April 26, 2023

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UPD investigating SA President after vandalism incident

GRETA GOEDE and JACOB BOYKO

Asst. News Editor, News Editor

Students’ Association President Nicholas Grote apologized Monday to senators and the university community for his recent arrest and promised to do everything he could to make sure the reputation of SA isn’t damaged.

But less than 48 hours prior to that statement, and just over three days after issuing a public apology through The Collegian, the University Police Department was called to Meadows North Apartments to investigate a vandalism incident.

The Collegian confirmed Tuesday with UPD Chief Timothy Heaton, SDSU’s Vice President of Technology and Security David Overby and the State’s Attorney’s office that Grote is a target in the investigation. The Brookings Police Department also confirmed the incident involved Grote.

The incident in the UPD’s crime log shows authorities were called to the building at 4:12 a.m. early Sunday morning. The log lists an investigation into intentional damage to property $1,000 to $100,000 1st degree vandalism.

The Collegian attempted multiple times Tuesday to get an interview or phone call with Grote. Instead, he texted

that he has “never had a vandalism charge nor have I ever committed anything of the sorts.”

Grote hasn’t been charged for the incident, but may be in the coming days, according to the State’s Attorney’s office. The office said they are investigating the incident and may recommend charges. If he is charged and a judge signs off on it and sets bond, the State’s Attorney’s Office will file an arrest warrant through the Clerk of Courts, which will then be sent to the Sheriff’s office.

The investigation comes in the wake of news that Grote was arrested Sunday, April 16 on charges of possession of a revoked, altered or fictitious license and underage purchase or possession of alcoholic beverages.

In the aftermath, Grote told the Senate he’s working to apologize to everyone SA works with, including university administration, the city, state legislators and the Board of Regents.

At the SA Senate meeting Monday, Grote said people he talked to were “very thankful for that apology, because they said it was a sincere show of the true character I have.”

“This doesn’t reflect who I am as a person nor does this reflect who the Senate is and what we want to do,” Grote said.

“A lot of people have expressed that it means a

lot that I was able to own up to a mistake like that … and I just want to sincerely apologize to all of you.”

In a letter Grote sent to The Collegian Thursday, April 20, he apologized to the SDSU community and pledged to do better.

“... I am truly sorry for what has occurred, and I will work tirelessly to make things right,” Grote wrote.

Since being elected president March 23, Grote has faced three charges in addition to the ongoing investigation.

The first charge came March 26, when Grote was charged with possession of alcohol by a minor. On April 16, he was arrested on fictitious license and alcohol possession charges.

Monday, May 1, Grote

a lot and I … you’re completely right … I am not just like every other college student,” Grote said in his response. “I’m held to a lot higher standard. I should have thought about that when talking with The Collegian, I should have thought about that a lot … more before that. But I’ve had a lot of time to think about that and you’re completely right … That’s why I sincerely do apologize for what happened outside of SA.”

During the campaign for SA president, Grote focused heavily on his opponent Hunter Eide’s ethics violation complaint regarding conduct on the SA Finance Committee. The complaint accused Eide of seven violations (codes 1, 2, 3, 9, 11, 12, 13), which include willfully contradicting “the needs or desires of students to serve self-interest” and criticizing “a colleague before students.”

will face the Senate in an emergency meeting where the Senate’s board of directors will share their findings from an anonymous code of ethics complaint linked to his arrest. After the findings are shared, the Senate will vote on Grote’s removal.

Grote told the Senate he hasn’t violated any codes of ethics at the Senate meeting Monday evening.

One member of the public asked Grote a question about his charges: “In an interview with The Collegian, you said you were just like every other college student. As a student leader and SDSU spokesperson, don’t you think you should be held to a higher standard than quote unquote every other college student?”

“I’ve thought about it

Grote served as a senator for the College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences and ran last month for SA President for the 2023-2024 academic year. He and his vice president, Trinity Peterson, secured a 1,212783 vote victory over Hunter Eide and Carter Howell.

According to the SA code of ethics, members of the Students’ Association must “perform duties in accordance with institutional, local, state and federal rules and law,” while Article V Section 1 subsection 7D of the SA bylaws states “violations of the Code of Ethics shall be grounds for removal from any elected or appointed positions within The Senate…”

At the time of writing, it’s unclear whether Grote’s arrest and charges violate the Students’ Association code of conduct or could be considered grounds for removal.

Grote said during the debate last month: “We (The Students’ Association) have an entire list of things you do not violate when you are a senator. I’m sure, Hunter, you know, you violated five … seven of those codes of ethics when talking about [vice presidential candidate Trinity Peterson or myself]. That is something that we will not tolerate in any way, shape or form. That is grounds for removal and that can be really, really bad.”

Grote is scheduled to appear in court at least twice in the month of May.

His first court appearance for the March 26 charge is scheduled for Monday, and later that day the Senate will decide whether to remove Grote regarding his April 16 arrest. Grote is also scheduled to appear May 15 for fictitious license and alcohol possession charges.

Photo SUBMITTED

SA President Nick Grote

SDSU Civil Engineering students earn awards at regional competition

MARIA ATKINSON Reporter

South Dakota State University’s civil engineering students participated in three competitions through the American Society of Civil Engineers April 13 through the 15 in Manhattan, Kansas.

The students competed in the annual Steel Bridge, Concrete Canoe and the Student Symposium Paper Competitions. These challenges are used to help the students apply what they’ve learned in their engineering classes as well as work on their interpersonal and professional skills.

The Steel Bridge Team, which placed 3rd overall, created a 20-foot-long bridge that carried over 2,500 pounds. The team designed the bridge at SDSU and then built and assembled the bridge under timed construction at the competition.

Josiah Anderson, a member of the steel bridge team, said that something unique about the team this year was that it was led by a senior design group and not by a traditional steel bridge team.

