA Secret Shopper Perform 2 Secret Shopper inspections throughout the season. Used to evaluate your interviewers. Helps you know if your interviewers are doing the job correctly.

11. Quality Assurance & Control, cont.. All Interviewers must be thoroughly trained. Interviewers should perform the checks on back of Daily Summary Form. Forest Coordinator should review all forms before sending them to Data Processing. Site name, number and date are recorded accurately Bubbles filled in Traffic counts recorded

11. Quality Assurance & Control, cont… Don’t ignore Quality Control – it leads to accurate data collection Inspections can detect and correct any problems before they are included in the data.

12. Wrap-up the Survey Year Finish up proxy collection Submit all forms Check for missing data Coordinate transfer of equipment Per regional process

Questions…

Next… Preventing Mistakes Background Overview Resources Costs Technical Terms and Proxy Codes Fieldwork & Backup Schedule Preparing for Fieldwork Managing the Fieldwork Preventing Mistakes