South Dakota
As SDSU aims for top-tier research designation, South Dakota poised to reap benefits
This paid piece is sponsored by South Dakota State University.
Iowa native Kennedy Roland grew up more than five hours from Brookings but chose to attend South Dakota State University as an undergraduate “on a leap of faith” after college visits were canceled during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“South Dakota State checked all my boxes; it is a midsized university and allowed me to attend college out of state at an in-state price,” she said.
Four years later, Roland again found herself faced with figuring out her next move. She earned an undergraduate degree in biology but wasn’t sure about graduate school.
“I never wanted to pursue a Ph.D.,” she added. “However, I wanted to be part of this program in particular.”
So Roland is staying at SDSU. She’s pairing a passion for teaching that she discovered through coaching gymnastics with her enjoyment of human anatomy and roles as a tutor and teaching assistant for the course.
Her doctorate program “will help me become an expert on both anatomy and education,” she said. “Additionally, I’m excited for guest lecture opportunities to prepare to be an effective professor. Earning a Ph.D. will also allow me to be a competitive candidate for professor positions.”
SDSU aims to attract many more doctoral students such as Roland.
One of the goals of the university’s 2023 Pathway to Premier strategic plan is research, driven by a plan to obtain R1 Carnegie Classification, which would be a first for South Dakota.
The classification framework was developed by the Carnegie Commission on Higher Education in the early 1970s to support its research program. The R1 designation indicates the highest level of research activity and is achieved based on factors such as how much the university invests in research and how many research-based doctoral graduates are produced.
South Dakota is one of just five states without an R1 university.
“R1 really isn’t about SDSU,” President Barry Dunn said. “South Dakota needs SDSU to do this so our state and region’s economy can compete on a national scale.”
For SDSU, which currently is classified as R2, “we’re already exceeding how much is spent on research — but where we need to grow is in educating future researchers at the highest level and creating a research and development workforce,” said Daniel Scholl, vice president for research and economic development and an SDSU professor.
“That’s a big focus of ours.”
Like Roland, Brandon Scott also became somewhat of an accidental SDSU doctoral student. After receiving his undergraduate degree in biochemistry at Slippery Rock University in Pennsylvania, he stumbled upon SDSU at a conference and decided to apply. He ultimately earned his graduate degree and Ph.D. in biochemistry, spending seven years in Brookings and advancing his research in microscopy techniques.
“When I came out, I was very impressed,” he said. “I couldn’t have gone to a better place, actually, especially with my mentor, Adam Hoppe. It couldn’t have worked out any better for me.”
He’s now an assistant professor in nanoscience and biomedical engineering and a CZI imaging scientist at South Dakota Mines.
SDSU’s pursuit of R1 classification is more about what it takes to earn the distinction than the number itself, he added.
“What you have to do to get there and maintain it is the biggest thing,” Scott said. “You look at R1 institutions, and they keep turning out graduates and research because they have that momentum behind them. It’s not just the students you attract but the faculty you’re able to attract once you reach that status. I’m still very much integrated into what’s happening at SDSU, and I think some of the labs there, especially in biochemistry, already are rock stars.”
Achieving the R1 classification would reflect both a learning and business environment powered by research and its impacts. More research tends to drive business spinoffs, resulting in economic growth and a more educated workforce.
That’s already starting to happen in South Dakota, Dunn said. He points to companies such as animal vaccine developer and manufacturer Medgene, which “has well over 100 employees and is innovating how we protect our nation’s food supply,” he said.
“Its platform technology started on our campus with our facility. R1 will help us multiply those kind of successes in the private sector.”
SDSU typically graduates about 50 doctoral students and needs to reach 70 annually to achieve R1 classification.
The first step in that direction “is remarkably simple and affordable,” Dunn said.
“We have to offer graduate assistants benefits. Think about it. They’re typically around 25 years old and coming off their parents’ health insurance. Often, they’re starting families of their own. If you’re one of those students, are you going to pursue a doctoral degree at SDSU, an R2 university with no benefits, or are you going to seek out a prestigious R1 that covers your health insurance?”
The classification also helps in recruiting and retaining faculty, Scholl added.
“Because this is a place where they can visualize having a successful career in their field,” he said. “That serves as an added attractor for Ph.D. students, and it all adds up to greater research activity. And when we do research, the funds we bring in through grants and contracts are spent locally, so it stimulates the local economy and the knowledge spills over into the economy.”
The Research Park at SDSU further supports its progression to R1 classification.
“It serves as a place where the private sector can be very close to the university without being in the university,” Scholl said. “You’re very close to the faculty expertise and expertise of the doctoral and undergrad students who are potentially recruitable.”
Companies such as General Mills, POET and Raven Industries, which is part of CNH Industrial, regularly use the research park for their work and to build relationships at SDSU, he said.
“Having things like a university research park and having the private sector close at hand will help us grow research and research education to perform like an R1 university,” Scholl said.
The good news is, achieving R1 classification isn’t far out of reach, Dunn added.
“From the strength, scope and scale of our academic programs to our beautiful, modern campus to our outstanding faculty, we are well on our way to achieving this status, which will benefit the entire state.”
To learn more about research at SDSU, click here.
MISSION, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – In rural South Dakota, miles often separate expectant mothers from healthcare.
“A lot of women out here are left without any maternity care options,” said Rachel Kocak.
In Mission, moms mark their due dates and calculate miles to the nearest delivery location. Rachel Kocak, expecting her third child, said one option just closed.
