P - Present
E - Excused
A - Absent
Roll Call
Apa, Chair
Bartling
Dennert
Earley, Vice-Chair
Gant
Glenski
Greenfield
Hanson (Gary)
Haverly
Hunhoff
Klaudt, Vice-Chair
Napoli
Peters
Rausch
Smidt
Sutton (Duane)
Tidemann
Putnam, Chair
OTHERS PRESENT: See Original Minutes
The meeting was called to order by Representative J.E. "Jim" Putnam
Board of Regents
Members of the Board of Regents attending the hearing include the following:
Harvey Jewett, President of the South Dakota Board Regents, Randy Morris, Vice President of the
South Dakota Board Regents, Jim O. Hanson, Chair of the Regents Budget and Finance Committee,
Tad Perry, Executive Director of the Board of Regents, Pat Labrun, Board of Regents member, Tony
Vanheissan, Student Regent from Brookings, Terry Baloun, Board of Regents member, Richard
Belatti, Board of Regents member, Carole Pagones, Board of Regents member
Documents 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14 were distributed throughout the course of
January 24 and January 25, 2005.
This is the seventh straight year of increasing enrollment figures through out the higher education
system. The number of students have increased to approximately 29,000 at current count.
Seventy-five percent of students are residents of South Dakota. Fifty-six percent the of students are
female and forty-four percent are male. Seventy-five percent of the students are between 18 and 25
years of age. There have been 181 transfers from technical schools to state universities.
The Board of Regents is currently working out an arrangement with the Vocational Technical
schools to assist students who are in transition from a Tech school to a university. The Watertown
Area Vocational Technical Institute has entered into an agreement to teach general level courses by
BOR qualified instructors. This will enable Tech students to transfer the general level courses to a
four-year university. The Board is also working with other Technical Institutions on like
arrangements.
The retention rate of freshmen is approximately seventy percent. These students were enrolled in the
fall of 2003 and were enrolled in the same university in the fall of 2004.
An exam is given to each junior after 70 credit hours are earned, and South Dakota students finish
above the national norm. On a national scale, South Dakota is the fourth lowest for tuition and fees.
For total cost, South Dakota is the lowest public education provider in the surrounding states. South
Dakota averages about $6,600 a year, per student, in student aid. The status of our faculty continues
to be good. Seventy-seven percent of the courses have instructors with terminal degrees, meaning
they have the highest degree available in their field. Only two percent of faculty do not have at least
masters degrees. The student/facility ratio changed since 1999 when it was 16.7 students to each
faculty member. Now it is approximately 18 students to each faculty member.
Federal and other fund grants have increased about 124% since 2000. $60.5 million came to South
Dakota's universities in grants last year and only $1.6 million were in state grants. Of the FY2006
increase, only 15.5 FTE are state funded. Eighty-two percent of the money that has been appropriated
since 1999 is salary policy alone.
There have been three studies conduced on South Dakota higher education graduates and they all
show that if a South Dakota resident attends an in-state post-secondary school, eighty percent of
those will stay in-state. Even forty percent of the out-of-state students who attend South Dakota
schools stay here after graduation. It is very important to our state to get our kids to attend our
universities.
The Lee Building at the USD Medical School is a unique case. Between the university's HEFF funds,
and grants from hospitals, $3.2 million was raised for the science building. The University cut $2
million from the project to help make ends meet. The $2 million would have been used for
furnishings. Even with the cut, they were still $1.8 million short for the building. The decision was
then made to assess the medical students an additional $1,000/year and the non-medical $500/year
to pay for the science building.
Representative Glenski asked if the HEFF funds could be used, but the Regents replied that the
maintenance and repair funds are stretched to the limits right now. There is currently in excess of
$100 million in repairs that await funding.
We expect to add six Ph.D. programs this year, all directed to research. Three are included in the
FY06 budget and three were approved at the December meeting of the Board and require no
additional funding. There are currently a total of fourteen Ph.D. programs in the state. The focus is
to expand Ph.D. programs in areas that are most likely to receive grants. The Regents will monitor
the declining enrollment in the state and duplication.
With the agreements between the Board and the Technical Schools, it finally puts to rest issues of
mission creep and general course duplication. The state will save money over through this process.
If more technical institutes are added to the agreement, more money will be needed for the Board
of Regents to provide the qualified instructors.
Representative Glenski asked what the criteria is for teachers of technical classes? Mr. Hanson
answered that the instructor has to have at least 18 graduate hours or a major in that area. It is the
same criteria that is currently in place. Representative Glenski followed up with another question of
how many teachers in the Sioux Falls Technical school did not meet the criteria? The response was
that it is a moving number, so it needs to be looked at every semester, the answer is unavailable.