“Most schools don’t do this,” Anderson said. “This provided a unique opportunity to focus on the design of the bridge.”

This also meant that the team worked on the design much more than was required from the official rules of the competition.

Caleb Huizenga, a co-captain of the steel bridge team, said that one of the biggest challenges this year was the construction of the project and also the restrictions from the

rules.

“We worked hard to overcome a very difficult set of rules,” Huizenga said.

Because there were so many small restrictions and rules, the team ran into some problems along the way.

Anderson shared a story of a technical problem the team ran into at competition.

“Before we started building the bridge, we were doing our walk-through with a judge and we found out that our drills were illegal,” Anderson said. “We weren’t sure what to do, so we asked another team if we could use their drills. They let us use them and watched us compete. I think that captures the spirit of the competition. That Steel Bridge is competitive, but it is also fun and collaborative.”

The Steel Bridge team members include: Matthew Croke, Luke Nichols, Alex Foley, Erik Thompson, Riley

Oetken, Jelen DeJong, Jack Roering, Josiah Anderson, Caleb Huizenga and Ryan Borris.

The Student Symposium Paper competition participant, Brett Hatch, received 3rd at the regional competition.

For the competition this year, the team worked with a 50-page rule book filled with the technical specifications for the competition.

“I truly did enjoy the whole experience,” Huizenga said. “The knowledge I learned and the experiences I had were unmatched by any other club or even capstone project.”

The Concrete Canoe team, which placed 5th overall, created a standard sized canoe and then raced with it at competition.

The canoe was created with a lightweight concrete mix, which needed to be able to float and also be strong enough to endure the water race.

Additionally, the canoe needed to be considered aesthetically pleasing.

Natalie Poppens, a member of the canoe team, said that one of the biggest challenges this year was competing with such a young team. She said that an SDSU concrete canoe hadn’t raced in the water since 2019 due to COVID and bad weather last year.

“With 2019 being the last time we had raced, none of the current members have ever competed in the competition setting,” Poppens said. “This resulted in a very large learning curve for this year’s members.”

Poppens estimated that the team spent around 120 hours completing this year’s canoe.

“Every member put in an unprecedented amount of time and work into this year’s canoe to ensure it was race ready,” she said.

The Concrete Canoe team members include Cody

Christensen, Matthew Maag, Rachel Zook, Rana Hegg, Natalie Poppens, Acadia Folkerts, Elizabeth Weber, Siri Vagle, Kyle Schoon, Alexander Sorensen, Brody Spies, Dylan Zellmann, Patrick Schultz, Kordell Feldhaus and Anthony Peters.

In addition to the awards these civil engineering students received, the SDSU chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers recently learned that they have received the Ridgway Award, for the best student chapter in the nation. This is the second year in a row that they have received this award.

This award is not based on how the teams do at competitions, instead it is on a yearly report on how the student officers plan and run the student chapter.

Zach Gutzmer, a professor at SDSU in the areas of engineering mechanics and structures and an advisor for the teams, said that this award considers the invited speakers, chapter goals, member engagement, community service and outreach throughout the year.

“It’s a very big honor, there are over 400 student chapters, so to be named the top it’s a great accomplishment for SDSU,” Gutzmer said. “And then doing it back-to-back, I didn’t think it was possible, but we got it.”

This is the fourth time SDSU has received this award. The other years have been in 1999, 2004, 2022 and now 2023.

“Teamwork is probably the main thing they learn,”Gutzmer said. “It’s much more about teamwork and leadership than steel and concrete.”

Photo SUBMITTED

SDSU’s civil engineering students on the concrete canoe team pose with their canoe at the American Society of Civil Engineers in Manhattan, Kansas from April 13-15.

SDSU hopes to introduce elementary and special education majors

KAITLYN LORANG

Reporter

South Dakota State University hopes to be part of the solution to add teachers to the declining teacher workforce by adding two new majors: elementary education and special education.

The potential addition of the two new majors has been the topic of conversation for over a year, Maher said.

This is the first dedicated attempt to seek the addition of these two new majors at SDSU.

“It’s been a long time in the planning process that SDSU really did their due diligence, and I know they talked to industry partners and also looked at workforce development in this area,” Brian Maher, executive director for the

Board of Regents, said.

The elementary education major would prepare graduates to teach students in the elementary grades, kindergarten through eighth grade.

The special education major would allow students to develop skills and competencies required of effective K-12 special education teachers.

SDSU currently offers an early childhood education bachelor’s degree –birth to 8 specialization. The university also offers a cooperative elementary education program with Dakota State University – early childhood education bachelor’s degree. By enrolling in the cooperative program, you are required to complete an additional 24 credit hours of elementary education and field placements managed by DSU.

“Two things that excite me [about the potential new majors] is the faster path to graduation for SDSU students and the greater affordability for students,” Maher said.

The two new majors would look to provide SDSU students the opportunity of being able to obtain degrees solely from South Dakota’s land-grant university.

“It is exciting to hear that SDSU is preparing to add elementary education and special education majors. This will certainly complement and expand SDSU’s already outstanding teaching degree options,” Jacki (Hillesheim) Kyllonen, 2000 SDSU alumni, said. “As a special education teacher in Minnesota, I can assure you the teaching shortages are real. We look forward to welcoming

new SDSU education graduates to our teacher workforce.”

Of the six regental institutions in South Dakota, SDSU and South Dakota School of Mines and Technology are the only two universities that do not offer special education or elementary education.

“There are eleven educator preparation programs (EPP) in South Dakota that train teachers and contribute to building the critically needed workforce of educators,” according to the Intent to Plan for a New Program document that was submitted to the South Dakota Board of Regents.

