Nebraska Youth Range Camp

(June 2014) The Nebraska Youth Range Camp consists of a dynamic curriculum that appeals to students with a wide array of interests including, but not limited to, rangeland management, conservation, ecology, animal science, and wildlife. With nearly 50 years to perfect and evolve this curriculum, every student, no matter what prior experience they have, will learn substantial information that will help them become more aware of Nebraska’s most prevalent land use. Rangelands cover nearly 50% of Nebraska and approximately 60% of the United States. These numbers convey the dominance of this land use, but recently there has been several political issues regarding the management of these rangelands which further emphasizes the reason it is imperative for us to educate the youth so we may enable them to become proficient and effective leaders in resource management as well as educated voters.

The students that attend this camp are actively involved with lectures, field activities, hand-on experience, and recreational leadership and team-building activities that are all led by up to 20 of Nebraska’s most respected and dedicated leaders, teachers, and professionals from various agencies, colleges, and universities. Each student is sent home with a binder that is filled with educational materials.

Following the 2014 Nebraska Youth Range Camp, three students gave a range management related presentations to the Nebraska Society for Range Management members and guests. They competed for a chance to attend the International SRM meeting this winter in Sacramento, California. Kelsey Phillips from Mullen and Trent Elesen from Sumner will represent Nebraska at the Sacremento conference.