In 1995 a new research-based fisheries outreach program called Fishing in the Parks began as a university-agency-organization collaboration. The focus of this effort was to understand outreach program participants and to assess whether this program effectively reached the targeted novice-angler segment of families with young children. In 1995 and 1996, surveys were administered to 2,374 adult and youth program participants, and we achieved a 77% overall response rate.