KFA FORESTRY FIELD DAY
2026
Discover the Past, Present, and Future of Kansas Woodlands
Join the Kansas Forestry Association for an engaging day of learning, networking, and hands-on demonstrations in beautiful Courtland, Kansas at the historic Woodland Ranch. Explore how woodland stewardship, conservation, and innovative management practices are shaping the future of Kansas forests and rural landscapes.
What to expect:
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Educational breakout sessions led by forestry and natural resource professionals
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Demonstrations showcasing practical woodland management techniques
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Networking with landowners, forestry professionals, conservationists, and outdoor enthusiasts
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Raffle drawings and special giveaways throughout the day
Woodland Ranch, originally known as Woodland Place Stock Farm, is a historic north central Kansas property deeply rooted in forestry, conservation and agriculture and is hosting the 2026 KFA Field Day. Owned by the same family since the early 1900s, the ranch takes its name from the heavily forested landscape that continues to shape the property today. Listed on both the National Historic Register and the Kansas Historic Register, Woodland Ranch is also connected to the nearby Pawnee Indian Museum. Original owner Elizabeth Johnson played a key role in preserving the historic Pawnee site after encouraging her husband to purchase the land and donate it to the state of Kansas. Today, owners Locke and Jolynn (Elliot) Pierce continue the ranch’s stewardship legacy through the American Tree Farm System. The property features a restored historic barn, conservation-focused forestry management and award-winning preservation efforts that visitors will experience firsthand during this year’s KFA event.
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The Woodland Ranch
MORNING PRESENTERS
Oak Forest Management
Rick Souerdyke, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
Rick is based out of Meridian Wildlife Management Area Headquarters, located on the Little Blue River in Thayer County, Nebraska. He is responsible for 23 WMA’s (Wildlife Management Areas) and over 6,000 acres. He is a graduate of the University of Nebraska at Kearney, and is a 22 year employee of Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. Rick enjoys the biodiversity of managing Bur Oak woodlands and sandstone prairies to wetlands and restored native uplands.
Songbird Identification
Chuck Otte, retired Kansas State University Extension Agent
Chuck Otte is a native of York County, Nebraska, earning two degrees from the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. A retired county extension agent for Kansas State University, he served as the agriculture, horticulture and natural resources extension agent for Geary County for over 40 years. A birdwatcher from his very early years, Chuck is heavily involved in Kansas Birding circles, probably being most well known for his quarter century efforts in maintaining checklists for all 105 Kansas counties.
Chuck wears many hats in the birding community. He currently serves as Corresponding Secretary and Webmaster for the Kansas Ornithological Society (KOS), secretary of the Kansas Bird Records Committee, statewide eBird reviewer, and State Coordinator for the USGS Breeding Bird Survey (BBS). Chuck is a past president of KOS and served as it’s Newsletter Editor for a lengthy tenure. Chuck was one of the co-authors of Birds in Kansas. In retirement Chuck loves to garden and of course go birdwatching and maintain bird sighting records for the state. Chuck and his wife Jaye live on the farmstead near Milford where Jaye grew up.
Habitat Management for Deer and Turkey
Brandon Tritsch & Megan Smith, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks
KDWP Wildlife Biologists provide technical assistance to private landowners for wildlife habitat improvement on their land and can answer questions regarding state and federal financial assistance for habitat improvement projects.
AFTERNOON PRESENTERS
Streambank Stabilization
Kristin Kloft, Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Conservation & Andy Klein, Kansas Forest Service
Kristin has worked for the Kansas Dept of Agriculture within the Division of Conservation as the Riparian and Wetlands Program Manager since 2020. She coordinates the Inter-Agency Stream team working to identify and stabilize large eroding streambanks above the Tuttle Creek, Perry and John Redmond reservoirs. Kristin also works to deliver state cost share statewide on various wetland and playa projects often with other partners such as Ducks Unlimited, Kansas Alliance for Wetlands and Streams and Playa Lakes Joint Venture.
Additionally, state cost share is available through the Riparian Quality Enhancement Initiative (RQEI) which focuses on assisting landowners on projects involving both riparian area improvements as well as small streambank stabilization. Through these programs Kristin strives to assist landowners with various conservation needs across both large-scale eroding riverbanks, small stream eroding streambanks, wetlands in the eastern part of the state and playas in western Kansas.
Andy Klein works as the Water Quality Forester for Kansas Forest Service. He provides professional forestry education and technical assistance to private landowners and cooperating natural resource agencies in Kansas with geographic emphasis on those watersheds (mostly eastern and central Kansas) deemed high priority by the Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) State Committee.
Andy graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 2005. Before taking on his current role with Kansas Forest Service, he worked as a wildland firefighter with the Alpine Interagency Hotshot Crew based out of Rocky Mountain National Park, as a Fire Protection Specialist for Kansas Forest Service, and as a soil conservation technician for USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Young Tree Plantation Management
Chris Mullins, Kansas Forest Service
Chris Mullins has served as the South Central Rural Forester for the Kansas Forest Service since 2019. He came to our agency after serving as the 4-H Program Coordinator for K-State Research and Extension. Chris received his bachelors degree from K-State in 2010 in Parks, Recreation and Leisure Facilities Management and his masters from K-State in Horticulture/Environmental Education in 2015. In his free time Chris enjoys bow hunting, fishing and spending time outdoors.
Sawmill Demonstration and Utilization
Will Baugh, Woodmizer
Wood-Mizer Missouri was established in 2000, and is a convenient service location supporting customers from North Dakota to Louisiana and Oklahoma. Branch Manager Will Baugh says their goal is to make owning a Wood-Mizer sawmill as convenient as possible by providing the legendary support and service Wood-Mizer is known for at the Mt. Vernon, Missouri location.
