The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) is offering a free online Black Bear Hunting Basics course through the Outdoor Extended Learning Network (OutdoorELN), the education platform operated by the International Hunter Education Association–USA (IHEA-USA).
The course serves as an introduction to black bear hunting in Missouri and is available at no cost at missouri.outdooreln.org. It arrives as Missouri prepares for a black bear season that runs October 17–30. According to MDC, the state expanded available bear permits from 600 to 2,000 this year and raised the harvest quota from 40 to 60, citing a Missouri bear population of roughly 1,100 animals growing at about nine percent annually.
OutdoorELN allows an agency or organization to stand up its own branded learning management system, combining its own materials with a shared catalog of trusted outdoor education content. Rather than each state building and maintaining separate infrastructure, agencies draw on common resources while keeping full control of what their hunters see. IHEA-USA also hosts AFWA Trapper Education on the platform, which lets states offer branded, state-specific trapper education at no cost.
Missouri's use of the platform reflects what OutdoorELN was built to do. A growing bear population created a need for new hunter education content on a short timeline, and the agency was able to publish and deliver that content directly to the people who needed it.
"When a state's needs change, the education has to move as fast as the season does," said Alex Baer, Executive Director of IHEA-USA. "Missouri saw a growing bear population and more hunters heading into new country, and they were able to build and deliver a course without waiting on anyone. That's exactly why we built OutdoorELN."
Through OutdoorELN and its broader education technology work, IHEA-USA continues to invest in the tools that help state agencies, instructors, and volunteers meet hunters where they are. Access their free Black Bear Hunting Basics course here: missouri.outdooreln.org/course/black-bear-hunting-basics/
About IHEA-USA
The International Hunter Education Association–USA is the professional organization for hunter education instructors and agencies in the United States. IHEA-USA works to ensure the continuation of the hunting tradition through safe, ethical, and responsible hunting practices.
About the Missouri Department of Conservation
Established in 1937 through a citizen-led initiative and governed by the Conservation Commission of Missouri, the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) works to protect and manage the fish, forest, and wildlife of the state and to provide opportunity for all citizens to use, enjoy, and learn about those resources. MDC administers more than 975,000 acres across Missouri, manages hunting, fishing, and trapping programs statewide, and delivers conservation education through nature centers, publications, landowner workshops, and online learning. Since 1976, its work has been supported in part by a dedicated one-eighth of one percent conservation sales tax approved by Missouri voters.