SDSU is the only institution of 11 teacher training programs that does not offer a bachelor’s degree in elementary education or special education,

Douglas Wermedal Associate Vice President for Student Affairs

Brian Maher Executive Director for the South Dakota Board of Regents

Patrick Hales Assistant Director of K-12 Teacher Education, Associate Professor

according to the Intent to Plan document.

The Intent to Plan document says the following South Dakota schools have traditional elementary education programs: Augustana University, Black Hills State University, Dakota State University, Dakota Wesleyan University, Mount Marty College, Northern State University, Oglala Lakota College, Sinte Gleska University, University of Sioux Falls and the University of South Dakota, Maher said.

“Our hope isn’t that we take from our other institutions. Our hope is that we would increase the number of graduates in that particular area, and then we would be able to serve the schools in the state of South Dakota,” Maher said.

Because of SDSU’s location, officials are hoping to potentially draw more Minnesota students with these new programs.

“Once we get them in our state, there is about a 30% chance that they will stay in our state,” Maher said. “Our hope is that we increase the size of the pie, not just move the pieces around within the pie.”

The formal process starts with the intent to plan document, which was presented and approved at the December Board of Regents meeting.

“That’s where it picks up steam, so that everybody in the system knows that an institution is looking at a new major,” Maher said.

Doug Wermedal, vice president of Student Affairs, said, “Efforts like this and programs like this don’t just fall out of the sky.”

SDSU recognizes the industry need for more teachers to combat the declining teacher workforce.

“We have heard from the school administrators of South Dakota and the Associated School Boards of South Dakota,” Maher said. “They are saying we need more teachers, please let SDSU have these programs.”

There are simply not enough teachers in South Dakota or the region, but it is a nationwide issue.

“If you talk to the superintendents in our state, they will tell you: We have a need. We are not supplying enough special education majors. Get us more,” Maher said.

Maher said that while these two majors are not officially approved, there

is a positive momentum right now. He also said that the high need for more teachers works in favor of SDSU.

It is important to market education as a pathway to professionalism for students. These two new majors could open pipelines for more people to enter the teaching profession.

“I think fall 2025 is when you could see those majors offered on campus,” Maher said.

Patrick Hales, assistant director of K-12 teacher education at SDSU, said there was a lot of faculty and student interest.

“I think we have had enough time and the right people in place in the last few years to work on pushing it forward,” Hales said.

A task force of eight people was formed last fall and put together the two intent to plan documents. There are several levels of approval needed when looking into adding a new major, Hales said.

The task force will seek approval from SDSU, the Board of Regents and the South Dakota Department of Education.

“Every teacher education program at SDSU is accredited,” Hales said. “All the programs that we currently have are either directly accredited or recognized by CAEP (Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation).”

The new programs would not be immediately accredited but will be up for accreditation in 2026, according to Hales.

He added that putting together the curriculum is one of the most time-consuming processes, as well as creating syllabi for all the new courses that are not offered yet.

If both majors are approved, the next step would be to complete a faculty search.

“It’s hard to say how many new faculty would need to be hired on,” Hales said. “If approved, it would depend on funding and workloads of current faculty.”

The teaching profession is still attractive to many people and it’s still something that many high school students see themselves doing, but it’s not nearly enough.

“The work that we do to attract more people into the profession will be really important over the next several years,” Wermedal said.

One of the answers could be teacher compensation. There must be a South Dakota answer to that, according to Wermedal.

“There are few jobs that are as rewarding as teaching when you find a passion for it,” Hales said. “You are working with humans that are at an important stage in their life that need support.”

“We need more people to be the next generation of favorite teachers,” Wermedal said.

The demand for all teachers is growing but especially elementary and

special education teachers.

“On July 29, 2022, the Associated School Boards of South Dakota reported 309 teacher openings remained just weeks before the beginning of 2022-23 school year. Elementary education positions represented 64 of the classroom vacancies in South Dakota and Special Education positions represented 60 of the educator vacancies in South Dakota,” according to the Intent to Plan documents.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 4% job growth for special education and elementary teachers from 2021-2031. According to the US Department of Labor, about 37,600 openings for special education teachers and 120,300 openings for elementary education teachers are projected each year.

The South Dakota Education Preparation Providers collectively produced 97 special education teachers and 307 elementary education teachers in 2021.

The United States Department of Education and the South Dakota Department of Education includes special education and elementary education teachers as areas of teacher shortage for 2022-2023.

When asked what the impact the two potential majors could have on SDSU, Wermedal said, “I don’t know how it could do anything other than enrich opportunities and enrich SDSU.”

A chart from the National Education Association depicting the rising number of job openings in public education versus the much lower number of new hires. The gap has widened since March 2020.

Johnson talks TikTok, pipelines, student debt

US Rep. Dusty Johnson stopped by South Dakota State University to visit some student labs as well as to attend a Vietnam Veteran Pinning

Collegian

photo by JACOB

talks pipelines, debt

JACOB BOYKO News Editor (He/Him)

Rep. Dusty Johnson, South Dakota’s sole congressman in the US House of Representatives, visited SDSU last Friday for tours of the Structures and Asphalt Labs in Crothers Engineering Hall and the Nursing Simulation Laboratory in Wagner Hall and to attend a Vietnam Veteran Pinning Ceremony at the Brookings Public Library.

The Collegian was invited to sit down with Johnson in Crothers Engineering Hall Friday afternoon for a Q & A.

Q. Rep. Johnson, you were named the most effective House Republican for agricultural issues. What are your priorities for the upcoming farm bill?

Clearly, we’re in a very different input cost environment than we were five years ago. I think we’ve seen huge increases in energy and fertilizer and just all of the inputs that producers use to make their operation go. Some people want to make sure that we can input some reference prices, so that assistance would trigger at different levels or support would. The farm bill is really about making sure that producers have risk management tools that they need when things get rough.

