Sunday May 28, 2023
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem issued a letter May 25 to the board of trustees that oversees the state's six public universities. In it, she bemoaned the state of higher education in the country and called on the board to take a series of actions to "show the nation what quality higher education should look like."
Among several points, the Republican governor told the council it should ban drag shows on college campuses and separately remove all preferred pronouns in school materials, as well as remove any mandates that force people to use preferred pronouns.
But the first point of action she raised appears to be a priority, which is that the board should aim to raise the graduation rate at its six universities to 65 percent by 2028, compared to the current graduation rate of 47 percent. Meanwhile, in 2020, the national graduation rate was 63 percent.
“At the K-12 level, we are taking steps to improve our standards and expand school choice in South Dakota so that all children have access to a high-quality education that prepares them for what comes after high school,” Noem told the board in her letter ( pdf).
“Of those who decide to start attending university after graduation, less than half complete it. We have to do better. I look forward to working with all of you on ideas to improve our graduation rate.”
The Epoch Times emailed the Council of Regents for comment.
crisis situation
Noem said higher education in the United States is in a "state of crisis."
“Over the past few decades, many states have allowed liberal ideologies to poison their universities and colleges. Once hotbeds of ideological diversity, debate, and the pursuit of truth and discovery, many institutions have become one-sided, closed, and focused on feelings rather than facts,” she wrote.
“Professors have discarded reason and logic in favor of subjectivity and relativism. University leaders have rejected universal truth and knowledge and replaced it with 'individual truth.'"
She said students at universities across the United States "learned the importance of diversity and equality and were given access to 'safe spaces' instead of learning to tolerate the dissent, discomfort and disapproval they would experience in the real world."
"In many cases, students and their parents don't even realize the damage these ideas have caused," she said.
Regarding the drag show, she wrote, “Just as other dangerous theories have been allowed to flourish on college campuses, gender theory has been rebranded and accepted as truth across the country.
"These theories should be openly discussed in school classrooms, but not celebrated with public appearances on taxpayer-owned property in taxpayer-funded schools."
Regarding the preferred pronouns, she wrote that their commandment at some universities has "compelled and coerced" some students to "provide speech with which they do not agree".
“Students should be able to exercise their right to free speech. Colleges and universities should never force students to speak or take a stand on any issue,” the governor said.
Noem also told the board that her administration has created a new whistleblower hotline where students, faculty members, parents or taxpayers can report concerns at the state's colleges at 605-773-5916.
"Our children are our future and South Dakota's universities and technical colleges should prepare them the best they can for our future," Noem said in a post on Twitter.
The governor noted that she had recently appointed two members to the board and would soon be making more appointments.
Five more points
In addition to raising graduation rates, banning drag shows and removing and enforcing preferred pronouns, Noem noted that some universities have restricted speech on topics that some people find "offensive."
"The Board of Regents should eliminate any policies or practices that prohibit students from exercising their right to free speech," she said.
"Black Hills State University was recently challenged and ultimately struck down for a policy that allowed administrators to silence views they disagreed with," the governor noted, adding that colleges and universities should review and revise any policies that violate students' right to free speech. Colleges should also adopt policies that "develop and strengthen student resilience" when confronted with opposing ideas.
Noem also wanted the board of regents to "take further steps to partner with businesses in registered apprenticeship schemes and offer the lowest possible loan rates". She noted that roughly 43 percent of students who graduated still found themselves unemployed or underemployed.
The other three action points she presented to the board were: reduce costs to make higher education more affordable; require a course in American government and a course in American history as part of graduation requirements; and remove any monetary influence, whether through funding or donations, from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
“[The CCP] is known to fund Confucius Institutes and other similar centers at American universities to provide distorted Chinese cultural training to American students,” Noem said.
“It's part of a multi-pronged propaganda effort, and money from the CCP has no place in South Dakota. The Board of Regents should refuse any donations from resources and any other government hostile to the United States.
