ORANGE – After 50 years of teaching hunter education with more than 3,000 students, longtime conservationist Michael Roche has received the Massachusetts Hunter Education Instructor of the Year Award.

The International Hunter Education Association named Roche the state’s Instructor of the Year in June at its annual conference in Phoenix, Arizona. Because Roche was not present at the conference, MassWildlife presented him with the award during a ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at its field headquarters in Westborough.

According to MassWildlife, Roche has taught nearly 80 courses as a volunteer instructor with its Hunter Education program. He currently teaches hunter education at Ralph C. Mahar Regional School in Orange, where the course is the only one offered at a school in the state.

Outside of this teaching, Roche taught social science at Mahar, along with forestry and wildlife management electives, before retiring in 2011. He also served on the Fisheries and Wildlife Board for 35 years and has written the weekly “Sportsman’s Corner” column for the Athol Daily News since 1984.

In a statement provided by MassWildlife, Director Eve Schlüter praised Roche’s decades of work as a Hunter Education instructor.

“Through his dedication and service as a Hunter Education instructor, Mike has helped thousands of students build the knowledge, skills, and sense of responsibility that are essential to safe and ethical hunting,” Schlüter said. “We are proud to celebrate Mike and this well-earned national recognition.”

Roche said he felt “very, very honored” to receive the award.

He said his involvement in hunter education began through his father, who was friendly with the local game warden. Roche said the warden was required to teach the courses, but was not that keen on doing so, and asked Roche if he would help.

“I said, ‘Sure.’ And I showed up, and he sat in the back of the first class, and I started teaching and never stopped,” he said.

One of the things Roche said he has enjoyed most about teaching hunter education is watching students get engaged and “see the big picture.”

“I think the important part is that hunters play a part in conservation, a very major part in conservation,” he said. “And having hunters be informed and knowledgeable makes everything better.”

Over the years, Roche has seen the makeup of these classes change. When he first started teaching, he said the courses were made up mostly of 15-year-old boys.

“As time has evolved, now the average age is probably over 30, and it reflects a mix of both genders and ethnicities – that really is a mirror of society today,” he said.

After five decades of teaching, Roche said he still encounters people who took his courses over the years.

“I frequently run into people, in the supermarket or somewhere, who talk about that hunter ed course and how they got involved in hunting and how much they enjoy it,” he said. “That’s very fulfilling to me.”

Roche said making a difference is a priority for him as a teacher and part of what has kept him involved in hunter education.

He spoke of two members of his current volunteer hunter education team who are former students he taught at Mahar, describing them as committed to the program and “outstanding examples” of both hunters and people.

Roche also reflected on the team’s work over the years.

“We’ve always been determined, if we’re going to teach the course, we’re going to be the best course possible,” he said.