So really, I should have started there. The number one job is to protect crop insurance. It’s a very effective risk management tool. A lot of producers buy it, and it’s something that they wouldn’t want to try to do business without.

Number two is probably to make sure that we’re analyzing whether or not the right risk management tools exist for livestock. We’ve added a few more of those in the last couple farm bills, but I don’t know that we’re hitting the center of the bullseye yet.

Number three, I think, would be looking at our conservation programs and just make sure that we’re doing even more to encourage Working Lands Conservation.

Thank you for mentioning (I’m) the number one most effective House Republican on agriculture, because I do think a lot of folks assume that you have to be in Washington D.C. for 10 or 15 years before you gain that level of influence or productivity, but I think we just put together a really good South Dakota team. People who understand the issues, people who work hard, and it does show that D.C. is still a place where things can get done.

Q. The Summit and Navigator pipelines, two controversial carbon capture pipelines, are prob-

ably going to be built through South Dakota. What is your stance on those projects?

My stance is you have to know what the facts (and) evidence is before you come up with a conclusion. I used to be on the State Public Utilities Commission, and they’re responsible for providing the permit for pipelines to build in this state. And it would always frustrate me a little bit when people would make up their minds about a project before the actual court proceeding. In this country, we don’t decide if somebody’s guilty of burglary before we go through the court proceeding, right? I know

gets struck down in the courts, are Republicans going to put forward an alternative?

No—well, I guess it means what you mean by alternative, so I’ll answer it this way. We should care about the affordability of higher education. We should care about needy families in this county … The president’s loan forgiveness plan was a terrible way to address either of those problems. It was a terrible policy. Eighty percent of the value went to the richest half of Amercians, and every economic study that I’m aware of showed that it would make, over time, college more expensive, not less expensive. I know giving away $600 billion can seem fun, but it is terrible policy. What we should do more of is what we know works, and that is restoring more of the purchasing power of something like the Pell Grant. That has been a very effective way to help lower-income Americans access higher education.

Q. You helped lead the charge on restricting TikTok in some federal government settings like military bases. Does Congress need to go further?

that pipelines can be built safely in the state; we have thousands of miles of pipelines in the state. But I also know that there are some pipeline projects that aren’t appropriate. And I think we should ask a lot of very tough questions over projects like Summit and make sure that it’s a smart plan before they get their permit. If the summit pipeline meets all of its burdens of proof under the law, they should get a permit. If they don’t meet all of their burden of proof under the law, they shouldn’t get a permit.

Q. South Dakota recently lost an institution for higher education—Presentation College in Aberdeen. Is there anything on the horizon that can help other private institutions avoid that fate?

Well, I don’t think it’s the federal government’s job to save every college, right? I mean, if you’re going to have a free market for education, that market is going to have some institutions who succeed and some who fail, and Presentation College did a great job for a lot of years. I was very sad to hear about their closure. I know it’s very disruptive for a lot of students. But it’s not the government’s job to make sure that every private college succeeds. It is the government’s job to help make sure students have educational opportunities. And the good news is that in South Dakota, we still have robust educational opportunities for students.

Q. If Biden’s student debt relief executive order

I’m a freedom guy, so I think we want to be really careful before we start to tell private citizens they can’t download private apps on their private phones. My bill, which was a Senate version of my bill, was passed at the time. That took TikTok off of all federal government devices, so I was very proud to be a pretty big part of that major legislative victory. But before we start telling private citizens what to do, I think we want to do some more analysis. I would say TikTok is nothing more than Chinese spyware. It’s just Chinese malware. Anybody who has it on their phone is making a big mistake. That being said, it’s a free country. … Our default assumption should be that people still have the opportunity to make bad decisions. Freedom isn’t getting you to decide what I want you to do. Freedom is getting you what you want to do. I think the best case scenario for all of America would be for the Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to spin TikTok off into its own company, because we know that there have been massive data releases to the Chinese Communist Party. Americans are being actively surveilled and they should not have TikTok on their phones.

Q. Last question: Are you running for governor in 2026?

Well, I mean, we’re a long ways away from that. I love service. I work hard. I do a good job. But it’s way too early for anybody to announce their interest in a job that’s not open for three more years.

Pinning Ceremony in Brookings.

JACOB BOYKO (He/Him)

“Freedom isn’t getting you to decide what I want you to do. Freedom is getting you what you want to do."

Dusty Johnson United States Representative

MUSEUM AFTER DARK LEAVES ITS MARK

Last Friday, adults crowded into the Children’s

Museum to unleash their inner child

MARA WHEATON Lifestyles Editor (She/Her)

Friday, April 21, the Children’s Museum of South Dakota hosted “Museum After Dark,” an event curated towards kids-at-heart over 21 years old. The museum transformed from a playground and learning center of excitement to a building of discovery, booze and nostalgia.

Tickets were available to purchase online prior to the event and at the door. The event saw high traffic as the evening began at 7 p.m., after the museum’s regular hours. Lines spanned from the front entrance of the building to the parking lot, some patrons waiting for as long as 30 minutes to receive admission.

Since the event was exclusively 21-andup, people had the option to purchase $6 drink tickets for alcoholic beverages or $2 drink tickets for pop and water.

Drink selection included wines, White Claw, Twisted Tea, select beers and non-alcoholic beverages.

The Children’s Museum partnered with Wooden Legs Brewing Company to set up stations where they provided

WLBC craft beer.

Attendees were able to immerse themselves in different exhibits, including Cloud Climber, Splash! and Airway Adventure. Guests could also participate in crafting bracelets and drawings in the Art Studio and playing pretend in the Market Fresh Grocery market.

The event attracted hundreds of adults, with some of them never having been to the Children’s Museum before.

