A Wonderful Watershed School Festival!
On April 30th, MNRR and FOMNRR welcomed 429 students to Riverside Park for the 2026 Missouri River Watershed School Festival, a morning of learning all about the Missouri River Watershed.
These students came from schools all across the Missouri River corridor including:
- Hartington-Newcastle Public School
- Laurel-Concord-Coleridge Middle School
- Viborg-Hurley Middle School
- Yankton Middle School
- Menno Public School
- Menno-Maxwell Colony School
- Wausa Public School
- Sacred Heart Middle School
- Andes Central Public School
- Bon Homme Public School
Throughout the morning, 29 amazing volunteers lead groups of students to different presentations led by local biologists, historians, conservation officers, and more. Students learned about native and invasive species, responsible recreation, habitat conservation, nature journaling, glaciers, steamboats, fossils, and more!
Thank you to all 27 presenters who volunteered their time and expertise!
- Sierra Club and SD Discovery Center
- USD Biology & Missouri River Institute
- SD Canoe and Kayak Association
- NE Game & Parks Commission
- SD Natural Resources Conservation Service
- SD Game, Fish, & Parks
- US Fish & Wildlife Service
- SD Geological Survey
- South Dakota State University
- Millennium Recycling
- Mead Museum
- US Army Corps of Engineers
- Wayne County Weed Management
Thank you to the generous sponsors who supported the 2026 Missouri River Watershed School Festival:
- Runza – Yankton
- Pizza Ranch – Yankton
- SD Section of the American Water Works Association
- Vermillion Rotary Club
Ranger Abby Schauer welcomes students to the festival.
View more photos from the 2026 Missouri River Watershed School Festival in the gallery below:
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- Group photo of the 2026 Guides in the amphitheather
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- Volunteers getting ready for their student groups.
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- Students gather into groups led by volunteers.
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- Students gather around for a presentation with Tom Vollmer, a retired science teacher.
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- Students participate in a soil demonstration to understand water infiltration and soil health.
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- US Fish and Wildlife shows off their bullfrogs.
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- Students practice nature journaling with presenters from the Sierra Club and SD Discovery Center.
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- SD Canoe and Kayak Association taught students about paddling the Missouri River.
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- Students learn from SD Game, Fish, and Parks staff about mammals.
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- A student reaches out to touch a snake during a presentation led by a graduate student from USD’s Biology Department.
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- Students gather around the US FWS station at the 2026 Missouri River Watershed School Festival.
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- Runza cookies were donated for all 429 students to enjoy.
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- Pizzas donated from Pizza Ranch-Yankton sit ready for the volunteers and presenters.
USD Photo