South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension encourages cattle feeders and backgrounders from South Dakota and surrounding states to attend this year’s Feedlot Shortcourse. According to Warren Rusche, SDSU Extension Beef Feedlot Management Associate and event organizer, part of this year’s program will be devoted to the market conditions for both feed and cattle.

“In today’s volatile market climate, effective risk management is critically important for the long-term success of any cattle feeding business. Matt Diersen’s presentation will provide cattle feeders greater insight on risk management practices that they can use immediately on their operations,” Rusche says. “Increased feed costs dramatically increase the value of cost control, capturing efficiencies and maximizing the value of data in cattle feeding today. Alfred DiConstanzo does a fantastic job of using real-world examples combined with the latest research to give feeders practical ideas to improve their business.”

The 2021 Feedlot Shortcourse returns to campus Aug. 11 and 12 and will be held at the SDSU Cow-Calf Education and Research Facility (CCERF) classroom, located at 2901 Western Ave. in Brookings.

Below is the schedule for this year’s Feedlot Shortcourse:

Wednesday, Aug. 11 (all times are CDT)

• 1 p.m. Welcome and Introductions
• 1:15 p.m. “Bunk Management,” Warren Rusche, SDSU Extension
• 2 p.m. “Lameness in Feedlot Cattle,” Russ Daly, SDSU Extension Veterinarian, State Public Health Veterinarian and Professor
• 3 p.m. Break
• 3:15 p.m. “Risk Management and Cattle Market Basis,” Matt Diersen, SDSU Extension Risk/Business Management Specialist and Professor
• 4 p.m. “Controlling Costs in Challenging Times,” Alfredo DiConstanzo, University of Minnesota Professor of Beef Cattle Nutrition and Management
• Closing, group dinner and discussion

Thursday, Aug. 12

• 7:30 a.m. Health technologies, Ruminant Nutrition Center (3601 Medary Ave., Brookings)
• 8:15 a.m. Feed mixing, Ruminant Nutrition Center
• 9:30 a.m. Break and drive to CCERF
• 10 a.m. “Using Data to Drive Decisions,” Alfredo DiConstanzo
• 10:45 a.m. “Growth Technologies,” Zach Smith, SDSU Assistant Professor
• 11:30 a.m. “Feedyard Assessment Program,” Heidi Carroll, SDSU Extension Livestock Stewardship Field Specialist and Beef Quality Assurance Coordinator
• Closing, lunch and travel home

The registration fee is $150 and includes both days of the Feedlot Shortcourse. To register before Aug. 11, please visit the SDSU Extension Events page (extension.sdstate.edu/events).

For more information, contact Rusche at Warren.Rusche@sdstate.edu.

U.S. Representatives Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Banks introduced the Countering Communist China Act, a bill to combat the growing threat the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) poses to the United States.

The Countering Communist China Act is a comprehensive effort comprised of over 100 individual bills that targets China’s malign censorship, investigates the CCP’s role in COVID-19, addresses national security and medical supply chain concerns, highlights China’s democracy, human rights abuses, and more.

“It has become quite clear that the CCP is developing into the single greatest geopolitical threat the United States will face in the 21st century,” said Johnson. “We must be ready to combat malign Chinese behavior from a multifaceted approach which is what the Countering Communist China Act sets out to do.”

One of Johnson’s own bills targeting China’s malign intellectual property (IP) abuses was included in this package. Johnson’s bill amends the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) to exempt firms owned by China from the sovereign immunity defense to suits brought in U.S. courts. Under FSIA, American courts generally cannot hear cases brought against foreign states and certain state agencies and companies. This bill would create an exemption to allow cases to be brought against firms owned by China that are responsible for theft of U.S. intellectual property.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 80 percent of its economic-espionage cases involve China. Both U.S. government entities such as the Office of Personnel Management and private companies like Equifax have been targeted by the CCP in recent years.

The Eastern South Dakota Grazing School scheduled for Aug. 11- 13 at the Abbey of the Hills near Marvin, South Dakota has been postponed until 2022. According to Pete Bauman, South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension Natural Resources Field Specialist, this decision was based on several factors.

“If you were planning to attend the school, please consider attending the Chamberlain school coming up in September,” Bauman says. “There will also likely be options for schools in Wall, Chamberlain and eastern South Dakota in 2022.”