Representative Haverly asked Mr. Hanson why there were different numbers of FTEs requested by
the Board and recommended by the Governor for the Ph.D. programs. At the time the request was
submitted, updating had not occurred. They prepared the budget back in September and more
accurate estimates became available when the Governor put his budget together.
Senator Earley asked about the original request for an increase in the utilities budget. The Board had
requested $2.7 million, but the Governor recommended only $647,329. Senator Earley wanted to
know how difference will be paid for? Mr. Jewett replied that the Board requested it as more of a
policy statement than really thinking they would receive the funding. Since the $2 million was a
catchup for utilities, what would have been the plan for that if it had been appropriated to the
Regents? It would have gone towards other areas such as the library and updating technology, which
are the two most underfunded areas of a university.
Representative Klaudt asked what the total utility bill was for last year? The answer was that it was
$4.6 million for FY04. Monty Kramer said that all utilities are not under contract, as Representative
Klaudt's report from Legislative Audit indicated. Mr. Kramer will work with Legislative Audit to
reconcile the utilities budget with the actual expenditures.
Representative Haverly voiced hi concern that the federal money will dry up after we have successful
programs up and running. The Board acknowledged the concern, and said that this happens
frequently, but the state benefits through knowledge and equipment gained through the grant. The
FTE is no longer used for that project and is simply reassigned to another grant project or is let go.
The best outcome is to get the grant projects to be self-funded by the time the federal money runs
out.
Senator Schmidt asked about the General fund one-time funding request for library resources that
was not recommended by the Governor. With the Ph.D. programs in place, an electronic library is
an important aspect of the support tools needed for successful programs. A special appropriations
bill will not be introduced for library upgrades.
Senator Earley had a concern with the Ag Experiment Station which is asking for more money. He
wanted to know why they are spending $9 million in general funds, and wondered if there was a
creep from federal research into the general fund. Mr. Jewett replied that part of the reason general
funds are spent on research in that budget was due to the requirements of being a land grant
university.
Representative Haverly asked how we would see the result of the product of research and where it
would appear in the budget. The Board was requested to break out Royalty Revenues in their list of
revenues published in the Governor's budget book every year.
Representative Haverly asked when the Office of Research would be broken out in their budget
book. Dr. Perry said that it currently is, however, not at a level that appears in the Governor's Budget
book. The committee would like to see that program broken out in a separate line item in future
years.
The committee recessed at 10:15 A.M.
The committee reconvened at 10:40 A.M.
System Overview, presented by Dr. Perry
The Board established four goals that will guide them over the next several years:
Policy Goal #1: Access: every qualified South Dakotan shall have access to public
postsecondary education;
Policy Goal #2: Academic Quality and Performance: South Dakota public universities and
special schools shall provide a quality educational experience;
Policy Goal #3: State Wealth: South Dakota public universities shall engage in activities
designed to enhance the state's long-term economy; and
Policy Goal #4: Efficiency: South Dakota public universities and special schools shall
continue to seek means for improving efficiency in the delivery of educational services.
The recommended FTE increase for FY06 is 222.5. The largest portion 205.0 are funded with federal
and other funds through contracts and grants. 15.5 FTE are the only state funded FTE included in
this request. Two FTEs are requested for the West River Consortium, which is an added activity and
service in the Black Hills region. It will add students to the current population.
Representative Rausch asked if the West River Consortium is temporary? The Regents responded
that they will review the results and determine it's future depending on them.
Mike Derby, chairman of the Black Hills Vision and Mark Merchant, Vice President of Black hills
vision spoke to the committee in support of the Board of Regent's funding requests. They are
extremely supportive of the research portion and the addition of the Ph.D. programs.
The budget for Northern State University, presented by Dr. Patrick Schloss, President of Northern
State University (NSU) and Dr. Erika Tallman, Director of the E-Learning Center.
The major challenge at NSU is decreased population base and decreased enrollment. The new
president is up to the challenge of attracting new students and retaining the freshmen and
sophomores who are at risk of dropping out. how and what we do to attract students at Northern.
Dr. Tallman, Director of the E-Learning Center, described the center as having four pieces: 1) high
school service to K-12; 2) enhancement to teacher education program; 3) technology enhancement
to all majors; and 4) graduate program in e-learning. Every day there are 36 classes delivered to K-12
students. They have grown every year since it's inception. The goal of the center is to make
educational opportunities equal throughout the state, regardless of the rural status.
Senator Earley asked if there was a charge to the students. Dr. Tallman said that the districts are
required to supply the students with the same text book as the instructor uses, and some courses that
require lab instruction require the district to "check-out" a lab kit. If the lab kit is returned in good
condition, the student, nor the district, is charged any thing for it's use. There should also be an e-
mentor in the classroom at all times.