SDSU graduate student Eliza Carlson said she’s never been to the museum before, even though she’s lived in Brookings for four years. Carlson said the event was really fun.

Along with exploring the different exhibits, there were interactive games led by Children’s museum employees and volunteers like cornhole, supermarket sweep, scavenger hunts and Light Bright pictionary.

Helping supervise activities was the current Miss SDSU Katherine Milbrandt.

“I feel like this is a good time especially for college kids to get out and relax and de-stress before finals…I think it’s perfect,” Milbrandt said.

Above photo BRINA STURM

A peach flavored Twisted Tea sits next to a copy of the children’s book “Goodnight Moon.” This ironic photo was taken in the “mini Explorers” room, designed for babies and toddlers.

Right photo BRINA STURM

Lifestyles Editor Mara Wheaton poses with the street signs that line the walls between the major exhibits on the first floor of the museum.

Left photo by MARA WHEATON Adults explore the Market Fresh Grocery exhibit. Some showed shock when they realized many of the “toy” items were empty or paper-stuffed boxes of real food items donated by Hy-Vee.

Left photo by MARA WHEATON

Miss SDSU, Katherine Milbrandt, helps assist in corn toss, where participants try to throw corn into the fake corn stalks.

Above photo SUBMITTED Blocks found with the adult message of “DEEZ NUTS” spelled out in the “mini Explorers” room. Museum After Dark gives a magnifying glass to what happens when you give adults alcohol and children’s toys.

Right photo by MARA WHEATON Students (right to left) Sydney Huffman, Althena Bjorback and Emily Cole pretend veterinarians in the “Whiskers & Tails” room. The name of the stuffed dog went unknown, but the (pretend) vets are positive there will be a quick recovery for the pet.

Photo by BRINA STURM Lifestyles Editor Mara Wheaton and Managing Editor Brina Sturm film a short video about their experience at the museum at the “Tell Us Your Story” booth in the museum.

Photo SUBMITTED

Two staged toy frogs found in the “Splash!” room doing some suggestive yoga poses together.

New bike towers help students with quick repairs

CLAIRE EINSPAHR Reporter

Transportation will be more convenient for students who ride their bikes on campus. Soon it will be even easier to maintain a bicycle as a South Dakota State University student.

This summer, three bike repair towers, equipped with tools and compressed air, will be installed for students to repair their bikes. These towers will be free to use for students and faculty on the SDSU campus.

These 5-foot-tall, Jackrabbit blue bike towers feature 10 different tools. Additionally, there are pegs on the top which the tires can hang from as the bike is worked on.

Former Students’ Association Chief of Staff Hannah Nelson has been working on this project for three years.

“The reason it came to be is because my roommate didn’t have a car living in Meadows, and she kept getting a flat tire (on her bike),” Nelson said.

Every time her roommate got a flat tire, she would have to take the bike to a gas station to pump it up. This was a huge inconvenience, and Nelson saw an area where the campus could improve.

“We just want people to ride bikes but if they have something loose on their bikes they can fix it here on campus,” Shari Landmark, recreation and fitness director at the Wellness Center, said.

These towers can be useful to air up a tire or tighten a bolt, but they will be less effective for a more compli-

cated or reoccurring issue.

Angela Spear, manager at Soke-N-Sport Bikes, explained that these towers are a great quick fix. However, bikes are very complicated. Bike shops have hundreds of expensive specialized tools to repair bikes.

People who work at bike repair shops often have specialized training and know what needs to be fixed, if

parts are needed and ultimately how to fix it.

While these bike towers are extremely helpful, Spear said that people should educate themselves on their bike model and its repairs before attempting to use the towers. They should also be aware the fix may be temporary.

The funding for this project is a joint effort between The Miller Wellness Center, who paid for two towers, and SDSU Students’ Association, who paid for the remaining one.

One tower will be outside of the Wellness Center by the outdoor program space. The second will be outside Hansen Hall and the last will be outside Mathews Hall.

They are strategically spread out throughout campus in convenient locations, so, if something goes wrong, a person should not be too far from a tower when it is needed.

If students are interested in riding a bike for the day but don’t have one on campus, that is also possible. The Wellness Center rents out bikes for just $8 per day.

The Wellness Center is “trying to just support activity” according to Landmark, and she said this is a great way to do that. They have also implemented similar tools like the skateboard and scooter rack. Both programs make it easier for students to get outside and be active.

“These towers help people pay more attention to their bikes, which I’m all for,” Spear said.

101st Little I Assistant Manager announced

SERENA DAVIS Assistant Lifestyles Editor (She/Her)

Teigen Hadrick has been named the 101st little international assistant manager.

Hadrick has been involved with Little I since his freshman year as part of the Livestock Transport Committee. He was named superintendent of the committee for the 100th annual Little I, and has big plans for the next year.

Hadrick’s two main goals he wants to accomplish in the next year are a Premium Sale and a Beginner Goat Show.

“I want this to go beyond the agriculture side of the university and bring in new people to help build the program up,” Hadrick said.

The Premium Sale is a way to increase scholarships by auctioning off the grand and reserve champions and using the money to build up the program by giving back to the students. He also thinks this will increase competitiveness within participants and offer rewards for hard work.

His other idea is to have a Beginner Goat Show for students who have never shown before. Hadrick believes this will encourage new people to participate and apply to staff in the future.

“I enjoy talking to people and getting to know them and their interests. Communication also requires listening to understand,” Hadrick said. “I use these tools to help build relationships and resolve or avoid problems and conflicts.”

Hadrick believes the best way to build up his team is by supporting staff and helping to guide and delegate.

His three main pillars are organization, hard work and being a friendly face to those around campus.

Hadrick hopes to continue the tradition of Little I for many years to come.

“Tradition isn’t built by one person and their legacy; it’s built by a team that believes in something bigger than themselves,” Hadrick said.

