In South Dakota things need to be seen differently by different people

By Gordon Garnos

AT ISSUE: Have you ever researched the number of higher education institutions in South Dakota? An ideal directory was published in the January-February issue of the South Dakota Magazine. This is a great resource for high schoolers who are making plans for their college days. At the same time there is another side of the coin when we talk about higher education in our home state.

WHEN READING the January-February issue of the South Dakota magazine, I was amazed and perhaps a little shocked to see the number of South Dakota universities, colleges and tech schools available for our kids. I was amazed at the job someone at Bernie Hunhoff's magazine in Yankton did in researching all these higher education facilities and related "condiments" in those towns.

I am shocked at the number of additional university centers either under construction or in the planning stages by the South Dakota Board of Regents; shocked as there is no apparent attempt at the same time to down size any existing public universities. I say this because the board wants to build more of these facilities as our youth population is in such a dramatic decline.

Even with Governor Mike Rounds' Initiative 2025, which I commend him for, to draw more people back to South Dakota's work force, build, build anew for higher education doesn't seem to be the answer South Dakotans can afford. Or am I missing the boat? South Dakotans have attended our existing facilities for generations. Wouldn't a little brick and mortar and spit and polish to these institutions be a better way to go. I suspect it would be a less expensive way as well.

OH, I KNOW the argument, get these higher education facilities closer to the work place. At the same time, doing it is hard on the state's pocketbook, especially when such grandiose plans are on the table. There's no question about that.

This gets me back to the 2008 Guide to South Dakota Higher Education, starting on page 77 of the January-February South Dakota Magazine. I had to look at Vermillion, home of the University of South Dakota, my alma mater, known for, among other things, the Dakota Dome, which was unheard of in my days at the U. It mentions Shop EZ for late-night grub, something else that wasn't there when I was. Yes! there was the Vars back then. Who from yesteryear could forget that place of "higher education."

Of course, having moved to Watertown, I had to take a look at Lake Area Technical Institute's sketch in the directory and I would have to pretty much agree with what is said about our school and its "condiments."

AT THE SAME TIME, Ron Williamson, president of the Great Plains Public Policy Institute in Sioux Falls, took a little different twist in expressing his concern about our public universities that certainly ties in with my skepticism. The public policy institute is a conservative think tank that centers in on South Dakota issues. In a recent "Thinkaboutit" memo Williamson noted there are 29 other public and private statewide higher education campuses and facilities besides our six public universities. That includes private and tribal colleges and our four technical institutes.

These 35 campuses and facilities across the entire state are for a population of some 770,000 residents where the student population is declining, he says.

"At the state level the public universities compete with K-12 and technical institute for taxpayer dollars. However, any shortfall in public university funding is usually augmented with increases in student tuition and fees, which are paid for with student loans, the parents and increased cost to non-traditional students.

"THE ECONOMIC downturn and credit crunch may well cause some student and parent borrowers to be squeezed out. At the same time several universities nationwide are cutting tuition, especially for middle and low income students."

Hey! Aren't they what we have right here in South Dakota? Because of the downturn and credit crunch, shouldn't somebody be looking at some different alternatives to the ever-increasing cost of our universities rather than building new ones? Yep. That is something to think about....


Gordon Garnos was long-time editor of the Watertown Public Opinion and recently retired after 39 years with that newspaper. Garnos, a lifelong resident of South Dakota except for his military service in the U.S. Air Force, was born and raised in Presho.