Grants and Scholarships

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District has established a scholarship program for graduating high school seniors who are planning to further their education in a natural resources or agriculture related field. To be eligible for a scholarship the student must meet the following criteria:

• Must be a graduating high school senior who resides, or whose family owns land, within the Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District.
• Must have an overall grade point average of a 2.0, or higher, on a 4.0 grading scale at the end of the first semester of his/her senior year in high school.
• Must attend an accredited college, community college or vocational school the semester following graduation.
• Must direct his/her course study towards curriculum related to natural resources or agriculture.

2025 Scholarship Recipients

Aidan Backes - Humphrey Public High School

Carter Brabec - Leigh Community Schools

Jake Christiansen - Lyons-Decatur Northeast

Shea Crimmins - Oakland-Craig Public Schools

Dyson Cunningham - Wausa Public Schools

Rachel Martensen - Humphrey Public Schools

Abby Miller - Randolph High School

Becker Pohlman - Stanton High School

Alex Roth - Pender Public Schools

Aubree Schlueter - Logan View Public Schools

Congratulations to all of the graduates in our District. We wish you the best in your endeavors! 

ACE Camp is for youths who have completed 6th and 7th grade in the current school year, or the equivalent for homeschooled individuals. It is an overnight camp that goes for three nights and four days. Campers will be learning about natural resources in a hands-on environment.

Ace Camp will be held on June 22-25, 2025

Registration Cost:
$235 up until May 23rd. Late registration (May 24th-June 6th) is $300

Click here to see the ACE Camp brochure

**The LENRD offers scholarships that reimburse the recipient for the registration fee of the camp. Applicant must reside, or their family must own land, in the District.

The Nebraska Youth Range Camp consists of a dynamic curriculum that appeals to students with a wide array of interests including, but not limited to, rangeland management, conservation, ecology, animal science, and wildlife. With nearly 50 years to perfect and evolve this curriculum, every student, no matter what prior experience they have, will learn substantial information that will help them become more aware of Nebraska’s most prevalent land use. Rangelands cover nearly 50% of Nebraska and approximately 60% of the United States. These numbers convey the dominance of this land use, but recently there has been several political issues regarding the management of these rangelands which further emphasizes the reason it is imperative for us to educate the youth so we may enable them to become proficient and effective leaders in resource management as well as educated voters.

The students that attend this camp will be actively involved with lectures, field activities, hand-on experience, and recreational leadership and team-building activities that are all led by up to 20 of Nebraska’s most respected and dedicated leaders, teachers, and professionals from various agencies, colleges, and universities. Each student will be sent home with a binder that is filled with educational materials. Must be 14-18 years old. 

Learn more on the Nebraska Youth Range Camp website

**The LENRD offers scholarships that reimburse the recipient for the registration fee of the camp. Applicant must reside, or their family must own land, in the District.

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District offers scholarships for youth to attend 4-H camps.  The scholarships will reimburse each recipient for the registration fee of the camp.

4-H members can choose the camp they wish to attend from the UNL 4-H Summer Camps brochure, as well as other area camps.  Applicants must reside in the LENRD, or their family must own land within the district.  LENRD 4-H scholarships are reimbursements for the registration fees only.  Winners will receive payment of their scholarship after they send verification of camp attendance to the LENRD office.