It was Abraham Lincoln who once said, “Upon the subject of education, not presuming to dictate any plan or system respecting it, I can only say that I view it as the most important subject which we as a people can be engaged in.â€
That quote came 30 years prior to the Morrill Act, the law that Lincoln signed as president in 1862 to create the land-grant universities. Lincoln’s vision in 1832 was foresight into what would eventually help set the tone for public higher education in the United States, not only creating access for the farmers and workers of our country, but also inviting collaboration and bold ideas among many to solve complex problems and advance society.
SDSU continues that collaboration today, just like it did when the university was founded in 1881. Our students and faculty are involved with research projects that reach across multiple academic disciplines, universities, industries and government agencies. Community engagement is an important part of what we do each day, and the numerous services we provide benefit many in the state of South Dakota.
But the collaboration has one more very important aspect—we at SDSU listen to industry and its needs. It is why we are investing in new programs and working with companies like Raven Industries to complete the state-of-the-art Raven Precision Agriculture Center. It is also why all of our college deans and other university administrators meet with industry leaders regularly and rely on industry advisory boards and other groups to help guide them in ways that ensures our university is meeting their expectations.
In this edition, you will read about examples of how we listen to industry through the success of our students. Students from the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering earned the Land-O-Lakes Bot Shot Championship during the Final Four weekend in Minneapolis. They represented many of the majors within the college, an important distinction because industry tells us how important it is that students are able to collaborate, even within similar disciplines.
Lauren Buisker, a senior, earned AFA NIET All-American honors in forensics in April. It is a wonderful individual accomplishment that highlights the efforts of our faculty in the School of Communication and Journalism to elevate our speech and communications programs. Why? Because we have heard from industry on multiple occasions about the importance of graduating students needing to be able to communicate in the real world and handle the pressure of communicating in front of large groups and peers.
These are just a few of the hundreds of stories and examples that exist on campus. Our faculty and staff work tirelessly to support the growing requests and needs of different industries and industry leaders with whom we meet regularly. It is also what separates SDSU and makes our university a special place.
Thank you for everything you do as alums and friends of SDSU. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Go Jacks!
Barry H. Dunn
President, South Dakota State University
