Higher education

Former New Mexico State NCAA college basketball player Deuce Benjamin breaks down in tears while speaking at a news conference in Las Cruces, N.M., in May. Benjamin and Shak Odunewu discussed the lawsuit they filed alleging teammates ganged up and sexually assaulted them multiple times, while their coaches and others at the school didn’t act when confronted with the allegations. Some states have bolstered anti-hazing laws, but definitions and punishments aren’t uniform. (Andres Leighton/The Associated Press)

South Dakota one of six states without anti-hazing laws

BY: - September 27, 2023

Max Gruver spent the early morning hours of Sept. 14, 2017, heavily intoxicated and passed out on a couch inside the Phi Delta Theta chapter house at Louisiana State University. He had been forced to repeatedly chug 190-proof Diesel liquor in a hazing ritual called “Bible Study,” during which pledges are quizzed on fraternity facts. […]

University of South Dakota Law School Dean Neil Fulton speaks to students. (Courtesy of USD)

Enrollment grows by 2% at state universities

BY: - September 13, 2023

Enrollment is up 2% this fall across the state’s public university system, according to the South Dakota Board of Regents. It’s the second consecutive year of enrollment growth. “Back-to-back years of increased enrollment is a testament to the commitment of our faculty, staff and administration to providing an exceptional educational experience,” said Regents Executive Director […]

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10,700 South Dakotans enroll in student loan repayment program; Thune files opposition measure

BY: - September 5, 2023

WASHINGTON — More than 4 million federal student loan borrowers — including 10,700 in South Dakota — are enrolled in the Biden administration’s new repayment program, according to figures released Tuesday by the Department of Education. With the pause of more than three years on federal student loan repayments coming to an end in October, […]

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Here’s what to know about new federal policies for repaying student loans

BY: - August 22, 2023

WASHINGTON — Following the Supreme Court’s summer ruling against 40 million federal student loan borrowers who would have qualified for debt relief, the Biden administration crafted a year-long delay in repayments. The policy, known as an on-ramp, is set to begin next month. Additionally, hours after the Supreme Court’s decision, the Department of Education unveiled […]

Students at the entrance to the University of South Dakota Knudson School of Law. (Photo courtesy of USD)

Regents prioritize tuition freeze, civics & quantum computing in 2025 budget request

BY: - July 19, 2023

The South Dakota Board of Regents will ask Gov. Kristi Noem and the Legislature to freeze public university tuition for a fourth year in a row, the organization decided in a special Zoom meeting Wednesday, in addition to requesting funds for other priorities such as a system-wide center for civic engagement. Noem has been a […]

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South Dakota student debt relief could reach $147 million under new plan

BY: - July 18, 2023

More than 3,000 South Dakotans qualify for a combined $147 million in student debt relief offered by a new Biden administration policy, according to the U.S. Department of Education. The Department of Education and the White House announced last week that more than 800,000 federal student loan borrowers across the country will have their remaining […]

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More than 800,000 student loan borrowers to have debt forgiven, White House announces

BY: - July 14, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Department of Education and the White House announced Friday that more than 800,000 federal student loan borrowers will have their remaining debt wiped out. The $39 billion in debt relief will come through fixes to mismanagement of the agency’s income-driven repayment plans. Many long-time borrowers, including those who had been making payments […]

Student loan borrowers stage a rally in front of the White House to celebrate President Biden cancelling student debt and to begin the fight to cancel any remaining debt on Aug. 25, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for We the 45m)

US Supreme Court rules against Biden administration student loan debt relief plan

BY: - June 30, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the Biden administration does not have the legal authority to enact a one-time student debt relief program, dealing a blow to the 40 million Americans who would have qualified. Last year, the Biden Administration rolled out a debt forgiveness plan for borrowers with federal student […]

Protestors near the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., after a ruling by the court striking down the use of affirmative action in college acceptance decisions, on Thursday, June 29, 2023. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

‘This is not a normal court,’ says Biden as GOP opponents praise affirmative action ruling

BY: - June 29, 2023

WASHINGTON — Thursday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that effectively scrambles the role affirmative action plays in the college admissions process cannot let the country slide “backwards,” President Joe Biden said just hours after the majority justices released their opinion. Meanwhile, Republicans seeking to challenge him in 2024 praised the decision. Issues of race and higher […]

The South Dakota Board of Regents speaks with legislative leaders during a roundtable discussion June 21, 2023, in Madison. (Courtesy of the SDBOR)

After Noem’s criticism, legislators and regents discuss solutions for higher ed

BY: - June 21, 2023

Another tuition freeze is at the top of the South Dakota Board of Regents’ legislative wish list for next year — but that’s at the same time the state expects a return to normal revenue numbers. That emerged Wednesday from a roundtable discussion among the regents and some legislators at Dakota State University in Madison. […]

COMMENTARY
Gov. Kristi Noem speaks to reporters March 6, 2023, at the Capitol in Pierre. (Makenzie Huber/South Dakota Searchlight)

Higher-ed policy by the ‘perpetually aggrieved and easily offended’

BY: - June 5, 2023

In late May, Gov. Kristi Noem sent a four-page letter to the Board of Regents, telling them to get busy and start graduating more students. In the letter, Noem noted that South Dakota’s university graduation rate is 47% while the national average is 63%. She told the regents to have South Dakota’s graduation rate up […]

Activists call on President Biden to not resume student loan payments and to cancel student debt near the White House on Dec. 15, 2021, in Washington, D.C. (Paul Morigi/Getty Images for We, The 45 Million)

U.S. Senate votes to block student loan relief, White House will veto

BY: - June 1, 2023

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate on Thursday voted to overturn the Biden administration’s one-time student debt relief plan that is on hold due to a pending Supreme Court decision. President Joe Biden has vowed to veto the resolution, but the 52-46 vote (with yes votes from South Dakota Republican Sens. John Thune and Mike Rounds) […]