Each year the South Dakota Grassland Coalition coordinates the South Dakota Grazing Schools with several partner organizations, including SDSU Extension. According to Bauman, the South Dakota Grazing School offers quality classroom instruction from livestock producers who’ve been practicing holistic management methods along with agency professionals, academics and scientists who also study and manage grazing systems. In addition to the classroom, the school is unique in that it includes extensive field-based education.

This year’s South Dakota Grazing School will be held in Chamberlain, South Dakota from Sept. 14–16. Classroom activities will take place at the Chamberlain Community Center and field activities at the Charlie Totten Ranch. Participants are responsible for lodging, and several options are available in Chamberlain. For more information, contact Judge Jessop at judge.jessop@sdconservation.net or 605-280-0127.

For more information about the 2022 Eastern South Dakota Grazing School, please contact Bauman at Pete.Bauman@sdstate.edu or 605-882-5140.

Brookings, S.D. – Community members are invited to attend an open house at the new South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension Lemmon Regional Center on Aug. 18 from 3 to 5:30 p.m. MT. Located at 401 Sixth Ave. W., the office space is attached to the north end of the Five Counties Nursing Home. Prior to Sept. 28, the Extension office was located in the FJ Reeder Armory at 408 Eighth St. W.

“We are excited about our new center in Lemmon and the opportunities that SDSU Extension continues to provide to our local community and state-wide programming and research efforts,” says Robin Salverson, who has been based out of the Lemmon Regional Center since 2011 and is a Cow/Calf Field Specialist for SDSU Extension.

The Lemmon facility is one of eight regional centers SDSU Extension maintains across the state. As the outreach arm of SDSU and its College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences, SDSU Extension’s mission is to provide non-biased, research-based education and information to citizens across the state. This educational information is categorized across content areas, including: food, families, 4-H youth development, community vitality, agriculture and natural resources.

Light hors d’oeuvres, SDSU ice cream and drinks will be provided as guests tour the new facility and meet the staff at their leisure. Door prizes will be given away throughout the afternoon. Attendees are also invited to bring their water and forage samples in to be “quick” tested for total salts in water and nitrates in forage.

After the open house, everyone is encouraged to attend the Windy Fire Pasture Tour from 5:30 to 7 p.m. The tour will look at the effects the fire had on range and pastureland, the aftermath from the fire and grazing management postfire. Fall grass inventories will also be discussed with current drought conditions.

For more information about the open house and/or the pasture tour, please contact the Lemmon Regional Center team at 605-374-4177.

South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension’s Community Vitality team will soon be releasing a new educational series — all centered around board members, meetings and missions. Communities, businesses and organizations looking to create a new board or improve an existing board are invited to sign up for the “Building Highly Effective Boards” training sessions this fall.

“Strong board leadership can be the difference between the success and failure of core community organizations, such as schools, churches, non-profits and more,” says Joshua Hofer, SDSU Extension Community Vitality Field Specialist. “This course is designed for organizations looking to both strengthen and empower existing board members, while also being a resource for onboarding new board members.”

The course is comprised of seven modules spanning a range of topics, many requested by South Dakota communities. They include: “Board Fundamentals: Roles and Holding Effective Meetings,” “First Class Group Dynamics – Trust, Ethics and Conflict,” “Compelling Storytelling and Mission-Driven Fundraising,” “Technically Speaking: Understanding Procedure and Legal Fundamentals,” “Core Financial Concepts for Nonprofit Boards,” “Finding, Engaging and Strengthening Board Members” and “Strategic Planning for Boards.”

The modules are designed to be delivered in two-hour segments, but subjects can be expanded and combined upon request. “Strategic Planning for Boards” has a longer format, with day-long or multiple-day sessions available.

SDSU Extension Community Vitality Program Manager Kari O’Neill notes the course will be comprehensive and timely.

“Our goal in developing these interactive workshops is to provide a broad framework that builds knowledge and effectiveness in local, regional or statewide boards,” says O’Neill. “Whether it be financial literacy or board recruitment processes, this needed resource will join a growing consortium of governance resources available in South Dakota.”

While many of the modules will be applicable to all different types of organizations managed by a board, Hofer says there is broad applicability for nonprofits in the state.

“Nearly 15% of South Dakota’s workforce is employed in the nonprofit sector, with over 91% of South Dakota public charities operating on a revenue of less than $1 million annually,” says Hofer. “Getting support and resources to these organizations is good for business, while also being a vital piece of support for the most at-need in our state.”