HADRICK BIO

Year in School: Sophomore

Major: Animal Science with Production Emphasis

Little I Involvement: Livestock Transport Committee and Superintendent for the 100th Little I

Photo SUBMITTED Shari Landmark, drector of recreation & fitness at SDSU Miller Wellness Center

Office of International Affairs to host 11th annual sash ceremony

KENNETH ROBELLO Reporter

South Dakota State University’s Office of International Affairs (OIA) is all set to host its 11th annual sash ceremony May 5 at Great Hall in McCrory Gardens.

The sash ceremony is an event held to celebrate and recognize international students that graduate from SDSU every year. Students are given a sash of the country they belong to and wear them during their commencement day. Graduating students show up in huge numbers wearing their traditional attire or business casuals.

“We host this event every year as a way of not really saying a goodbye, but we would love to celebrate everyone’s accomplishment,” Islamiah Fuad, international student adviser at the OIA, said.

The sash ceremony has often seen many dignitaries present at the event to share their thoughts for the graduating students. An undergraduate or a graduate student representative would deliver a speech on behalf of the students. Graduating international students also bring family members and friends to celebrate the occasion.

“For the commencement, the seating plan is different, but for the sash ceremony, we allow students to sit with their family members so that they can celebrate with each other,” Fuad said. “Our assistant vicepresident for International Affairs (Jon Stauff) puts the sash around students, and then they head over to McCrory Gardens if they wish to take photos.”

McCrory Gardens has become a traditional spot to host the sash ceremony, as the spring weather makes it feasible for students to roam around and get some good pictures post-ceremony.

The OIA will have about 105 international students, both undergraduate and graduate, attending the sash ceremony this year.

“I would say that every year we have about 350 attendees for the sash ceremony every year,” Fuad said. “Each student is allowed to have up to three guests for the event.”

Graduating students RSVP ahead of

time for their family members, friends and for themselves. The Office of International Affairs staff put in a combined amount of hard work to organize a sash ceremony every year.

“After students confirm their attendance, we gather how many sashes we need for various countries and who all would attend along with the number of guests we are expecting,” Fuad said. “Once we get a list prepared, we send out emails to everyone about the details of the sash ceremony and the itinerary.”

The first sash ceremony for international students took place in 2012, when former Director of International Students and Scholar Services Greg Wymer had joined SDSU.

“At his previous institution, they had a sash ceremony for all graduating international students,” Fuad said. “Greg liked it a lot and he decided to introduce the event here at SDSU.”

Prior to her role as an international student adviser, Fuad herself had been a student at SDSU and attended the sash ceremony in 2017, 2021 and 2022.

“I would say I felt special and appreciated,” Fuad said. “To see that I got the opportunity to wear my flag during the graduation ceremony and be proud of where I came from made me feel recognized.”

Sudarshan Choudhari, a software developer at KBR Inc. and former SDSU international student who graduated in 2022 with a major in computer science, described his experience as a joyful feeling during the last sash ceremony.

“The event made me feel that though I come from a different part of the world, I am

still a part of the jackrabbit family,” Choudhari said. “The sash gave me a feeling of having represented my country on a global platform, even if it meant to be at the university level.”

This year, the top three countries that international students are graduating from at SDSU are India, Bangladesh and Nepal respectively.

Photo SUBMITTED There will be about 105 international students recieving their sashes at the May 5 ceremony.

Collegian seniors say goodbye...

SENIOR COLLEGIAN STAFF

With this being the last Collegian issue for the 2022-2023 school year, this also marks the last issue for our senior editorial staff members.

From Jordan Rusche, Gracie Terrall, Mara Wheaton, Skyler Jackson, Jacob Boyko and Andrea Huete, we want to extend our thanks to everyone who has read and supported the Collegian during our time at South Dakota State University.

We have all had many memorable moments in the last two to three years we’ve worked for this paper. We’ve covered stories from the Pride’s trip to New York City to play in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. We’ve traveled to Frisco, Texas, to report on the FCS National Championship. We’ve broken news on elected officials, spoken to gubernatorial candidates, interviewed president Barry Dunn and much more.

The Collegian has been

important to each and every one of us. It introduced us to close friends, led to great internships and job opportunities and has connected us with a wider Collegian alumni who have supported our efforts over the years.

Finally, we also want to thank the COJO staff and faculty who have offered their support. Our publication would not be possible without the lessons we’ve learned from our professors.

Sincerely, Collegian Seniors

PHOTOS BY COLLEGIAN STAFF

Softball’s two wins bring in two Summit Peak Performers

EVAN PATZWALD Co-Sports Editor (He/Him)

After two wins at a neutral site in Fargo against UND, the South Dakota State softball team had two players named Summit League Peak Performers of the week for their performances.

Infielder Rozelyn Carillo and pitcher Tori Kniesche were both honored by the conference for their contributions to both Jackrabbit victories over the weekend and earlier in the week against NDSU, improving their conference record to 11-0 and 29-15 overall.

Carillo, the reigning Summit League Player of the Year, scored a team-high six runs and produced three RBIs over the four-game stretch. This was Carillo’s fourth time winning the award in her career and first time this season.

“Roz brings so many intangibles to the table,” coach Kristina McSweeney said of Carillo. “On the field, she’s our captain. She does a phenomenal job of keeping our defense intact, does a really good job communicating and never lets little things get away from her. In the box, she hasn’t had that monster year that she had last year,

but I’m starting to see what we all know of Roz and that she’s incredible.”

Kniesche threw for 15 innings over the four wins and only gave up four hits. She struck out 26 batters and did not allow a single run. It has been 57 2/3 innings that Kniesche has pitched in Summit League games since she’s given up a run. This was Kniesche’s 13th time winning a player of the week award in the Summit League, and fifth time this season.

