By Randy Zellers

Thousands of students will line up and take their shot at a state championship title this weekend at the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Archery in the Schools State Championship, March 1-2, at the Hot Springs Convention Center and Bank OZK Arena.

Aimee Swaim, the AGFC’s interim Archery in the Schools coordinator, has been working at a fever pitch to make the final preparations for the Friday-Saturday event.

“This is the 16th state championship of Archery in the Schools,” Swaim said. “We’re excited that it’s finally here and we’re ready to crown some champions.”

The Archery in the Schools program (formerly Arkansas National Archery in the Schools Program) began as a pilot project with 10 schools in 2005. Based on the National Archery in the Schools program, AIS brings competitive archery into elementary, middle and high schools throughout Arkansas, and a state championship event was added in 2009 to complete the year’s activities.

All of the teams participating this weekend qualified by being the top 30 archery teams in one of three age-based divisions during various state qualification shoots.

“There were 24 state qualifiers between October and January, and teams could compete in as many as they wished, with their best score counting toward qualification,” Swaim said. “We have an additional six individuals who will shoot whose team did not qualify. Those were the highest scoring male and female shooters and the highest remaining shooter regardless of sex from the middle school and high school divisions whose team did not qualify for the championship.”

The elementary (fourth and fifth grades) and middle school (sixth through eighth grades) divisions compete on Friday beginning at 8:30 a.m., with the day expected to wrap up at 4 p.m. with trophy presentations. The seniors (ninth through 12th grades) begin at 9 a.m. Saturday and trophies are expected to be presented at about 2 p.m.

Each flight takes about 50 minutes, with competitors shooting 15 arrows from 10 meters and 15 more from 15 meters, plus five warm-up shots from each distance. Archery targets have 10 rings, each designating a score with a bull’s-eye being 10 points. All archers use a Mathews Genesis bow with no sights and aluminum Easton arrows.

“We’ll have 125 shooting lanes going at a time, and we’ll take up the entire arena floor with that, but there’s more to the event than the competition,” Swaim said.

The top three teams in each age group will receive medals and team trophies, and the fourth and fifth-place teams will receive medals. The top individual boy and girl in each age group will receive a Mathews Genesis bow. Individuals, both boys and girls, placing in the top five positions of the senior division also will receive college scholarship money provided by the AGFC, starting with $2,500 for the top boys and girls finishers and incrementally decreasing $500 for each placing.

Archers and other attendees who arrive early or stay late can try their hand at 3D archery targets and a practice lane, visit one of the AGFC’s mobile aquariums or check out some activities at a special education/recruitment, retention and reactivation booth.

“We’ll also have door prizes including some from Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry and some from Walmart Neighborhood Market,” Swaim said. “Arkansas Hunters Feeding the Hungry will be there too, collecting donations from each team during a canned food drive.”

Complete results of the tournament will be posted after all scores have been verified and awards will be announced at the end of each shooting day. Each team placing first, second or third will receive a trophy.

Visit www.agfc.com/ais for a link to state tournament scores and more information on Archery in the Schools.

Elementary Division Qualifiers
Alpena High School, Arkansas Arts Academy, Bergman School, Cave City School District, Charleston Elementary, Collegeville Elementary, Deer/Mt. Judea School District, Eagle Mountain Magnet, Glen Rose Elementary, Greene County Tech Elementary, Hill Farm Elementary, Hurricane Creek Elementary, Jasper School District, Lamar Elementary, Lead Hill School District, Leslie Intermediate School, Magnet Cove Elementary, Maynard High School, Omaha School District, Parkway Elementary, Perryville Elementary, Robert L Davis Elementary, Salem Elementary-Bryant, South Pike County School, Southside Elementary, Taylor Elementary, Valley Springs High School, Valley View Elementary, Waldron Elementary, Washington Middle School

Middle School Division Qualifiers
Alpena High School, Arkansas Arts Academy, Barton Jr. High School, Bergman School, Bethel Middle School, Bryant Middle School, Cabot Junior High North, Cave City School District, Charleston Middle School, Columbia Christian School, Des Arc Elementary, De Queen Cubs, Glen Rose Middle School, Greene County Tech Middle School, Jasper School District, Leah Hill School District, Magnet Cove Middle School, Marshall High School, Omaha School District, Ozark Junior High, Pangburn High School, Perryville Middle School, Pottsville Junior High, South Pike County School, Southside Middle School, Stuttgart Jr. High School, Taylor Middle School, Valley Springs High School, Valley View Jr. High, Washington Middle School

High School Division Qualifiers
Acorn High School, Alpena High School, Arkansas Arts Academy, Bentonville High School, Bergman School, Bryant High School, Cabot High School, Cave City School District, Charleston High School, De Queen High School, Glen Rose High School, Greene County Tech High School, Hillcrest High School, Jasper School District, Lead Hill School District, Lincoln High School, Marshall High School, Omaha School District, Ozark High School, Pangburn High School, Parkview High School, Pottsville High School, South Pike County School, Spa City Archery, Stuttgart High School, Sylvan Hills High School, Taylor High School, Valley Springs High School, Valley View Senior High, Vilonia High

Qualifying Individual Archers
Zachary Allen, Deer/Mt. Judea High School; Jaren Howell, Waldron High School; Carleigh McClung, Brookland High School; Jackson Nix, Homeschoolers On Target (middle school division); Millie Ramden, Star City Middle School, and Jasper Yarbrough, River Roots WILD School (middle school division)

By Randy Zellers

The Arkansas Economic Development Commission Division of Rural Services awarded grants worth $537,209 this week to schools throughout the state thanks to wildlife fines collected by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission.

