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James Mccoy named Deputy Forest Supervisor
Release Date:
JACKSON, Miss. July 18, 2022 —James “Jim” Mccoy, a natural resources professional with more than 20 years of Forest Service experience, has been selected as th
e Deputy Forest Supervisor for the National Forests in Mississippi which consists of 1.2 million acres of forest lands on the Bienville, Chickasawhay, Delta, De Soto, Holly Springs, Homochitto, and Tombigbee Ranger Districts.
“We’re excited to have Jim join our team,” said Forest Supervisor Shannon Kelardy. “Jim has a great deal of forest service experience. His background and experience will be a great asset for the National Forests in Mississippi. I look forward to working with him.”
Mccoy currently serves on the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests as the Sylamore-St. Francis District Ranger, a position he’s held since 2010. Recently, he served on a temporary detail as Deputy Forest Supervisor on the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest in Montana. Mccoy started his new position today.
“I’m very excited about my new role. The National Forests in Mississippi has an outstanding reputation as a working forest with dedicated employees and excellent partners,” said Mccoy. “I look forward to being part of the team and working with employees and conservation partners as we manage national forest lands in Mississippi.”
Mccoy began his Forest Service career on the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest in 1998 as a student employee. He worked as a Wildlife Biologist Trainee and quickly transitioned over to fire management, moving to Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area as the Fire Management Officer in 2003. He maintains the arduous fire qualification as an incident management division supervisor.
A U.S. Army veteran, Mccoy enlisted at 17 and served for nine years with two combat tours. He has a Bachelor of Science in Fisheries and Wildlife Biology from Arkansas Tech University. Mccoy and his wife, Leslie, have six children from ages 16 to 23, and enjoy camping, fishing, and helping rescue animals.