Coming into the weekend, the Jacks were slated to have a three-game series with the Fighting Hawks in Grand Forks, but it had to be moved to Fargo for a doubleheader because of unfavorable weather conditions.

The two teams squared off Sunday afternoon, and SDSU swept UND to extend their win streak and undefeated conference record with six games left in the season.

In the first game, the Jacks rolled out to an 8-0 victory after scoring six runs combined in the fifth and sixth innings. In the second game of the day, the Fighting Hawks were able to get a run in the sixth inning, but it wasn’t enough as SDSU completed the series sweep 6-1. With the losses, North Dakota dropped to 8-35 on the year.

Alexa Williams played well for the Jacks in the time she was given on the field, with four hits and three runs driven in overall.

“Alexa has been one of those that we’ve given tons and tons of chances and she just continues to get better,” McSweeney said. “Every opportunity we give her, she takes advantage of it. She’s just a power hitter and she gives you a chance to put it over the wall.”

Up next for the Jacks is a three-game series on the road with Kansas City. They’ve got a doubleheader Saturday at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. and finish it off Sunday at 11 a.m. The Roos currently sit in last place in the conference with a 3-12 record and 8-37 overall. They are coming off of a series with Western Illinois on the road, where they won two out of the three games.

“Just watching the Roos play, offensively they battle, they make adjustments in the box late in the game and they don’t go down quietly,” McSweeney said ahead of their next matchup. “The key for us is going to be controlling what we can control.”

After next weekend, the Jacks have one more home series left with rival USD May 5-6. The games will be played at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. May 5 and at 12 p.m. May 6 to wrap up the regular season. The Coyotes are currently 19-21 and 8-6 in the Summit League.

Collegian photo by MEGAN GLOVER

South Dakota State’s first baseman Alexia Williamson gets ready to swing the bat in a home Summit Leauge game against North Dakota State. In the two game series against North Dakota last weekend, she hit a combined 4-of-8 with 3 RBI’s and scored two runs.

SPRINGING FORWARD

With spring season over, Jacks look ahead to summer

Photo by MIRANDA SAMPSON / GOJACKS.COM

South Dakota State running back Angel Johnson carries the football in SDSU’s annual Spring Game April 22 at the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex. Johnson finished with 81 rushing yards on 11 carries in the game as the offense won 23-18.

SKYLER JACKSON Co-Sports Editor (He/Him)

After 15 practices over the last month, South Dakota State football culminated its spring season Saturday with its annual Spring Game.

Jackrabbit fans packed the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex to watch the defending national champions compete in the intrasquad scrimmage under first year head coach Jimmy Rogers, as the offense walked away with a 23-18 win.

And this year’s game came with a few changes. While previous spring games gave defensive points for things like sacks and turnovers, this one was scored more traditionally with four timed quarters. The defense started with an 18-point lead, which was based on the scoring difference between the two units last season. The offense scored 34.2 points per game while the defense allowed 15.8.

For Rogers, the spring season and the Spring Game were important for the coach staff to evaluate younger up-andcoming players and for the players to get some reps.

“I think it’s important and valued every time you get a shot to see game reps,” Rogers said. “We had an opportunity here with the crowd, and some of the younger guys do clam up a little bit playing in front of people when they haven’t taken a ton of reps. So, the exposure that the fans give us is really good as far as creating an atmosphere for the players and that’s how we evaluate it.”

The game started with a trick play when Isaiah Davis threw a halfback pass to receiver Jaxon Janke for a 40-yard gain on the first play from scrimmage. Two plays later, redshirt freshman running back Derrick Johnson scored a 23-yard touchdown.

After the quick start from the offense, the defense clamped down for the rest of the first half. Redshirt cornerback Jalen B. Lee stood out in that first half, posting three sacks and the first of two interceptions.

In the second half, the offense started to come alive. With many of the starters either not suited up or playing only a couple of drives, backups were given opportunities to impress. In the offense’s third possession of the second half, quarterback Chase Mason connected with Grahm Goering for a 65-yard touchdown.

Then, a 43-yard field goal by Hunter

2023 SCHEDULE

• Aug. 31: vs. Western Oregon

• Sept. 9: vs. Montana State

• Sept. 16: vs. Drake at Target Field

• Spet. 30: vs. North Dakota

• Oct. 7: at Illinois State

• Oct. 14: vs Northern Iowa (Hobo Day)

• Oct. 21: at Southern Illinois

• Oct. 28: at South Dakota

• Nov. 4: vs. North Dakota St.

• Nov. 11: at Youngstown St.

Dustman to draw the offense within a point. They struck again on the next drive, when running back Angel Johnson broke past the secondary for a 65-yard touchdown that proved to be the game-winning score.

“Early on in the game with a lot of my mid-zone runs, I was trying to force it outside and get around the edge,” Johnson said. “I just had to be more patient. So, I got the handoff, seeing the flow of the defense, I was just patient with it, cut back, ran up the middle and

did the rest.”

Johnson carried the ball 11 times and finished with 81 yards. Mason completed 3-of-5 passes for 79 yards and tight end Mike Morgan caught four balls for 29 yards. On the defense, safeties Cale Reeder and Max Polischuk and defensive ends Blake Peterson and Quinton Hicks all finished with three tackles.

The Spring Game wraps up Rogers’ first spring season as a head coach. He said that while many of the backups have performed well throughout the spring, there’s still work to be done.

“Some of the backups, they need to take a step, they do,” Rogers said. “But overall, spring in general was good. You’ve just got to stay healthy going into the summer and look forward to getting better.”

Since the former Jackrabbit defensive coordinator replaced longtime coach John Stiegelmeier in January, the team knew they were going to adjust to a new voice and a new style. But to players and coaches, the transition to Rogers has been a smooth one.