For more information, program costs and registration, visit the SDSU Extension Building Highly Effective Boards page (extension.sdstate.edu/building-highly-effective-boards) or contact Hofer at 605-995-7379 or Joshua.Hofer@sdstate.edu, or O’Neill at 605-685-6972 or Kari.Oneill@sdstate.edu.

South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension is offering a virtual Better Choices, Better Health SD (BCBH-SD) Chronic Disease Self-Management Program Lay Leader Training Aug. 19 to Sept. 30. The training will be held Mondays and Thursdays from 2:30 to 5 p.m. CDT over Zoom.

“Becoming a BCBH-SD lay leader and facilitating workshops is an excellent opportunity to stay on track with your own health as you teach valuable self-management skills to people with chronic conditions,” says SDSU Extension Nutrition Field Specialist Megan Jacobson. “No teaching experience or health care background is necessary to become a BCBH-SD lay leader. In fact, research shows that the best facilitators are those who are living with chronic conditions.”

To become a certified BCBH-SD Lay Leader, participants must attend the full virtual training offered over seven weeks (two weekly sessions/each two-and-a-half hours). They must have reliable internet and a computer with audio and visual capability. Also, participants must show a willingness to follow a detailed leader’s manual and demonstrate a mastery of the facilitation skills by the end of the training.

“Once these requirements are met, you will be paired with an experienced leader to facilitate a workshop within one year of the training as the final step of certification,” Jacobson says. “After certification, we ask that you facilitate at least one workshop per year, and workshops meet for two- and-a-half hours per session for six weeks.”

According to Jacobson, there are a variety of cross-training opportunities for active BCBH-SD leaders in additional BCBH-SD chronic disease self-management education (CDSME) curriculums, including: the Chronic Pain Self-Management Program, Diabetes Self-Management Program, Cancer: Surviving and Thriving, Worksite Chronic Disease Self-Management Program and Tomando Control de su Salud.

The BCBH-SD suite of CDSME curriculums has been approved as a training program for lay leaders to work, providing a service of the Community Health Worker (CHW) Scope of Work in regard to reimbursement. Additionally, certificate-level CHWs can also train to be a lay leader to expand the services they offer to the communities they serve.

Jacobson says the feedback from current BCBH-SD lay leaders has been enthusiastic.

“We had a BCBH-SD Lay Leader from Aberdeen tell us, ‘I love participating in such a positive environment. It is so refreshing to feel like you are making a difference,'” Jacobson says.

To apply for BCBH-SD Lay Leader training, visit the SDSU Extension Events page (extension.sdstate.edu/events). After applications are received, participants will be contacted to set up a Zoom interview. During the interview, BCBH-SD will review leader expectations and training details and provide the opportunity to address any questions. After the interview, to complete registration, participants will be sent required paperwork and online payment information (sponsored volunteer leaders only).

For more information, contact BCBH-SD at BetterChoices.BetterHealth@sdstate or 888-484-3800.

South Dakota State University (SDSU) Extension and South Dakota 4-H invite youth involved in 4-H Shooting Sports across the state to apply to be on the 2022 4-H Shooting Sports teams. These teams will represent South Dakota 4-H Shooting Sports at the 2022 4-H Shooting Sports National Championships in Grand Island, Nebraska June 26–July 1, 2022.

“We are looking for team members for the 4-H Recurve Archery team and the 4-H Hunting Skills team,” says John Keimig, SDSU Extension Youth Safety Field Specialist. “While a basic comfort level in shooting sports is essential, prior experience in these competitions would also be beneficial.”

2022 Hunting Team Application

The Hunting Skills contest is a skill-and-knowledge-based contest. Animal identification (wings, fur and habitat), orienteering and hunting knowledge (based on the National Rifle Association (NRA) hunting guide) is tested, as well as shooting ability. The 2022 hunting contest includes 3D (archery), sporting clays (shotgun) and paper animal targets (rifle). A basic comfort level with all three disciplines would be helpful, but is not required.

2022 Recurve Archery Team

The Recurve Archery team competes in three areas at Nationals. They will shoot a FITA round, a field archery round and will shoot a set of 3D archery targets at unknown distances. Past experience and proficiency with a recurve bow are helpful, as well as experience shooting the competition formats that are mentioned above.

Youth should include a reference letter from one of their shooting sports coaches with the application. The application can be found on the SDSU Extension listing for this event. (extension.sdstate.edu/event/2022-hunting-team-application).

