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ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ students and faculty made their annual migration to the National Bison Association conference in Denver, Colorado, last month. More than just attending, the SDSU representatives made considerable contributions to meeting’s agenda from planning to presenting.

More than half of South Dakota’s landscape, around 24 million acres, is covered with the most abundant ecosystem in the world, rangeland. More than pretty scenery, the complex and varied environment is home to relationships among plants, animals and soil that were formed over millennia to mutually thrive and now play a crucial part in the South Dakota way of life.

Since the 1940s, the range degree program at ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ has been preparing students for critical roles in conservation and the agriculture industry. Today, the range specialization builds on that tradition to serve students with unique opportunities as one of only 14 accredited programs in the country.

A new study from ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ is working to better understand juvenile survival rates for mule and white-tailed deer in the western half of the state.

Carie Green, ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ's Profilet and DeJong Family Endowed Director of Early Childhood Education, designed a project to expand the experiences of early childhood and elementary education teacher candidates.

ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ is expanding its graduate offerings with the launch of a new social science Ph.D. program, an interdisciplinary program designed to address complex challenges facing rural communities and society at large.

More than 125 scholarships totaling more than $650,000 were awarded last week as part of the ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences Scholarship and Recognition Banquet. The annual celebration of student achievement honored students representing every department within the college.

As part of a tradition that is uniquely South Dakota, the 2025 Dean’s Pheasant Hunt took place last week. The annual event highlights the relationship between agriculture and conservation, two topics important to the ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, but also two of the main contributors to the South Dakota economy.

The ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ Soil Judging Team made an impressive showing at the recent National Collegiate Soil Judging Region 5 competition, garnering first-place awards in both the team and individual categories. Helping to bring home the team’s overall first-place score was individual top winner Luke Desmith, a senior agronomy major from Walnut Grove, Minnesota.

The ÃÛÌÒÓ°Ïñ College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences has announced interim roles for several SDSU Extension leadership positions.