“Coach Rogers is doing an awesome job leading the whole squad,” offensive coordinator Zach Lujan said. “Obviously,

he knows all the guys and he’s been very intentional about building relationships. And that’s one of the things I appreciate most about him.”

Now, the Jackrabbits look ahead to summer practices. Despite losing key players from last year’s championship team like tight end Tucker Kraft, defensive end Reece Winkelman and defensive tackle Caleb Sanders, they are still returning 18 of 22 starters and have an impressive freshman class coming in.

The team will continue adjusting to how things will be under Rogers as they begin their title defense in the fall.

“Coach (Stiegelmeier) will say it takes three years to get on the same page. We don’t have three years, we have right now,” Rogers said. “So, we need to get on the same page, and we did a good job of that. We brought in really good coaches that adopted quick and we’ll make a run at (a national championship).”

The Jackrabbits will play their season-opener at Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium Thursday, Aug. 31 before an FCS semifinal rematch with Montana State Sept. 9. The non-conference season will end Sept. 16 against Drake at Target Field.

Photo by DAVE EGGEN / INERTIA

South Dakota State coach Jimmy Rogers just completed his first spring football season at the Spring Game Saturday. Now, the Jackrabbits look ahead to summer practices before they begin their title defense in the fall.

SPORTS BRAYDEN BYERS Sports

Reporter

The gauntlet begins.

The South Dakota State Baseball team is heading into its toughest stretch of the season, matching up against two Big Ten opponents and the top team in the Summit League, all on the road.

“If you’re going to have a stretch like this, you want it to come when you’re playing well,” coach Rob Bishop said.

The Jackrabbits are well prepared, having won 10 straight games heading into their tilt against the Cornhuskers (21-14-1, 7-5), matching the longest winning streak in the Division I era.

This will be the 21st meeting between the Huskers and the Jacks. Nebraska has the overwhelming 18-2 advantage in the series, taking 11 straight against SDSU, dating back to 1971.

The last time these two schools faced off in baseball was 11 years ago on March 13, 2012. That game, which was a 12-3 win for Nebraska, was also in Lincoln.

The Huskers are a tough matchup for SDSU. They are one of six teams nationally to be ranked in the top 50 in batting average, earned run average and fielding percentage. They are also one of two teams in the country to feature two starters who are hitting at least .400 joining Virginia.

Junior infielder Brice Matthews is hitting .409 with 10 doubles, two triples, 14 homers, 54 RBI and 44 runs, while Max Anderson is adding 13 doubles, two triples, 13 home runs, 46 RBI and 29 runs with a .407 hitting clip.

The Jacks also have some firepower under its belt. Senior catcher Ryan McDonald is still batting over .400 after having what would be considered an off week for him. That off week included a walk-off single to give the Jacks a series sweep against St. Thomas on Monday.

“You get bases loaded one down and Mack at the plate. I don’t know how you could feel any better about your chances at that point,” Bishop said.

The Jacks then continue down the Midwest as they make their way to Tulsa for a three-game weekend series against league-leading Oral Roberts.

The Golden Eagles (19-11, 14-1) sit four games ahead of the Jackrabbits heading into this week of conference play. Junior outfielder Jonah Cox had an excellent week, going 7-for-14 with three home

TOUGH ROAD AHEAD

10-game win streak on the line for baseball team

runs and four RBI in a couple of wins over NDSU. That and pushing his hitting streak to an incredible 24 games earned him the Summit League Peak Performer of the Week.

“I mean, we’re playing the number one team and you know if we want to have an opportunity to be playing the last two weekends to win a regular-season cham-

REMAINING GAMES

• April 26: at Nebraska

• April 28-30: at Oral Roberts

• May 5-8: at Purdue

• May 12-14: vs. Northern CO

• May 16: at Minnesota

• May 18-20: North Dakota St.

• May 24-27: Summit League Tournament

As mentioned before, the Jacks are currently on a run of 10 wins straight, which matches a program record. They extended that streak by sweeping St. Thomas on Sunday and Monday.

In game one of the twin bill on Sunday, the Jackrabbits held a 5-0 lead through two innings. The bullpen came up huge for SDSU holding the Tommies’ comeback hopes to get the 8-5 win.

In the second game, Jake Goble and Brady Hawkins combined for a three-hit shutout to get the win 7-0.

“The last two weekends you know your sweep back-to-back conference series and the common denominator has been our starters have gotten deep into the game all six games,” Bishop said. “So, it isn’t rocket science … we’re being able to use our bullpen appropriately and in the right order.”

Goble, the sophomore pitcher, went seven of the shutout innings in game two allowing just three hits and striking out five batters without a walk. That performance got him named Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week.

“Yeah, I mean, Jake, when he’s just pounding the strike zone, and being really aggressive, he has a lot of movement on the ball.” Said Bishop. “He has really good stuff just naturally so when he has had just a really simple competitive approach, he’s really good.”

pionship, we’re gonna have to play well this weekend,” Bishop said.

ORU boasts the league’s best pitching staff posting a 4.14 earned run average. This is compared to SDSU’s second-best ERA, sitting at 6.25 on the season. The Eagles also have a tough midweek test matching up with in-state foe, Oklahoma Wednesday.

Game three of the series was a pitcher’s duel, coming down to the bottom of the ninth inning in which McDonald walked it off with bases loaded for a 2-1 final.

Wednesday’s game against Nebraska can be seen on Nebraska Public Media and heard on the Huskers Radio Network. The weekend series against Oral Roberts will be broadcast on the ORU Sports Network.

Collegian photo by JOCLYN HAVEN (She/Her)

South Dakota State catcher Ryan McDonald celebrates a homerun with teammate Cade Stuff in a Summit League baseball game against Omaha April 14.