Representative Haverly wanted to clarify the fact that there is no tuition. Dr. Tallman said that was
correct, outside of the expense of textbooks.
There were two reasons not to charge a fee for the E-Learning courses: attracting teachers, and
attracting students. Representative Peters asked if this program is funded through general funds.
Dr. Tallman said that it is funded through general funds from the appropriations committee, in
addition to some federal and private funded grants that are written for equipment.
Representative Dennert wanted to know if private schools can have access to E-Learning. Dr.
Tallman responded that these schools can access the courses, but would have to pay the hourly fee.
The Committee recessed at 12:04
The Committee reconvene at 8:00 a.m. on January 25, 2005.
The budget for the South Dakota School For the Blind, presented by Superintendent Margorie
Kaiser.
The school provides statewide services to children with vision problems. What they get for service
depends totally on what the parents and the school decide.
The FY2006 budget request consists of increase for utilities. Representative Dennert asked for the
amount of the utility bills. Ms. Kaiser said that is about $52,000.
The budget for Dakota State
University
(DSU), presented by Douglas Knowlton, President.
DSU went from being number four to number two in a national survey of technical universities. The
student enrollment is currently at 2,295 with 854 of them in undergraduate courses and 148 of them
enrolled in graduate information technology courses. There were 289 graduates in the spring of 2004.
The university currently offers three masters programs. After graduation, 92% of the students are
employed in their field and 85% of them stay in-state.
The FY2006 budget issues are utility increases and retaining the salary policy. The campus will be 125 years old this year and cannot use M&R funds to pay for utilities. The old buildings must be maintained. The salary policy is key in helping instructors with a master degrees to get their Ph.D.
Representative Hunhoff wanted to know if the three masters programs that are available at DSU are
offered at other universities in South Dakota. The answer was that one of the three is available at
Black Hills State University, but the other two are unique to DSU.
Representative Tidemann asked about distance education and the cost per student? The university
responded that those classes are self supported, and it is hard to calculate the actual cost. Of the
distance education students, what is the break down of those that are enrolled via distance, and those
that are enrolled via DDN? 1640 is the total enrollment and 912 were enrolled via distance education
and 728 were enrolled via DDN.
President Peggy Miller presented the South Dakota State University budget request. SDSU students
pay for nearly all the maintenance and repairs, and what they don't pay for is paid by the alumni.
There has been a steady increase in the costs of utilities, however the last increase in the utility
budget was in the early 1990's. The payments for utilities are being made from the technology and
library budgets. This money is desperately needed.
The budget for South Dakota Agriculture Experiment Station, presented by Dr. Kepheart
The station conducts practical research to better agriculture.
Biostress programs at SDSU emphasize development of management strategies to minimize the
effects, risks and costs of stress on people, crops, and livestock. The Sun Grant Initiative seeks to
revolutionize ag-based energy and biobased industries. AES scientists are making advances in issues
of great importance. Examples of significant efforts to include crop and livestock diseases,
transgenic crops, transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (such as BSE) ethanol coproducts, meat
processing, etc. Collaboration with private industry and NGOs is increasing. Some example partners
include: Broin Industries, Verasun, Monsanto, Dupont/Pioneer, Hematech, and the SD Ag Value
Added Center. The SDSU Rural Life and Census Data Center provides census based information.
The center's services and demographic information are valuable tools for state and community
leaders struggling with difficult decisions. Both AES and the SD Cooperative Extension Service are
leading collaborative programs with neighboring states.
FY2006 Cooperative Extension budget, presented by Dr. Warman
The Extension's role is to take new information to the people. Collaborative efforts are being done
with the SD Department of Agriculture and SD Department of Health in the areas of pesticide safety
and West Nile Virus containment. The Extension provides wellness education and diabetes
prevention education programs; family financial management and money matters; food safety for
restaurant cooks and community groups; youth development and 4-H; Science Alive school program;
farm financial management; soybean aphid information; weed control; sulfur-deficient corn; feed
savings; and grazing tours.
Senator Earley wanted explained to the committee how the new research model is different from the
agricultural experiment station model. The answer was that the Governors model is to establish
experiment models that will eventually become self-sustaining.
Representative Hunhoff wanted to know about the intellectual properties and if we have a patent on
that? A change to this model is a new royalty policy, of which goes to the developer and then to the
university.
Representative Tidemann said that in the past, the information gained through research was held and
companies could buy into it. How do you maintain the credibility of unbiased research? Whatever
is found will be made public. The integrity of the research is unbiased.
The committee recessed at 10:00 A.M.
The committee reconvened at 10:15 A.M.
