History of the Tennessee Unit

The Tennessee Cooperative Fishery Research Unit (TN CFRU) was established in 1972 as a partnership with Tennessee Tech University, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, and the U.S. Geological Survey. The Tennessee Unit is one of 40 Cooperative Research Units around the country (and one of only four that is a "Fish-only" Research Unit). In its 40-year history the Tennessee Unit has had only two Unit leaders, R. Don Estes (deceased) and Jim Layzer. The current Assistant Unit Leader, Phil Betoli, was proceeded in his position by Jim Lazyer, Mike Van Den Avyle, and Philip Goodyear.