MADISON — The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced March 3 all in-person hunter education classes, including archery education classes, begin April 1.

To help protect Wisconsinites and staff from the spread of COVID-19, particularly those most vulnerable to infection and severe disease, established safety protocols to protect students, instructors and communities will remain in place when in-person instruction resumes.

The DNR’s Recreational Safety and Outdoor Section will collaborate with volunteer instructors and partners to reopen all in-person hunter/archery education safety classes. The timeline is as follows:

●  Instructors may start to enroll traditional classes in GoWild on Monday, March 15

●  In-person traditional classes can begin on Thursday, April 1

The DNR will enforce the following safety protocols for all in-person classes:

●  Social distancing of 6 feet between participants

●  Maximum of 50 participants in any one class

●  Face coverings are required for all participants    

●  Sanitizing of class equipment

●  Availability and use of hand sanitizer

●  Outdoor class instruction where possible

The DNR remains firmly committed to the health and safety of recreational safety course instructors and students. The department receives the most up-to-date information and will continue to adjust course operations as conditions change.