Monday Message, March 3
SDSU Community,
What an exciting weekend it has been for South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State University! I want to start by congratulating our . This marks the third time in program history the team has claimed the title, with the last championship coming in the 2021-22 season. I also want to recognize our women’s team for its strong performance, finishing fourth in a highly competitive field. The energy and competitive spirit displayed by all our student-athletes at the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex was truly inspiring.
As we celebrate these accomplishments, we also turn our attention to an exciting week ahead for Jackrabbits Athletics. Our men’s and women’s basketball teams are gearing up for the Summit League Conference Tournament in Sioux Falls at the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center.
against the winner of Omaha and Denver. against North à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã. The semifinals for both teams will take place Saturday, with the championship games set for Sunday. These student-athletes have worked tirelessly all season, and I know Jackrabbit Nation will be there in full force to cheer them on as they have all previous years the tournament has been in Sioux Falls.
Beyond athletics, this is a busy and pivotal time on campus. Next week, students will enjoy a well-earned spring break, and when we return, there will be just six weeks remaining in the academic year. It is hard to believe how quickly time has passed, and soon, we will be celebrating commencement — a momentous occasion for our graduates and their families.
Several important groups on campus have been planning and preparing for our graduation ceremonies, which will move back to campus in the renovated First Bank & Trust Arena. The city of Brookings and the staff at Dacotah Bank Center were tremendous partners the past two years as we had to move off campus during the renovations of First Bank & Trust Arena, but I do look forward to having the ceremonies back on campus and seeing our students and their families celebrating in our new facility.
This week also marks the final stretch of the 100th South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã Legislature. Next Monday is the last day for bills and joint resolutions to pass both houses, and we anticipate a busy few days as lawmakers finalize their work. We will continue to monitor any developments that may impact our university and keep our campus community informed.
As always, I deeply appreciate the dedication and hard work of our faculty, staff and students. Your commitment to excellence — whether in academics, research or extracurricular activities — makes South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State University an extraordinary place to learn, grow and achieve.
Thank you for all that you do, and I hope you have a fantastic week!
Go Jacks!
Sincerely,
Barry H. Dunn, President
Above and Beyond recognizes individuals and groups of South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State University faculty, staff and students for individual and team efforts that go Above and Beyond to make the campus community a better place. This week we recognize faculty and staff in the Ness School of Management and Economics for earning SDSU accreditation from the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, the global standard-setting body for business education.
Earning (and maintaining) accreditation demands continuous improvement, driving the Ness School to deliver on its mission to innovate and to drive impact—in the classroom, in research and scholarly activity, and in outreach.
Thanks to the faculty and staff in the Ness School of Management and Economics for the outstanding achievement:
Gracie Barber, Axton Betz-Hamilton, Monty Bohrer, Whoi Cho, Rohini Daraboina, David Davis, Matthew Diersen, Xiaozhou Ding, Victoria Dubbelde, Matthew Elliott, Allen Falken, Michelle Fleig-Palmer, Heather Gessner, Katie Grayson, Kayte Haggerty, Barb Heller, Hailong Jin, Bruce Johnson, Jaehyeon Kim, Brittany Kjerstad McKnight, Nicole Klein, Ekaterina Koromyslova, Elijah Kosse, George Langelett, Hoanh Le, Andrea Leschewski, Shirley Liu, Huitian Lu, Ryan McKnight, Andrew Morgan, David Palmer, Joe Santos, Oscar Sarasty Miranda, Sarah Sellars, Craig Silvernagel, Nacasius Ujah, Evert Van der Sluis, Tong Wang, Zhiguang (Gerald) Wang, Darin Wipf and Biying Yang.
The school thanks its students, colleagues across campus and external stakeholders, including advisory board members Sheila Anderson, Jacob Chacko, Bill Even, Ron Feldman, Kira Kimball, Amber Langner and Dave Rozenboom.
The Monday Message appears weekly during the academic year and less frequently during the summer months and holiday breaks.
Information for the Monday Message, including nominations for Above and Beyond, can be submitted online.
2025 Distinguished Alumni Nominations
The SDSU Alumni Association is seeking nominations for the 2025 Distinguished Alumni awards. .
LeadState Nominations
The Office of Student Union and Activities is seeking nominations for LeadState, a semester-long program for sophomore students that will take place during the fall 2025 semester. The program helps students identify and build on their leadership strengths, identify and lead with values, be a catalyst for social change, connect with campus and community leaders, and engage in community service.
Faculty and staff who have students they would like to nominate for LeadState should send each student’s name, student ID number and email address to Seth Daughters by April 4.
Campus Projects Presentation
The campus community is invited to join an March 13 at 9:30 a.m. Dave Law, facilities and services director of project management, will share the project map and discuss the ongoing and upcoming construction projects around campus.
Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions via the chat function during the presentation. The presentation will focus on upcoming work around campus, impacts in and around buildings, road closures, as well as other interesting and impactful project-related information.
SDSU Admissions Ambassador Selection
The Office of Admissions is currently taking applications for 2025-26 Admissions Ambassadors.
Admissions Ambassadors are hired to represent and promote SDSU to prospective students and their families, as well as the public. They are critical to the successful recruitment of students to SDSU. Ambassadors are often the first, and possibly the only, student that a prospective student and their family may meet during the college search process. The public will form lasting impressions about SDSU based on the information Ambassadors provide.
Admissions Ambassadors are selected through a competitive application and selection process. Positions are offered to current SDSU students who will have completed at least one year as a full-time college student at SDSU when they start their position.
Information sessions (Enrollment Services Center):
March 5 – 4-5 p.m.
March 20 – 3-4 p.m.
Application reviews begin March 21 with interviews scheduled for March 25-26.
Professional Advisor à£à£Ö±²¥Ðãs
Nominations are now open for SDSU’s Professional Advisor à£à£Ö±²¥Ðãs. Nominations are being accepted for the Professional Advisor à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã for Excellence in Advising (2-plus years of experience) or the Emerging Professional in Advising à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã (1-4 years of experience). Any professional academic advisor or student success advisor who meets the is eligible. Details about the award, including the nomination process, selection criteria and a link to the nomination form can be found on the .
Nominations are due by 5 p.m. March 12. The recipients will be recognized at an awards ceremony in May.
Questions may be directed to Jody Owen.
Summer Term Compensation Open Forums
Continuing and Distance Education, Academic Affairs and Human Resources are hosting an open forum for departments, schools and faculty regarding summer term compensation.
Nine- and 10-month faculty who may be teaching, conducting research and providing service during the summer term are invited to join us to learn about summer term compensation, related processes and important dates.
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March 19 – Summer term faculty open forum from 1:30-2:30 p.m., University Student Union Room 169, Campanile and Hobo Day Gallery (A and B).
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International Women's Day Celebration
Celebrate International Women's Day with coffee, tea and treats, Friday from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. in University Student Union, Room 271.
China Night
The Chinese Students and Scholars Association will host China Night March 23 at 6 p.m. at the Dacotah Bank Center. The event features authentic Chinese food and cultural performances, including a lion dance, a fashion show, instrumental music, vocal selections and much more.
Dinner includes chongqing spicy chicken, cumin beef, fried dumplings, mapo tofu, red bean paste sesame balls, three delights of the earth and white rice. .
Research Funding Beyond USDA and NSF
The Division of Research and Economic Development will host a , Thursday from 9-10 a.m. to discuss funding opportunities beyond the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Science Foundation.
Additional information about the webinar can be found on sdstate.edu.
Wellness Center Free Access
SDSU employees and their families will have free access to the Miller Wellness Center recreation and fitness areas from Saturday through March 16. Employees must present employee ID at check in.
Eastern Science and Engineering Fair Judges
The Eastern South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã Science and Engineering Fair will be held March 25 in Club 71 at the Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium. The event invites middle and high school students to campus to showcase their research. The success of the event depends on a group of judges helping interview students for a variety of awards and prizes.
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The majority of the judging occurs from 9-11:30 a.m., with a judges training starting at 8:15 a.m. Some judges are also needed for the Grand à£à£Ö±²¥Ðãs from 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. If you are interested in serving as a Grand à£à£Ö±²¥Ðãs judge, please email Brad Blaha. Grand à£à£Ö±²¥Ðãs judges generally have judging experience and an interest in a broad range of subjects.
Faculty who work with undergraduate students that may be interested in helping serve as volunteers . Colleges and departments interested in sponsoring an award should email Brad Blaha.
Jacks Virtual 5K
The South à£à£Ö±²¥Ðã State Alumni Association will host the Jacks Virtual 5K to benefit Jack’s Cupboard, SDSU's free on-campus food pantry for students experiencing food insecurity, during the month of April. A virtual 5K is a race that can be run or walked from any location, any day or any time that you choose during the month of April. Additional information about the event and how to enter is available on the
IDS Spring 2025 Training Schedule
Instructional Design Services will host training seminars during the spring 2025 semester.
The trainings will include online community building, accessible eLearning and teaching in the generative AI era. Some featured workshops include the D2L accessibility checker (Panorama) and the newly added D2L gradebook feature allowing instructors to publish grades directly to Banner.
These workshops, eLearning applications, weekly webinars and the Online Teaching Certification Program will help prepare for successful teaching in spring 2025.
All SDSU faculty, academic staff and graduate teaching assistants are encouraged to attend these training sessions.
Updated Policies
New and updated university policies continue to be adopted and published. For the most recent updates, visit the New and Recently Revised Policies page on sdstate.edu.
