By Taylor Neugebauer, CSC College Relations
CHADRON, Neb. – Chadron State College student Elle Hewitt of Kearney, Nebraska, was appointed Student Conclave President of the Society for Range Management (SRM) at the 2026 conference in Monterey Bay, California, in February. The conclave is the undergraduate section of the international organization.
Last year, Hewitt served as the conclave’s secretary alongside several other CSC students. This year, she will serve with students from the University of Idaho, Arizona State University and the University of Nebraska.
“My prior experience on the student conclave prepared me for president by allowing me to see how the organization works, how each member contributes to the conclave’s goals and mission, what the SRM student body wants to see and how we can help them develop scholastic and professional skills,” she said.
As president, Hewitt will help represent student perspectives in conversations about the future of rangeland management.
“Being president means I get to put together budget requests for our annual meeting next February so the conclave can contribute to hosting student-oriented workshops and business meetings with other officers,” she said. “We also discuss new business, bring forward concerns and ideas from other students and range clubs to SRM leadership and work to foster an engaged student body within SRM.”
This year, the conclave aims to increase engagement among range clubs outside the annual SRM meeting. Members also plan to request funding from the SRM board to hire a translator for Spanish-speaking students from Mexico so they can participate more fully in activities at the annual meeting. Additional student-focused workshops and activities are also being planned to strengthen connections among range students.
“I’m excited to be a voice for range students from across the U.S. and bring forward improvements and student-led activities to the SRM board committee that will benefit future range students’ education and professional growth,” she said.
When her first term expires in February 2027, Hewitt plans to run for a second term. She will graduate in May 2028 and then plans to pursue a master’s degree and eventually a doctorate in rangeland management so she can teach at the collegiate level.
During the conference, the student conclave hosted a workshop about how to have a successful range club, where participants discussed fundraising, leadership in range clubs and potential club activities.
Hewitt also participated in the Range Cup academic poster competition as team captain. Her teammates were Ethan Norris and Jackson Schwartz, CSC sophomores majoring in range management.
“This year’s topic was choosing a traditional pastoralist rangeland management practice that could influence future management practices,” she said. “We chose to examine the seasonal practice of moving livestock from one grazing ground to another in a seasonal cycle, typically to lowlands in winter and highlands in summer in the Drakensberg Mountains of South Africa.”
The team also explored how mixed-species grazing with sheep, goats, and cattle can target different vegetation such as grasses, shrubs and forbs, to utilize available forage more effectively. The topic also connected to a broader international initiative highlighting the importance of rangelands.
Hewitt said the goal of the International Year of the Range Pastoralists (IYRP) in 2026 is to recognize the environmental, social and economic importance of rangelands and the benefits they provide to livelihoods around the world, as well as the pastoralists, range managers and land stewards who care for them. The late Dr. Jim O’Rourke, Emeritus Professor of Range Management at CSC, spearheaded efforts to have the United Nations designate the IYRP, which was originally scheduled for 2020 but was rescheduled to 2026 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.