South Dakota
Johnson votes yes as ‘anti-woke’ bill targeting higher ed passes U.S. House • South Dakota Searchlight
WASHINGTON — A GOP measure barring accrediting organizations from requiring colleges and universities to adopt diversity, equity and inclusion policies as a condition of accreditation passed the U.S. House Thursday, though its fate appears dim.
The End Woke Higher Education Act — which succeeded 213-201 — marks one of several so-called anti-woke initiatives and messaging bills from Republican lawmakers to hit the House floor this week.
South Dakota GOP Rep. Dusty Johnson voted for the bill.
The higher education measure, which drew fierce opposition from the Biden administration and major associations of colleges and universities, came amid a looming government shutdown deadline and in the heat of the 2024 campaign.
Four House Democrats voted in favor of the GOP measure, including Reps. Don Davis of North Carolina, Jared Golden of Maine, Mary Peltola of Alaska and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of Washington.
Baked into the legislation are two bills introduced by Republican members of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce — the Accreditation for College Excellence Act and the Respecting the First Amendment on Campus Act.
Utah Rep. Burgess Owens, chairman of the Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development, introduced the Accreditation for College Excellence Act in May 2023, while New York Rep. Brandon Williams brought forth the Respecting the First Amendment on Campus Act in March.
In a statement to States Newsroom, Owens said “House Republicans passed the End Woke Higher Education Act to stand up for academic freedom, defend students’ constitutional rights, and ensure that colleges and universities aren’t forced to bend the knee to activist accreditors pushing political agendas as a condition for federal funding.”
U.S. House GOP questions education secretary on transgender athletes, student loans
The Utah Republican said the “Biden-Harris administration has injected its far-left ideology — Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Critical Race Theory — into every part of American life, including our higher education system.”
Owens’ bill says accreditation standards must not require, encourage or coerce institutions to support or oppose “a specific partisan, political, or ideological viewpoint or belief” or “set of viewpoints or beliefs on social, cultural, or political issues” or support “the disparate treatment of any individual or group of individuals.”
Meanwhile, Williams’ Respecting the First Amendment on Campus Act forces schools to disclose policies regarding free speech to students and faculty as a condition of receiving any Title IV funds.
Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 includes federal student financial aid programs.
Strong opposition
But the legislation is highly unlikely to be passed in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
The Biden administration also strongly opposed the measure, saying in a statement this week that the legislation would “micromanage both public and private institutions, undermining their ability to recognize and promote diversity.”
GOP plan to reverse final Title IX rule passes U.S. House, but Biden says he’d veto
The legislation “would go beyond Congress’s traditional role in higher education with a wide range of confusing and unprecedented new mandates,” the administration added.
Rep. Bobby Scott — ranking member of the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce — called the measure a “baseless attempt to inject culture wars into an ever-important accreditation process” during the floor debate Thursday.
The Virginia Democrat said the legislation “attempts to circumvent the First Amendment to establish a whole new scheme to regulate speech and association rights on campus outside of established precedents and practices.”
The GOP measure also drew the ire of leading associations of colleges and universities, who opposed the legislation both individually and collectively.
In a joint letter this week to House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, six major associations led by the American Council on Education took aim at Williams’ portion of the legislation, saying it “would undermine efforts to protect free speech on campus and provide safe learning environments free from discrimination.”
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South Dakota
KOTA Cares: Western South Dakota Community Action brings aid to those in poverty
RAPID CITY, S.D. (KOTA) – This week we are highlighting Western South Dakota Community Action as part of our KOTA Cares series. The non-profit will be celebrating 60 years in 2025 and does it all when it comes to helping people move out of poverty.
The organization originally began to help the Rapid City area but currently serves 15 counties including Butte, Harding, Meade and Ziebach.
They have numerous programs from helping with transportation, employment, housing, basic needs to Medicare and other insurance plans and more.
They also have a thrift store that receives donations nearly every day from community members. The organization’s executive director, Shawn Burke, said they keep prices low so the people they serve can buy items for themselves.
Their programs include educational opportunities like their garden.
”We want to grow things that people can grow for themselves, that they can learn to cook or process or freeze or can and add to other food they might get, either charitable food or purchased food. Be able to get more nutritious food with a higher nutritional value,” Burke said.
If you are interested in donating your time or money to the organization, you can find more information on their website.
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Copyright 2024 KOTA. All rights reserved.
South Dakota
Two deputies taken to the hospital after an accident near McCook Lake
MCCOOK LAKE, S.D. (KTIV) – An investigation is underway in Union County, South Dakota after a sheriff’s vehicle wrecked near North Sioux City, Wednesday evening.
That crash happened just after 6 p.m. near the McCook Lake, South Dakota entrance at Highway 105 and 484th Avenue.
Union County Sheriff Jim Prouty tells KTIV, two deputies were in the pickup responding to a call when they tried to pass another vehicle. They then had to swerve to avoid a vehicle trying to turn and entered the ditch. Both deputies were taken to the hospital as a precaution.
The South Dakota Highway Patrol is investigating this crash.
Copyright 2024 KTIV. All rights reserved.
South Dakota
‘Dirty Jobs’ star Mike Rowe to visit for 10-year anniversary of Build Dakota scholarships
“Dirty Jobs” star Mike Rowe is stopping at all four of South Dakota’s technical colleges Thursday to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Build Dakota scholarship.
Build Dakota scholarships were founded in 2015 to cover the entire cost of attending the two-year technical colleges in the state. They’re given to 400 to 500 students each year. During the last 10 years, more than $21 million in matching scholarships have been awarded to nearly 4,000 students alongside more than 500 industry partners, according to a press release.
An endowment created by a $25 million gift from T. Denny Sanford and $25 million from the state fund half of each scholarship and is then matched by an industry partner, according to past Argus Leader reporting. In exchange for the scholarship, students must work in South Dakota for three years after graduating.
These scholarships cover all of the recipient’s tuition, fees, books and uniforms. At Southeast Technical College, for example, they’re available for 30 of the college’s “most in-demand careers.” This school year, STC has awarded 164 Build Dakota scholarships, all of which were sponsored by an industry partner.
Rowe will visit STC in Sioux Falls first Thursday morning, then Lake Area Technical College in Watertown, Mitchell Technical College in the afternoon and then Western Dakota Technical College in Rapid City.
More: ‘Dirty Jobs’ host jumps into South Dakota technical education
Each visit, except for LATC, will feature a fireside chat and media availability with Rowe. At LATC, he will be present for a ribbon cutting of the Archway Plaza. At STC, Rowe will also be present for a livestream viewing of a mock emergency scenario lat the STC Healthcare Simulation Center.
Other speakers at the STC event will include STC President Cory Clasemann, STC 2024 graduate and Mike Rowe Scholar Tyler Lee, First Premier Bank CEO Dana Dykhouse and Journey Group CEO Randy Knecht.
Rowe is an author, advocate for skilled trades and the founder and CEO of the mikeroweWORKS Foundation, which provides scholarships across the nation for high school students planning to attend technical colleges.
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