CHADRON – One hundred forty high school students from 25 schools in Nebraska, South Dakota, and Wyoming gathered for Chadron State College’s 54th annual High Plains Band and Choir Festival in early February.

This year’s festival marked the first scholarship awards from the Hammitt Endowment Fund, administered through the Chadron State Foundation, to strengthen Chadron State’s Music program. A total of $21,000 in scholarships was awarded to High Plains participants who plan to attend Chadron State College and major in Music.

The Hammitt Fund honors the late Dr. Jackson Hammitt, who taught music at Chadron State from 1967 to 2001 and remained connected to campus after retiring. He directed the Chadron Community Chorus for 29 years, frequently accompanied students and guest performers, and served the college and community in many roles. Hammitt and his wife, Peg, were longtime supporters of the Music program, and the scholarships sustain their commitment by helping Music students attend Chadron State.

Dr. Rick Puzzo, Professor and department chair, said there were 224 registrations including 79 wind players and percussionists in the band, 62 vocalists in the choir, and 12 students in the guitar/bass ensemble.

CSC faculty presented a free concert in Memorial Hall’s Auditorium Feb. 2, following a day of vocal and instrumental clinics. High school students performed a final public concert in Memorial Hall’s Auditorium on Feb. 3.

Dr. Joel Schreuder, Professor of Music, directed the choir. The Honor Band was instructed by guest director Dr. Lisa Tatum, Assistant Professor at Lubbock Christian University.

Students who have participated in Band or Choir for three or four years were given special recognition. Photos of the festival are available online.

Participation Awards

Honor Band 3-year

Chadron: Sara Carrick, Allison Taylor, Josephine Werner

Gering, Neb.: Coltin Hutton, Alphonso Leal, Helen Bauer

Hemingford, Neb.: Emily Johnston

Kimball, Neb.: Luke Berger

Mitchell, Neb.: Rio Williams

Honor Choir 3-year

Bridgeport, Neb.: Jeanette Gonzalez

Hill City, S.D.: Addysen Kurtz

Mitchell, Neb.: Mattie Taylor

Minatare, Neb.: Skyler Montgomery

Moorcroft, Wyo.: Krizma Delfino

Sidney, Neb.: Kennedy Hobson, Noel Onate

Honor Guitar Ensemble 3-year

Gordon/Rushville, Neb.: Jackson Roffers

Honor Band 4-year

Alliance, Neb.: Maira Richey

Bridgeport, Neb.: Cadence Freiberger

Chadron: Chelsea Stephens

Gering, Neb.: Alison Miller

Minatare, Neb.: Yoselin Reyes

Honor Choir 4-year

Gordon/Rushville, Neb.: Claire Wellnitz, Amara Funk

Sidney, Neb.: Raven Dinorog, Dagen Lee, Bryn Jones

Bridgeport, Neb.: Haden Ramig

Nebraska Cattlemen Foundation announces 2025 award recipients

LINCOLN – Dr. Anthony Perlinski, Chadron State College Professor and Rangeland Management department chair, received the Nebraska Range and Conservation Endowment during the Nebraska Cattlemen annual awards banquet in December in Kearney, Nebraska. Perlinski was awarded a $6,000 grant on behalf of the Nebraska Cattlemen Research and Education Foundation.

The endowment, established in 2011, provides grants to range management and conservation research and/or teaching positions at Nebraska post-secondary educational institutions. The award honors professors or instructors who are providing cutting edge research and/or student instruction in a range management and conservation related area, according to the Nebraska Cattlemen Foundation.

Perlinski has spent the past 12 years at CSC educating students on the importance of rangeland conservation through effective management. His teaching has spanned the curriculum including courses on soil science, hydrology, and ecology of rangelands. In addition to his science-based courses, he has also linked science to management through courses including Farm and Ranch Management, Ruminant Production, Vegetation Manipulation, and Land Resource Management Planning. He has advised undergraduate research projects focusing on the management of invasive cool season grasses and the response of invaded rangelands to drought conditions.

The awards committee said Perlinski is a dedicated educator who has built a career preparing the next generation of land management professionals.

Ackles receives conservation scholarship

CHADRON – Chadron State College student Gracie Ackles of Farwell, Nebraska, received the $1,000 Tina Lorentzen Carlson Memorial Scholarship recently from the Nebraska Chapter of the Soil & Water Conservation Society, the Nebraska Soil and Water Conservation Foundation, and the Nebraska Chapter SWCS-UNL Foundation

Ackles, a sophomore majoring in Rangeland Management and Agricultural Education, said she is grateful to receive the scholarship because it will help her accomplish her educational goals.

“My career goals involve teaching high school ag classes. I want to teach others more about agriculture and the importance of our natural resources, especially soils and water,” Ackles said.

Ackles, who is involved in the Range Club and Newman House, said she chose CSC because of its affordability, scenic surroundings, and the strong reputation of the range program.

Chadron resident Robin Foulk, a director on the Nebraska SWCS Chapter board, said this is the second scholarship Ackles has received from the organization.

“Her application was strong due to outlining specific career goals and how she plans to accomplish them, demonstrating an early interest in natural resource conservation through her shadowing and volunteering experiences and her desire to teach younger generations sustainability and natural resource management,” Foulk said.