“We used to have a birthing unit, I think up until a couple of months ago, and they lost their OB. So, Winner is no longer delivering babies,” Rachel said.
Some mothers remember when they could reach the hospital within a five-minute drive.
“IHS, for tribal members, they don’t deliver babies out here or provide prenatal care,” Rachel explained.
Families hope to reach the hospital before the baby arrives.
“So women either have to drive to Valentine, which is about 30 to 35 minutes from Mission, they can go to Wanblee, which is on the Pine Ridge Reservation, or they have to go to Pierre, Rapid City, or Sioux Falls,” Rachel said.
And if the roads are bad.
“I think there are a lot of babies who are unintentionally born at home. So it’s a tough place, I think, for mothers,” Rachel said.
The March of Dimes breaks down government data, showing a large portion of rural South Dakota as a maternity care desert, requiring travel of 38 or more minutes to reach an appointment or delivery room. The infant mortality rate is higher among native American babies born, compared to other races.
Health Department maps show counties in medium blue have 56 infant deaths per 100,000 births. Dark blue counties have three times as many. Grants aim to increase the number of healthcare workers, and funding supports a doula workforce program.
Kocak would like to see doulas and midwives available.
“Great opportunity for anyone who wants to become a home-birth midwife out here. The birth rate is still, I’m not sure what it is, but it’s high. There’s still a growing young population, and just not enough people to help deliver the babies,” Rachel said.
If care were closer, the outcomes could be brighter.
“You know, having the support network can make a huge change in the lives of these young, you know, these babies and young mothers who are building new families,” Rachel said.
The South Dakota Department of Health released a statement to Dakota News Now, which can be read in full below.
The South Dakota Maternal and Infant Health Task Force was created in 2025 to bring partners together to help improve the health and wellbeing of mothers and infants across the state. Their 5-year strategic plan was recently released, which has three priority areas: postpartum care to improve maternal health; safe sleep education and prevention strategies to protect infant health; and systems of care work that improves access, coordination, and quality of care statewide. One of the strategic plan activities that is supported by Rural Health Transformation is the creation of Regional Maternal and Infant Health Hubs, which will create a hub-and-spoke network connecting hospitals, clinics, tribal health services, and community organizations. These hubs will improve care coordination, strengthen referral pathways, and expand access to services for families in rural and tribal communities.
Copyright 2026 Dakota News Now. All rights reserved.
While the race to secure the nomination for governor has dominated the headlines ahead of the June 2 primary, Republican voters will also choose a candidate for one of South Dakota’s two U.S. Senate seats.
Incumbent U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, who is seeking a third, six-year term, holds a comfortable lead over his GOP primary challenger, Justin McNeal, a Navy veteran and business owner from Rapid City, according to the latest poll from News Watch and the Chiesman Center for Democracy.
Here is a recap of the two candidates along with their thoughts heading into the June 2 election. The winner of the Republican primary will meet Democrat Julian Beaudion and Independent Brian Bengs in the Nov. 3 general election.
Hometown: Fort PierreAge: 71Occupation: Insurance broker; businessman; former governor (2003-2011); U.S. senator since 2015In their own words:
Rounds provided the following statement to News Watch:
“Working in the U.S. Senate, I’ve stayed focused on results that matter for our kids and grandkids. That means keeping the government off your back and out of your business and wallet. That means keeping our communities safe and creating a business climate that encourages job growth to keep our kids in South Dakota. And that means safety through a commitment to our men and women in uniform.
This past summer, we worked with President Trump to pass the Republicans’ Working Families Tax Cuts legislation. Without Congressional action, the average South Dakota family would have seen a $2,500 tax hike this year. Our legislation not only prevented the largest tax increase in American history, but it also provided additional tax relief for hard-working South Dakota families. That includes no tax on tips, no tax on overtime and no tax on Social Security for nearly 9 out of 10 seniors.
We’ve accomplished some great things, but our work is not done. I am running for reelection to continue bringing results back home to South Dakota.”
Hometown: Rapid City (born in Illinois and raised in Texas)Age: 42Occupation: Business owner (Dakota BioChar); Navy veteran (2001-2007)In their own words:
“I’m feeling the people in South Dakota are ready for a change. The challenge we are running into is that not enough people know who we are, but as soon as they know who we are, it’s an easy decision for them,” McNeal told News Watch in a phone interview. “I don’t have millions and millions of dollars. I’ve been largely self-funding this race up to this point.”
McNeal, who is a licensed pilot, said he has flown his small plane to events throughout the state in an attempt to get his name out.
“I talk to people about the issues that matter and I tell them the biggest thing you can do to help me is tell 10 people about me and to go vote June 2. We need about 50,000 votes to win the primary,” he said.
McNeal is not critical of Rounds and conceded “he is very popular” but said Rounds has not done enough to tackle the country’s growing fiscal deficit.
“I don’t think Mike is doing a bad job. I’m just concerned with the federal debt and the people that got us into that mess are not going to be the ones to get us out of it,” McNeal said.
“This is going to cripple the country. It just seems like politicians are focused on what they can bring to their home district or home state. And the problem with that is every member of Congress is doing the same thing, so everyone is taking and taking without making sure we can pay for it.”
South Dakota News Watch is an independent nonprofit. Read, donate and subscribe for free at sdnewswatch.org. Contact politics and statehouse reporter Alexander Rifaat: 605-736-4396/alexander.rifaat@sdnewswatch.org.
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