University of South Dakota gaining prominence

The 274-acre University of South Dakota campus is nestled along the bluffs of the Missouri River in Vermillion, SD.

The approximately 9,600-student university is home to South Dakota’s only law and medical schools as well as students actively engaged in research, the arts and a wide range of recreational, cultural, social and professional activities and organizations.

Seventy percent of the attorneys, 50 percent of the teachers and 48 percent of the physicians in South Dakota are University of South Dakota graduates. The university offers 132 undergraduate programs, majors and minors and 54 graduate programs.

“It is proof that their education has value and that once a student leaves the university that student has the necessary tools to succeed,” says Phillip Carter, who handles public relations for the university.

RESEARCH GAINING MOMENTUM

The University of South Dakota’s Undergraduate Research and Creativity Activity program involves undergraduates, faculty and administrators in all aspects of research. Individual research projects compete for funding from federal, state and private sources.

“We have been averaging $30 million a year in contracts and grants,” says Brian Mathers, the university’s director of research development. “Research activity and related funding has grown steadily and is bringing more dollars into the state every year.”

Mathers says the university’s basic and applied research has contributed significantly to the state’s economic development in the last five years.

“The reason we are competitive for grants is because funding sources are looking for answers to complicated problems,” Mathers says. “Federal agencies and private businesses are willing to invest in the knowledge, expertise and resources at the university to solve some of these challenges.”

The university’s chemistry department is a partner in the Center for Research and Development of Light-Activated Materials. The research center, which is part of the state’s 2010 research center initiative, has generated more than $13 million and added 20 new jobs in the state in its five years of existence.

University researchers are also collaborating with researchers from other universities in the state and around the nation on the Center for Detecting Rare Physics Processes with Ultra-Low Background Experiments in the Sanford Underground Laboratory at the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory at the former Homestake Mine in Lead, SD. Researchers plan to develop unique commercial opportunities from production techniques developed at the 2010 research center.

“The expertise and commitment of the collaborative team is impressive,” Mathers says. “They’re working on some very complex problems related to gaining a better understanding of matter at the subatomic level, with possible implications in the areas of energy, defense and our basic understanding of the universe. It’s going to be fascinating to follow their discoveries at the center.”

NATIONAL LEADER

The University of South Dakota was recently ranked among the nation’s best colleges by the U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. The University of South Dakota was the highest-ranking university in South Dakota in both annual ratings systems.

“Thanks to our faculty’s extraordinary commitment to education, research and service, our students have an opportunity to excel in the classroom and laboratory, preparing them for a successful career after college,” President James Abbott wrote in a prepared statement released by the university along with the U.S. News & World Report rankings in late August.

University students annually receive national scholarships, including the prestigious Goldwater, Udall, Truman and Fulbright scholarships. Since 2001, University of South Dakota student-athletes have earned 14 NCAA postgraduate scholarships, ranking sixth nationally.

The university also offers several programs meant to help students succeed after graduation.

“These programs personalize the university to give students a chance to gain leadership capabilities and community service responsibilities,” Carter says. “It exposes them to not just a test or lesson plan, it exposes them to society and what is expected of them once they leave the university.”

SIGNATURE PROGRAMS

In addition to research programs, the university also has an honors program with a unique educational curriculum designed to challenge students with enhanced seminars, internship and travel opportunities, providing students with a supportive peer group and engaged faculty in their fields of study.

Carter says what makes the program unique is that many of the students are from South Dakota high schools.

“When they come to the honors program, they are able to build on the success they had in high school,” he says. “We have had several honor students that have received national scholarships. It gives all students a chance to succeed in not just academics, but university and community organizations as well.”

Another program focuses on justice, community and sustainability. The Interdisciplinary Education and Action program promotes critical thinking while providing students with opportunities for service learning and other creative activities.

IdEA involves research and provides students with an opportunity to showcase what they have learned at the university.

“USD, in addition to other universities, wants to showcase research and service-learning that goes beyond the classrooms,” Carter says. “This program gives them a chance to showcase what they are researching and what they have learned.”

The First Year Experience program also helps students transition from high school to college with special seminars that connect small student groups in living communities.

CAMPUS ATMOSPHERE

The university’s main campus in Vermillion features the DakotaDome, the National Music Museum, the Oscar Howe Art Gallery and W.H. Over Museum — South Dakota’s only medical library.

The campus’ look and feel is also getting a bit of a makeover with a number of construction projects either under way or recently completed. The 76,000-square-foot Muenster University Center, which includes a dining hall facility, a ballroom, conference rooms, meeting areas, a multicultural center and offices, was completed earlier this year.

The 156,700-square-foot Lee Memorial Medicine and Science Building opened last year. The university is also working on building a new business school, expected to be complete this fall, renovating Slagle Auditorium and building the four-story Coyote Village residence hall.

More than 350 student-athletes participate in 17 intercollegiate sports at the university. The university’s athletic teams are in the process of transitioning to Division I, offering a higher level of competition and helping to increase the university’s national profile.

The university also offers more than 120 organizations or clubs, including social, athletic, religious, pre-professional and hobby groups. Carter says getting involved in campus activities allows students to acclimate to the university and campus life and helps them become more successful.

“It lets them know what is out there,” Carter says. “It broadens their horizons on developing social and professional networks, which gives them the ultimate chance to succeed.”

Van Ormer is a Madison, SD-based freelance writer. He can be reached at avanormer@sio.midco.net.