Maddison Easley gives a keynote address to students at 2018 Beef & Range Field Day.

On Thursday October 4^th, Sierra Foothill REC hosted its 5^th Annual Beef & Range Field Day for high school students enrolled in FFA & 4-H. Following an inspirational keynote address discussing possibilities after high school in research and agricultural careers by Maddison Easley of Placer County Resource Conservation District, the 112 students and their 10 FFA teachers enjoyed the remainder of the day participating in four different outdoor learning stations.

Dan Macon talks to students about low-stress cattle stockmanship methods.

Dan Macon, Cooperative Extension Advisor, and SFREC's own Clint Tipton, gave an engaging demonstration of low-stress cattle stockmanship, teaching students about flight and pressure zones and showing off all the bells and whistles of the SFREC hydraulic cattle chute.

Clint Tipton shows students the hydraulic cattle chute.

Dr. Gaby Maier prepares for students to look through the microscope to learn more about ruminant digestion.

Dr. Gaby Maier of UC Davis Veterinary Medicine gave students a closer look inside cattle with her presentation station discussing ruminant digestion and nutrition. Students were able to look at gut flora and different types of feed.

Dr. Sam Sandoval has students pouring water into the groundwater simulator model.

  Dr. Sam Sandoval & Dr. Romina Diaz Gomez of the UC Davis Department of Land, Air & Water Resources brought watershed sciences to life with an interactive plexiglass model that demonstrates the movement and flow of groundwater. 

 SFREC's Director, Jeremy James gave the students an eye-opening tour of SFREC's CIMIS weather station equipment and how changes in climate patterns over time effect California's natural oak woodlands, grasslands and agricultural industries.

Jeremy James shows students SFREC CIMIS weather station equipment and how it relates to natural landscapes & agriculture.

 A special thank you to this year's event sponsors Farm Credit West, Nevada County Resource Conservation District & Yuba-Sutter Farm Bureau. Additional thanks to Nevada County Resource Conservation District for sending out two volunteers to help facilitate this year's event.

Join SFREC's Ali Stefancich at the California Naturalist's Sierra Bioregional Rendezvous on October 28 at the Miners Foundry in Nevada City, CA. The Rendezvous will include field walks, workshops, naturalists' updates, a book exchange, and lunch. You can see Ali at the Building Meaningful Relationships with Nature workshop where she will introduce a number of different environmental education resources. You DO NOT need to be a certified California Naturalist to participate in this event. For more information click here. To register click here. We hope to see you there!