CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Wyatt Andresen (left), accompanied by art instructor Hallie Crouse from East Marshall High School, accepts a certificate of award and $100 prize as the winning artist of the Middle Iowa Watershed Management Authority logo design contest during the group’s quarterly meeting on April 3.

TAMA COUNTY — The Middle Iowa Watershed Management Authority has selected Wyatt Andresen, 11th grade student at East Marshall High School in Le Grand, as the winning artist of the Middle Iowa WMA logo design contest. The Middle Iowa WMA announced the contest in November 2024 and opened participation to all students in Pre-K through 12 schools located in the Middle Iowa River watershed. The winning logo will be used by the Middle Iowa WMA for organizational branding, and it will appear on the group’s website and promotional items, as well as educational and outreach materials.

The Middle Iowa Watershed covers portions of Benton, Grundy, Iowa, Jasper, Johnson, Linn, Marshall, Poweshiek, Story and Tama Counties, extending from the Coralville Dam in Coralville to just north of Marshalltown. It is comprised of 12 members representing counties, cities and Soil and Water Conservation Districts across the watershed. The Middle Iowa WMA is also partnering with stakeholders, state and federal agencies and non-profit organizations in developing a Comprehensive Water Quality Management Plan with funds awarded from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

The Middle Iowa WMA presented Andresen with a Certificate of Award and a $100 prize for his winning entry during a quarterly meeting held on April 3 at the Tama County Conservation Nature Center. The Middle Iowa WMA is grateful to Andresen for the logo design that it will use to increase exposure and awareness of the group as it builds a coalition of partners and collaborators across the watershed to reduce soil erosion and improve surface water quality.