Come join us in Mitchell for the

42nd Annual SDSPLS Convention!

The Big Sioux Chapter of the South Dakota Society of Professional Land Surveyors has been hard at work planning the 42nd Annual SDSPLS Convention and we think they have put together an excellent line up for this year's event!

The Convention will offer 15 PDH and the always amazing Scholarship Auction and Raffle, a chance to interact with industry partners, plus recognition of the scholarship winners and your award-winning colleagues -- and, of course, all kinds of opportunities to catch up with friends! 

Scroll down for More and Click on the Orange links below for additional information!

An Exceptional Schedule! Click HERE for Updates!

* With the offering of a full 15 PDH, please note that the conference will start at 10am on Wednesday.

* Invited convention presenters include Jeff Lucas, Brad Tennant, Senator Randy Deibert, SD Board of Technical Professions members Cory Biegler and Mike Coleman, NSPS Dignitaries, and More!

*Topics include: The Pincushion Effect, How to make a Boundary Determination that will Win in Court, Title Insurance and Boundary Surveys, Ethics, Davis-Bacon, Workforce Development, Onboarding Young Surveyors, Preparing for the New Datum Changes, Understanding Decoupling, and more. LSIT Training sessions will be offered Friday morning, January 10th, and will run concurrently with the general sessions. If you plan on attending the LSIT Training, please indicate so on your registration form. 

Venue and Room Block Options!

The convention will be held at the Highland Conference Center in Mitchell, SD, located at 2000 Highland Way. The Highland is nestled between and connected to the Comfort Inn and Suites and the Hampton Inn, southeast of the interchange of SD-37/S Burr Street and I-90, and just west of Mitchell Tech. Drive Highland way towards Ruby Tuesday or the Shell Gas Station to access the conference center and hotel parking.

Two room blocks have been reserved for this year's convention. Both hotels are connected to the Highland Conference Center. The room block closes on December 24th, so reserve your room today! You will be able to travel back and forth indoors from the conference center to the hotels during the day, but will not be able to walk through the conference center after hours.

Comfort Inn and Suites

A room block has been reserved at the Comfort Inn & Suites at a rate of $129 + taxes and fees. Call 605.990.2400 and ask for the Professional Land Surveyors block. This hotel is on the south side of the Highland Conference Center and is close to Blarney's Sportsbar & Grill -- and has a water slide in the pool!

Hampton Inn

The second room block is reserved at the Hampton Inn at a rate of $129 + taxes and fees. Call 605.995.1575 and ask for the SD Society of Professional Land Surveyors block. This hotel sits on the north side of the conference center and was freshly remodeled this past spring. It sits closer to the Ruby Tuesday's restaurant.

State and Federal Rate Rooms

State Rate and Federal Rate rooms are now only available at the Comfort Inn and Suites. Please contact Nancy at the SDSPLS office for more information.

We Appreciate our Exhibitors and Sponsors!

As an Exhibitor or Sponsor, the SDSPLS Convention is THE annual event for you to showcase your company and survey related items.  In addition to interacting with attendees, you also have a number of ways to show your support of SDSPLS and/or the SDSPLS Scholarship Program by donating auction items and door prizes, sponsoring a meal or break, or one of the many other ways outlined on the Exhibit & Sponsorship page HERE.

Scholarship Raffle and Auction

There are, again, two amazing ways for you to participate in raising funds for the SDSPLS Scholarship Fund.

*The Big Sioux Chapter will be sponsoring the Scholarship Raffle -- but there are a couple of new changes this year! First, you can buy your raffle tickets online when you register! Tickets will still be on sale on site at the convention, but if you want to take care of it in advance, just check the box of your choice on the registration page. Second, in addition to the traditional gun, there will also be a $200-400 gift card prize, for those of you who may not be hunters. Good Luck to All!

*Through the generosity of our Members, Firms, Sponsors, and Exhibitors, SDSPLS has been able to maintain a robust Scholarship Program for many years through the Live and Silent Auctions. Whether you are able to attend the Convention or not, we encourage everyone to consider making a donation to the scholarship auction. Please indicate your willingness to donate on your registration form and we will reach out to

Enter Your Amazing Photos!

Enter the Annual SDSPLS Survey Photo Contest! The Top 3 photos will win a prize! Email a high-resolution digital file of your photo with your name and a brief description of the photo or project to DirectorSDSPLS@hotmail.com by December 15th. Remember, SDSPLS reserves the right to post the photos on the SDSPLS website or in Backsights & Foresights, with appropriate credit.

Come Early for the SD Geospatial User Group!

The 11th Annual South Dakota Geospatial User Group will once again meet on Tuesday, January 7th, at the Highland Conference Center. Registration for this event is separate from your conference registration. Find all the information and a link to register HERE.

Award Nominations

SDSPLS has a long history of honoring those who represent the profession well and those who have made exemplary contributions to the profession. We encourage you to review the Outstanding Contribution to the Land Surveying Profession and the Surveyor of the Year award categories and their criteria to help you in identifying a nominee for each. Find the criteria and fillable pdf nomination forms by clicking on the name of each award, above. Nominations are due by 5pm Central Time on December 15th.

Questions? Multiple people to register?

Call Nancy in the SDSPLS office at 605.951.1004 or email  DirectorSDSPLS@hotmail.com.