The AGFC does not use any of the money derived from wildlife violation fines in capital expenditures or operating costs. Instead, all fine money is collected and distributed to schools and conservation districts in the form of grants focused specifically on conservation education in Arkansas.

“The best way to prevent future violations is to instill a love of the resource in our future hunters, anglers and outdoors enthusiasts and teach them why it’s so important to follow the regulations,” AGFC Director Austin Booth said. “Every hunter is faced with the decision to follow the rules or cheat the system every time they put on a pair of waders or hunter orange vest. The things they learn today through increased conservation education programs could be the very thing that molds them into the ethical sportsmen and sportswomen our wildlife resources deserve.”

Schools in 67 counties were awarded grants, and 240 awards were made, according to Becca Caldwell, Director of Rural Services for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.

“Outdoor recreation is a vital part of Arkansas’s quality of life, and it is an important draw for people looking at The Natural State as a place to live, work and raise a family,” said Clint O’Neal, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. “We are proud to help support wildlife education and conservation programs in schools across Arkansas, growing our outdoor recreation economy and building stronger communities throughout the state.”

JJ Gladden, AGFC assistant chief of education, said the fine money grant partnership has been a huge success for many schools, particularly those in rural areas with limited budgets.

All schools in the state are eligible to participate in the program, but only money collected in the county where the violation occurred may be used as grant funds for that county.

The funding has helped schools create and maintain archery, fishing, and competitive shooting sports programs. Schools also have used the money to help improve wildlife education by purchasing educational materials, materials for the creation of indoor and outdoor habitats, lab supplies, and field trips to AGFC nature and education centers. Conservation districts have used the funding to help promote wildlife conservation awareness in the communities by hosting environmental education days and fishing derbies for children of all ages.

“Budgets are so tight in some districts, they’re barely able to cover the cost of core classes,” Gladden said. “The fine money grant program enables us to help shoulder some of the load and bring all sorts of great education programs to the kids. Many of these children will be the future of conservation and we can’t let money get in the way of their future.”

For more information, including a complete list of 2024 Game and Fish Wildlife Grant Award recipients and program narratives, visit https://www.arkansasedc.com/Rural-Services/division.

By Randy Zellers

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s Black Bass Program has released the latest annual report from the Arkansas Tournament Information Program, and anglers may want to take note of some highlights as they prepare to hit the water this spring.

Jeremy Risley, BBP coordinator for the AGFC, explained that ATIP reports are derived from data voluntarily submitted by tournament directors throughout the state. Tournament weights, number of anglers, numbers of fish caught and numbers of fish over 5 pounds are submitted to the AGFC. Biologists compile those details to derive some interesting notes about Arkansas’s more popular tournament fishing locations. Tournament statistics can vary based on a number of factors, but biologists can still use some of the data for management decisions.“We can use the catch rates of 5-pound bass in tournaments to help make decisions on stocking Florida bass, for instance,” Risley said. “ATIP data alone won’t drive those decisions, but it definitely plays a part in the decision-making process.”

For the third year in a row, Lake Nimrod stood out as the top destination for bass tournaments. The lake is too small and the surrounding area doesn’t have the hotels and other facilities to handle most large tournaments, but it’s become a regular stop for most small and mid-sized bass clubs in central Arkansas.

“Nimrod has really only been high in the rankings during the last few years,” Risley said. “Mainly because there haven’t been enough tournament cards turned in from it to get data that’s comparable to the rest of the lakes on the list.”

Anglers focused on larger lakes and larger bass tournaments should know most of the lakes rounding out the top five for 2023: Millwood Lake, Lake Chicot, Lake Ouachita and Bull Shoals Lake.

Risley also added some noteworthy highlights and a “State of Arkansas Tournament Fishing” in this year’s report to give some added insight into where the Black Bass Program is headed.

“Sharing the data with our anglers is great, but it’s also important to keep that line of communication open to keep them in the loop about what those numbers mean, how we work to interpret the data and what we are doing to improve the resource,” Risley said.

Some notable statistics from last year’s tournaments include:

• Fifteen tournaments reported winning weights over 20 pounds, with a Trader Bill’s Team Tournament at Lake Ouachita in February having the largest bag, 29.74 pounds.
• The largest fish reported during tournaments in 2023 was a 12.56-pound largemouth caught at Lake Hamilton during a Brooks Marine Tuesday Night Tournament in August. It was one of six fish over 10 pounds to be weighed in 2023.
• The average first-place winning weight for all lakes and tournaments in 2023 was 14.39 pounds, slightly lower than 2022 (14.70 pounds).

Risley hopes more tournament trails contribute to the report in 2024, which will improve the data immensely. About 64 percent of the data came from AGFC Black Bass Program staff searching social media and internet sites to dig up results.

“We don’t mind doing the work, but this really is one of the few ways tournament anglers can contribute to the data we collect,” Risley said. “They can’t go out and electrofish or do samples for us, but they can send in their tournament results and be a part of the process. The more data we have from fellow bass anglers, the more pieces we have to complete the puzzle.”

Tournament anglers can send their results to the BBP through an electronic form at www.agfc.com/education/arkansas-tournament-information-program-atip. Most entries should take less than a few minutes to complete.

“Most of the data we need is already being collected, it’s just a matter of turning it in. Add in the number of 5-pound and larger fish caught in the tournament. It’s honestly just a matter of sending in the information.”

Visit www.agfc.com/bbp for more information on the Black Bass Program and the AGFC’s efforts on black bass management in Arkansas.