Black Hills State University's budget, presented by President Thomas Flickema.
The university is spread out over several locations and serve several non-traditional students. The
university has had a problem coming into compliance with Title IX - Equity in Athletics. Females
account for 64% of the student body and only 36% of athletes are female. 3846 is the number of
enrollment.
The federal money that supports the Center of Tourism Research will run out in three to four years
and at that point it must be self-sustaining.
Senator Schmidt wanted a follow up on the mobile science lab. Mr. Flickerman replied that the
outlook of its continuation is very optimistic.
Representative Glenski wanted to know what the governor based the utility increase on. Tad Perry
said that his recommended increase was based on the growth of FY06 projections over FY05 actuals.
Senator Apa wanted to know about the Black Hills Consortium. The School of Mines is handling
the infrastructure and Black Hills State is handling the organizational aspects.
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology's (SDSM&T) budget, presented by Charles Ruck,
President.
The university offers only engineering and science degrees. The South Dakota Opportunity
Scholarship program has made a significant difference in their enrollment. Sixty five of the
scholarship recipients are still attending after their freshmen year.
Two of the new Ph.D. programs will be offered at SDSM&T. The programs are in nanoscience and
nonoengineering. The nanoscience degree will be the third in the country.
The budget for the South Dakota School for the Deaf (SDSD), presented by Superintendent
Maureen Schloss.
The enrollment has a larger auditory oral platform and a smaller American Sigh Language (ASL)
population. Before they added the oral platform, SDSD primarily served severe to profoundly deaf
students because those children used sign language to communicate. Students with mild and
moderate hearing losses tend to have speech and language delays, but historically did not attend the
school because these students tend not to use sign language.
The oral platform is designed to allow the student to enter the mainstream after one to four years at
SDSD. Rather than serving primarily severe to profound deaf signing students pre-K through 12th
grade, many deaf students will receive cochlear implants and stay at SDSD for three or four of their
early elementary years. SDSD will also provide services to children with a moderate hearing loss
who will be at SDSD for one to four years. Because of this, SDSD's enrollment will probably
increase slightly, but SDSD will need to change to serve a younger population of students and a
larger oral platform.
Senator Earley asked if deaf people are being mainstreamed in the school systems. Yes they are but
teachers are not trained to handle their problems. Our plan is to get these children out to the
mainstream by 4th grade.
Representative Hunhoff asked what grade levels were taught at SDSD? Ms. Schlass replied that K-
12 are taught at the school. Representative Hunhoff then asked how many go on to post-secondary,
but the school said the numbers are not available.
The budget for the University of South Dakota, presented by President James Abbot
Funded research at USD in 2004 was approximately $26 million. The federal and other research
dollars help the university in several ways, especially in equipment purchases, new jobs, economic
increase.
USD's fundraising effors have brought in about $65 million. The funds are needed to generate more
scholarships.
The majority of the operating budget increase is for federal and other FTE. This is needed to do the
research. Research grants and contracts enhance the university's reputation; offer learning
opportunities for students; provide professional development opportunities for faculty; are a source
of funding for equipment; result in the creation of new jobs; and foster economic development in
South Dakota.
Senator Earley asked about USD and USD Medical School numbers as to why the recommendation
for FTE are high? The base budget was short by 25 and they brought a request to Interim.
Senator Apa asked about the policy recommendation of raising the entrance requirement of ACT
minimum scores from 18 to 21 and if it will have an effect on student enrollment? President Abbot
said that in the beginning it may have some effect, but he thinks that they should market to their
strength - which is not providing remedial courses.
Senator Gant asked President Abbot how many students were below the 24 on the ACT? Answer
is on p.4 of handout. Retention is key with lower ACT scores. There ought to be an institution that
specializes in remedial courses and can keep those students from falling behind and dropping out.
Governor is recommending a new Ph.D. program in computational science and statistics at USD.
Acting Dean of the USD Medical School, Rodney Parry, M.D., presented information on the School.
They have been recognized by the U.S. News and World Report as having one of the top ten rural
medicine programs in the nation. The school has nine health care programs.
The University Physicians downsized from a staff of 120 to 9. It now operates in the black more
months than in the red.
The Lee Medical Building is the home for the first two years of the medical program located in
Vermillion. It is a very old building and is desperate need of the remodeling being done. There is a
$1.8 million dollar shortfall in the remodeling budget, therefor a $1,000 per student fee was assessed.
Representative Putnam asked Dr. Parry about family practice and physicians and if the school still
made those degrees available. Dr. Parry said they are still very committed to that mission.
MOTION:
ADJOURN
Moved by: Peters
Second by: Smidt
Action: Prevailed by voice vote.
Wendy Weinert