six universities under one roof

[89rabbit]

Re: six universities under one roof

The Capitol is easy, the question is how do you move Mt. Rushmore to Sioux Falls that will be the challenge.  I mean afterall think about how many more people would get to see it if it was in South Dakota's largest city, it is a no brainer.  

Go State!  ;D

[MilwaukeeJacksAlum]

Re: six universities under one roof

Actually, I heard Miller was going to start a new campaign claiming to be another seeder city of Sioux Falls (similar to Tea) in an attempt to boost the population. The ad campaign will boast Miller as part of suburban Sioux Falls. I think it can work. Tons of people in large cities drive 2 hours to work every morning.

The fall back plan if that doesn't work is to rename the town Sue Falls hoping they'll nab a couple people who get confused and end up 2 1/2 hours too far Northwest. Talk about renaming the school after one of the presidents has yet to be confirmed by my sources.

[SD-STATE]

Re: six universities under one roof

Oh, the capital should stay in Pierre . . . but the Governor should live in Sioux Falls Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturdays, and the Legislature should meet there Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and every other Sunday.

I would suggest if the gov uses his private jet that he closely documents his miles. We wouldn't want anymore misunderstandings.

[Rabbitlivinginverm]

Re: six universities under one roof

I would suggest if the gov uses his private jet that he closely documents his miles. We wouldn't want anymore misunderstandings.

If the Argus didn't have this along with wanting to know who is invited on the gov's pheasant hunting trips, they wouldn't have much at all.

[90Jackrabbit]

Re: six universities under one roof

The Mitchell Dailly Republic has been running some great stories on USDSU this past week, unfortunately none have been online. Here is today's editorial.

Our View: A seventh university?
Friday, January 13, 2006

By The Daily Republic

South Dakota lawmakers are being asked to approve a move that will forever change the face of higher education in this state.

Before they endorse the proposal to spend millions on more land and new buildings in Sioux Falls for a new USDSU campus, a number of questions must be answered.


* What will be the long-term impact of this campus on other state universities? The regents argue that because the population is in Sioux Falls, an expanded state campus must be built there. This thinking represents a sea-change in approach. South Dakota taxpayers for a century have invested in campuses around the state to make sure higher education is widely accessible geographically. Students, even non-traditional ones, attended college where the buildings, programs and other investments have been made. The present proposal takes the opposite view and gives no consideration to the fact that the states two major campuses are about an hour away in either direction from Sioux Falls. Both campuses will suffer over the long term if a new state university is established in Sioux Falls, and so will the states other campuses.


* Is USDSU becoming this states seventh university? Proponents of the proposal continue to say no, but this is at best naïve and at worst disingenuous. Look at whats happened so far. At first, we were led to believe that the proposal only involved the need for two new buildings, involving an $8 million request from the Legislature, $2 million from the regents and $4 million in federal funds. However, it became apparent that 263 acres would be an immense amount of land for one classroom building and a research center. It has come to light in recent days that the proposal is for two connected classroom buildings, and the Graduate Education and Research Center. Wednesday, it was learned that a new library is also being considered. As it turns out, these new structures are only the tip of the proverbial iceberg. A different map reveals the existence of 27 buildings. There has been in recent days a growing awareness that the proposal is only the beginning, not the end, of construction of a new university in Sioux Falls. To our knowledge, the future dollars and cents cost to the state has not been calculated.


* Why werent the regents more forthcoming about the proposal? Oddly, as The Daily Republics Capitol correspondent reported earlier, the regents never officially approved the proposal, nor had they even put the plan on their meeting agenda. On point on this project has been regents chairman Harvey Jewett and executive director Tad Perry. Given the significance of the proposal, it should have been openly discussed during the regents regular meetings.


* What will be the economic impact on South Dakota? There are two economies in South Dakota: growing and declining. In general, the growth has been in Sioux Falls and along the I-29 corridor and also in the Black Hills. Mitchell has enjoyed some growth, as well, but most of the state between the Black Hills and Sioux Falls has struggled. The presence of state universities in Aberdeen, Brookings, Vermillion and Madison has provided an important economic engine in those communities and in the trade areas they serve. The same is true for Spearfish. To embark on a public policy that undermines those campuses would be to harm much of South Dakota.

[91rabbit]

Re: six universities under one roof

Great editorial from Mitchell. Outlines many good questions that need firm answers before this thing gets a firm foothold.

[SDSUFAN]

Re: six universities under one roof

I agree the editoral did make some very important points. I really think the SF growth has created way too much euphoria, almost to the point were we want to turn the rest of the state into the buffalo commons as proposed by the intellectual couple from Rutgers. Certain parts of the state may return to the buffalo common, but not all of it by any means.

I felt closing USD-Springfield was a big mistake as eventually the state population would start to grow and regional institutions would be very valuable.

Before we start putting our six institutions on the chopping block or even adding a seventh in SF, we need to know what each is doing now and what they could be in years to come. Education is a very important tool for any society. Closing institutions and or making them in correctional institutions is not the answer.

We will need adminstrators with vision and above all cooperation amongst the six existing institutions. USDSU seems to be a start in that direction and where this insitution ends, I really don't think we know at this point in time.

