³ÉÈËÊÓƵ

Donna Merkt, who is currently the director of museum experience at Oklahoma City’s Gaylord-Pickens Museum and the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, has been named the director of the South Dakota Art Museum following a national search. Merkt replaces Lynn Verschoor, who retired after 20 years in the position.

South Dakota State University was the top-ranked public institution in GradReports’ 2021 Best Colleges in South Dakota by Salary Score. In addition, ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ’s 52.31 Salary Score is higher than the median for all U.S. colleges.

South Dakota State University’s Professional Staff Advisory Council recently honored four of its members at its annual meeting. Rebecca Peterson received the Rising Star Award, which goes to an employee within three years of initial hire, while Tianna Beare, Matt Halvorson and Jeff Holm were selected as Outstanding Professional Award recipients.

South Dakota State University student Heidi Schultz has been named to a 10-member Student Leaders in Public Health cohort by the Rocky Mountain Public Health Training Center. Schultz, from Rapid City, has been awarded a $3,500 stipend to assist with her public health field placement this spring semester.

Joshua Westwick ’01/M.S. ’03, associate director of South Dakota State University’s School of Communication and Journalism, recently received the Don Yoder Distinguished Faculty Award at the National Communication Association’s annual Basic Course Division business meeting.

South Dakota State University, in partnership with Sinte Gleska University, has received $500,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the Igluwiyeya (Prepare oneself): Pathways from Preparation to Graduation at Land-Grant Institutions. Igluwiyeya is Lakota for prepare oneself.

South Dakota State University announced today the Jackrabbit Journey Scholarship will be awarded starting for the fall 2020 semester, rather than fall 2021 as previously announced. The Jackrabbit Journey Scholarship will provide financial assistance to students who have earned dual credits from ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ and enroll at ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ for the fall 2020 semester following high school graduation.

S.D. Nelson and Gregory Bryan, the men behind two South Dakota Art Museum exhibits of American Indian story illustrations, will speak on Sept. 12 at 5:45 p.m. during the 5-7 p.m. closing reception for S.D. Nelson: Sharing My Vision and A Life’s Work: Paul Goble Illustrations of American Indian Stories.

South Dakota State University has been named to the inaugural Forbes list of America’s Best-in-State Employers. South Dakota State University was ranked No. 2 in the state. The ranking included companies that employ at least 500 people in their U.S. operations.

South Dakota State University was listed as one of the top-performing institutions in terms of exceeding expected six-year graduation rates, according to analysis of 368 colleges and universities done by The New York Times and the Urban Institute’s Center on Education Data and Policy.