Applications are due Sept. 9, 2021 to the State 4-H Office, Attn: John Keimig, Berg Agricultural Hall 128 Box 2207E, SDSU, Brookings, SD 57007. Selected team members will be notified by Nov. 1, 2021.

For more information contact Keimig at 605-688-5575 or John.Keimig@sdstate.edu.

Join St. John’s Lutheran Youth as a vendor or shopper in the Gregory/Dallas Chamber’s annual Arts in the Park on Saturday, September 11th from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. This event features only homemade and hand crafted items and garden produce being sold from 2:00to 6:00 p.m. BankWest then hosts a variety of games and bouncy houses for the kids, buggy rides, soup tasting, and music from 5-7.

On the scenic view of Edgemont, South Dakota overlooking the Cheyenne River valley; young & seasoned producers learned together and experienced four days of interacting with pastures, plants, nature, classroom, and outdoor assignments.  The Ranching for Profit Young Adult School was held on July 13^th through 16^th was open to ages 16 – 26.

Mornings at Sunrise Ranch, with classroom information, presented by Dallas Mount, of Ranching for Profit.  In addition to the 42 young producers, a handful of group leaders supported delivering the school content.  Group leaders included members of the SDGC board and experienced producers and educators.  SDGC board member Riley Kammerer referred to the school as a “slam dunk success”, he also went on to add that it was the highlight of his year.  He shared when he first learned of a young adult program, he knew the SDGC had to do it.

With support from the SDGC board, Nature Conservancy and Sunrise Ranch, the school is the first young adult focused effort by the SDGC.  Aligning with the mission of SDGC “to promote good stewardship of grasslands through sustainable and profitable management”. The school covered topics like simplifying ranch financials, working with nature for a regenerative ranch, making people a priority in ranching, and the benefits of having a network in ranch management.

To further teach these concepts and mission, the school afternoon sessions included tours and students visited Sunrise Ranch with Mark Hollenbeck in Edgemont, SD, the Kurt Barker Ranch, and the 43 Ranch, both near Lusk Wyoming.  Observing broader sense of how the techniques and working in the ranching checking water, fixing fence, stocking of cattle, day to day chores that are important.  Youth also learned the difference between ranch work and ranch management, considered about “working on the business” and “in the business”.  This proved to be taught to one student, when the feedback about the school included: “The biggest waste of time is doing something efficiently that should not have been done at all.”

Additional feedback from those participating was incredibly positive, some of the comments include: “Young people should go to this school because there are opportunities and learning skills that every rancher needs to have to be successful. What I got out of this was knowledge organizing profit, production, and learning of human resources.” Another student shared “I got a whole new understanding of profit and how I can calculate my overheads, direct costs, gross margins and profit. I think as I move on in my business this school will stay with me and help me make good decisions in life. I recommend this school to all who have a ranching farming business or who want to be successful in life. I enjoyed all the people who taught me, and I would like to come back again.”

The South Dakota Grassland Coalition plans to hold this school again in 2022, the second week in July.  Mark your calendars of sign up early!

Upcoming SDGC events include Grassland Management School – July 27th & 28th, New East River Grazing School August 11^th -13^th, Pasture Walks in August & Chamberlain Grazing School September 14-16^th.  More information is available on the SDGC website www.sdgrass.org or by contacting Dan Rasmussen, the SDGC Educator at 605-685-3315

U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) announced South Dakota’s second annual Congressional App Challenge (CAC), an app competition for middle and high school students.

The CAC was established by Congress to encourage young people to learn coding and to inspire them to pursue a career in STEM. Students of all skill levels are encouraged to participate in the competition, no previous coding experience is required.

The App Challenge’s student submission portal is now open. Applications must be submitted by November 1^st. The CAC accepts computer programs (or apps) written in any programming language (C, C++, JavaScript, Python, Ruby, “block code,” etc.), for any platform (desktop/PC, web, mobile, etc.). Students may register as individuals or as teams of up to four students.

Winners will be selected by a panel of Computer Science teachers in South Dakota and honored by South Dakota’s Congressional office. Winning apps will be featured on display in the U.S. Capitol and on the CAC website.

“The Congressional App Challenge was created because Congress recognized the growing skills gap in the STEM field,” said Johnson. “To maintain American competitiveness, it’s crucial that we invest in our youth now and help them acquire these valuable skills. I’m looking forward to recognizing talented young coders and developers in South Dakota.”

Winners will be announced in December. For more information about the CAC or to register for the competition, please visit www.CongressionalAppChallenge.us.