[89rabbit]

Re: six universities under one roof

Here is a link to another opinion on this matter:

http://www.dakotavoice.com/200601/Op...0060114_G.html

Go State! ;D

[90Jackrabbit]

Re: six universities under one roof

Some opinions on USDSU:

http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs...1056/OPINION01

Notice how the younger people are in favor of a campus in Sioux Falls. I have to wonder if Sioux Falls high school graduates would rather stay in Sioux Falls than move to one of the existing state universities? Also, is Sioux Falls more apealling to high school graduates from small towns than Brookings, Madison, Vermillion and Aberdeen?

[bisonbacker]

Re: six universities under one roof

I am relatively new to your board and hadn't heard of this proposal before until reading about it here. I can understand wanting to have a university located in Sioux Falls but to have it at the expense of the existing universities seems to high a price to pay just to have the luxury of letting kids in the Sioux Falls area be able to stay at home and attend school. Isn't the idea not only to be able to further your education at that age but also to mature and grow as an individual? Most kids are chomping at the bit to move away from home and attend school for various reasons. I just hope for the existing universities they don't throw the baby out with the bath water and forsake the rural areas of the state. Both South Dakota and North Dakota have enough problems with the rural areas, neither definelty does not need well intended ideas that are detrimental to the rural areas of the states. I hope all concerns are given ample opportunity to voice their opinions before any move is made on this.

[SDSUFAN]

Re: six universities under one roof

I think how USDSU is different than what has gone up in North Dakota is that both USD and NDSU are located as well as DSU about an hour drive from Sioux Falls, so all three institutions have cooperated in bringing higher ed to Sioux Falls under one roof and so far its been a cooperative venture which the BOR say will continue for some time.

When the force in SF becomes more visiable and vocal about establishing a seventh institution remains to be seen at this point.

When you consider the SF voters turned down overwhelmingly a rec center and also there is controversy about the ZIP tower which was to be the location of a new Sioux Falls Arena, that has not yet seen full daylight and you wonder if there is any political strength for establishing a seventh institution in SF?

I found the comment by the Retired Salvation Army officer in the readers editorials, the most prudent comment made. She said unless things are out in the open they wont fly. The Salvation Army was to partner with the City of SF in building the new rec center that went down the tubes by a large margin.

 Twenty years down the road, things could be much different. That I dont dispute.

UND tried to open a campus in Fargo, and that created some controversy a year ago. The campus was opened and closed within months, and their equivalent of the BOR executive director had to get the two presidents together and work it out which I believe they did do.

In both cases I agree these situations do nothing for economic developement of the out state areas. If you are an urbanite, you dont give a d@mn about the rural areas, but some of us do care. I am one of them.

[JACKGUYII]

Re: six universities under one roof

SDSUFAN-Not trying to be nitpicky, but one slight addendum to your reference to the Salvation Army running the proposed REC Center. Sioux Falls partnered with the Salvation Army to apply for a grant from the Ray Kroc Foundation(founder of McDonalds) that would have paid for a large portion of the construction and operation of the REC Center. Part of the equation was to have the location in an area that was easily accesible for low income families and thus one of the reasons for the proposed location on the east side of dowtown. The grant was denied and was a huge blow to the project as little or no public money would have been needed. Once the grant was denied I'm not sure how or if the Salvation Army was to be involved.

[SDSUFAN]

Re: six universities under one roof

SDSUFAN-Not trying to be nitpicky, but one slight addendum to your reference to the Salvation Army running the proposed REC Center. Sioux Falls partnered with the Salvation Army to apply for a grant from the Ray Kroc Foundation(founder of McDonalds) that would have paid for a large portion of the construction and operation of the REC Center. Part of the equation was to have the location in an area that was easily accesible for low income families and thus one of the reasons for the proposed location on the east side of dowtown. The grant was denied and was a huge blow to the project as little or no public money would have been needed. Once the grant was denied I'm not sure how or if the Salvation Army was to be involved.

Thanks for the details. All I knew is from occasional reading in the Argus, and obviously I missed a great deal of what the relationship was but the point of openiness appears to be a problem in SF right now. You would hope the city fathers learned something from the recent election. The dream of a seventh institution is something that can not be accompolished in a smoke filled room and that is something everyone is trying to say.

[SDSUFAN]

Re: six universities under one roof

I just checked the Argus for news updates and they say the USDSU bill to authorize the purchase of land passed with 1 dollar authorized. This does not sound unusual since the regents already have a foundation furnishing the funds to purchase the land. The bill to authorize 8 million for building a building on the land also does not include an eight million dollar authorization but rather a authorization for 1 dollar. HMMMMMMM Politics!!!! politics.

Here is the last sentence in the article:

The amounts have no meaning except to keep the issues moving while lawmakers try to agree on a final plan.


http://www.argusleader.com/apps/pbcs...ION09/60210032

[Jacked_Up]

Re: six universities under one roof

As I understand it, two amounts are at play in the USDSU proposal: the foundation grant to acquire the land, which is not controversial, and the requested legislative appropriation to build a classroom facility, which is controversial. ... The Graduate Education and Applied Research Center is a separate facility that would be built on the new campus by development groups in Sioux Falls as an extension to an existing business incubator. ... Before we get too worked up about the growth of a higher ed facility in Sioux Falls, keep in mind that there is one in Rapid City, too, and it's been growing. Classes are offered in Pierre, too.