Monica Yoder, a second-year student at DCB from Rugby, will receive the Young Conservationist Award, and Angie Bartholomay, a former full-time and current part-time science professor at DCB, will receive the Conservationist Award.

The 2025 Dakota College at Bottineau Conservation Award is presented to an individual who has demonstrated leadership and has made notable contributions to the conservation, preservation and enhancement of natural resources. This person will have contributed in an exceptional way that has had a significant impact on their communities.

Yoder is scheduled to graduate this spring with an Associate of Science in natural resources and this summer will finish her Associate of Applied Science in wildlife and fisheries tech. She spent 2024 working with the Pierce County Soil Conservation Office on the tree planting crew. Her long-term career plan is to attain her bachelor’s degree.

For more than 30 years, Bartholomay has served as a facilitator for Project Learning Tree, Project WILD and Project WET programs across North Dakota. She leads workshops for both formal and informal educators, conducts facilitator training sessions and helps organize water festivals throughout the state each year.

Monica Yoder Photo courtesy of DCB Photography

She also established and directed the Dakota College at Bottineau Water Festival, partnering with the North Central Education Cooperative for the past 12 years. Her contributions to environmental education include serving as a curriculum writer and field tester for the “Missouri River Curriculum Guide” for National Project WET, the “North Dakota Wetland Discovery Guide,” and the “National Project Learning Tree Curriculum Guide.”