BROOKINGS, S.D. – A Gettysburg high school student competed in the High School Youth Forum at the Society for Range Management annual conference in Sparks, Nevada.
Bobbi Eide, a sophomore at Gettysburg High School, represented the South Dakota chapter of the Society for Range Management from Jan. 28 to Feb. 1, 2024, at the meeting themed “Change on the Range.”
Eide and other delegates competed in a paper presentation about a range-related topic. Each year a panel chooses the top five papers to be recognized at the society’s awards ceremony. The winner is invited to present their paper to the society at its next annual meeting. Delegates also participated in an ecological field tour and a program to enhance communication skills.
Krista Ehlert, assistant professor and SDSU Extension range specialist, said a limited number of delegates were selected for the forum, and event organizers enjoy providing a rewarding experience to attendees each year.
“This is a tremendous opportunity for our high school students to engage with the international Society for Range Management group, be immersed in range, and gain public speaking skills,” said Ehlert.
Eide was selected during the 2023 Rangeland and Soils Days, where she won first place in the rangeland display and speech contests in her age group. The annual event is a joint effort between SDSU Extension, the Natural Resources Conservation Service and a local conservation district to give youth ages 8-18 an opportunity to learn about South Dakota’s rangelands and soils through student displays and presentations, field visits, a land and homesite contest and a rangeland contest.
A lifelong lover of soils and rangelands, Eide started tagging along with her older brothers to South Dakota’s Rangeland Days when she was 5 years old and has planned her summers around the event ever since. She has been a member of the Evergreen 4-H Club in Potter County for eight years. She is a club officer and junior leader, and participates in shooting sports, swine shows, public speaking and horticulture.
Also active in FFA, Eide was part of the FFA division judging team at the National Range Judging Contest in 2023 in Oklahoma. Eide loves soils, agriscience and learning about the variety of plants in South Dakota and other states. Her dedication has led to a ninth-place finish in nursery landscaping career development at the state FFA level, along with second place for her carbon sequestration agriscience project and sixth in creed speaking.
The Society for Range Management is an international organization that strives to promote public awareness of the importance of sound management and use of rangeland. It has conducted the High School Youth Forum as part of its annual meeting since 1966.
Delegates to the High School Youth Forum are chosen by each of the 21 individual sections of the society throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico, based on their degree of interest in the range and natural resources field and their effort to learn more about it. While at the forum, delegates can meet people from other countries and see the role the Society for Range Management plays across the world.
For more information about the Society for Range Management, visit their website. For more information on Rangeland and Soils Days and the High School Youth Forum, contact Krista Ehlert, assistant professor and SDSU Extension range specialist.
