President's Message
"We provide quality for our students with excellence through the work of our world-class faculty, state-of-the-art facilities and hands-on learning, which prepares young women and men to be global citizens in a continually changing and challenging world. Just as critical, availability creates educational advancement to support economic growth and opportunities for students to achieve their academic and professional dreams. The result is ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ’s impact on the economy in our state and region as we prepare the next generation of entrepreneurs and workforce in the more than 80 disciplines the university offers."
Three nursing classes post perfect NCLEX pass rates
SDState’s College of Nursing had three classes post a perfect 100% on the National Council Licensure Examination. The NCLEX is a national exam for the licensing of nurses in the United States and Canada.
ADRDL Celebrates Ribbon Cutting For New Facility
In September 2019, South Dakota State University officials, state leaders and commodity groups held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the $58.6 million Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory expansion and renovation.
Imagine 2023: Aspire. Discover. Achieve.
The Growth of Precision Agriculture at SDState
• ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ was the first university to offer both a major and minor in precision agriculture, building on the collaboration between its engineering and agriculture programs.
• Michael Adelaine Ph.D., ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ’s vice president for technology and safety, was recently named to a federal task force to explore the technology needs of the industry.
• The Raven Precision Agriculture Center will open fall 2021, giving ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ a world-class facility to educate and train the next generation of students.
2019 Wokini Initiative Accomplishments
• The Bush Foundation awarded the 2019 Bush Prize for Community Innovation to South Dakota State University. The $500,000 grant will support the Wokini Initiative.
• South Dakota congressional leadership and ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ officials led efforts to include the New Beginning for Tribal Students initiative in the 2020 Agriculture Appropriations Bill to provide a grant-funded matching program for land-grant institutions.
• ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ was awarded a three-year, $1 million grant through the Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies to create a professional development training series on Lakota/Dakota history and culture for faculty and staff.
Extension Specialists, Faculty Researchers Addressing State's Opioid Crisis
Opioids account for 61 percent of overdose deaths in South Dakota and ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ Extension specialists and faculty researchers at the university are at the forefront of addressing a crisis that is impacting hundreds of families across South Dakota.
Work to address the issue is being done through four areas of the university: the College of Nursing, Ethel Austin Martin Program in Human Nutrition, ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ Extension and the College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions.
Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center Becomes State-Of-The-Art Regional Facility
The generosity of key donors and a unique partnership between ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ and the city of Brookings became reality on campus in April 2019 when the $50 million expansion of the state-of-the-art Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center opened.
University Facilities Recognized for Sustainability
• ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ received a STARS Silver Rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education.
• Sustainability efforts at ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ have decreased utility costs by 14% since 2014 due to recent building projects.
• Raised $1,348,477 from 3,744 different donors;
• Increased the dollars raised by 135% from the previous year;
• Increased the number of donors by 1,606 from the previous year. Of those new donors, 506 were students.
• Alumni, donors, friends, faculty, staff and students joined forces to unlock more than $370,000 by completing all 41 challenges.
³ÉÈËÊÓƵ Extension, University Professor Address Mental Health Challenges for Farm and Ranch Families
Andrea Bjornestad Ph.D. has been doing research on the mental health of agricultural producers since 2015 and leads the ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ Extension Rural Behavioral Health team, focusing on farm stress management. For her work, she received the E. Gordon Poling Administrator Award from the South Dakota Counseling Association.