Find a new professional passion at Drone Day

The Drone Club at South Dakota State University is hosting its fourth annual Drone Day on Friday, April 17, in the Volstorff Ballroom. The event is free and runs from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For the first time, Drone Day is open to the public, and community members ages 18 and up are welcome.

Drone Day features local speakers sharing how they use drones in their professional and personal lives. The speakers will also hold live demonstrations of their drones in action. 

“Seeing it is different from watching videos of drones,” said Myranda Syhre, president of Drone Club. “You can see an expensive, cool drone doing real things and collecting data in real time. And there’s a professional there who can explain what you’re looking at.”

Syhre is a junior majoring in entrepreneurial studies with a minor in uncrewed aircraft systems. She planned the event with Julie Leidholt, an instructor in SDSU’s Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences and a secondary faculty adviser to the club.

Leidholt will give the event’s opening remarks about how drones require an “and.”

“You are a drone pilot and a geospatial specialist, engineer, videographer, scientist or farmer. The big theme I want this year to be is you’re a drone pilot and what?” Leidholt said.

The speakers lined up for Drone Day are meant to showcase that theme. Syhre and Leidholt chose drone pilots who have careers that people may not expect, like a lawyer and a firefighter or police officer.

The goal of the event is to show how drones are used in a variety of professional industries. It’s a lesson that Syhre learned at last year’s Drone Day.

“I didn’t know much about drones last year. What piqued my interest is how drones are being implemented into so many careers. The fire department has a giant drone for wildland fires. The police use them for first response since drones can get places faster than people,” she said. “I didn’t know there was that much potential.”

South Dakota State’s Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences has offered an uncrewed aircraft systems certificate since 2017. The minor was added in fall 2023.

For Syhre, the minor seemed a perfect match with her entrepreneurial studies.

“At Drone Day, I saw a lot of opportunity as an entrepreneur to grow a business or expand this technology,” she said.

For example, one of last year’s speakers mentioned that the U.S. has banned the use of drones made outside the country by state or federal governments. When a government entity goes to buy a drone, every single piece of it has to be made in the U.S.

“That took 80-90% of the drone market and flung it out the window,” Syhre said. “As an entrepreneur, I see a big opportunity there.”

Syhre hopes this year’s Drone Day will help spark a similar revelation in another student.

“If a student attends, they could unlock a new interest, find a minor or network for future careers. It’s opportunities in college like this that will get you into a career,” she said.

It’s for that reason that Leidholt encourages all her students to attend Drone Day, even if they aren’t in the uncrewed aircraft systems program.

“The bare minimum is you could sit back and appreciate the event. Or, you could find your next passion,” Leidholt said.

Any student who discovers the latter can further explore that newfound love through the program or the Drone Club at South Dakota State. The club is open to all students, no matter how much or how little drone experience they have.

Drone Club is also available for internships with local businesses.