South Dakota State University

How can marching band members learn the band's formations and their own individual movements more easily? This was the basic question that Grant Sternhagen, a junior in South Dakota State University's Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering, asked. The answer has led to a long-term development project that could allow marching band members to learn their spots and moves on a field by following along on their phones through an inexpensive app. And Sterhagen's proclivity to be a changemaker has only grown at SDSU, where he serves in student organizations and activities, volunteers for college events, and even lobbies SDSU and state officials for change on campus.

Joseph Daly, a music education major at South Dakota State University, will present his senior recital at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 21, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the SDSU campus.

Students from the South Dakota State University College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions made a trip to the South Dakota Capitol Feb. 13-14, advocating for their chosen profession and offering lawmakers free health screenings.

Two South Dakota State University students were recently selected to receive a $2,500 grant sponsored by the South Dakota Cattlemen's Foundation to support two undergraduate beef cattle research projects.

Connor Ilchuk, a music education major at South Dakota State University, will present his junior recital at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 18, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the SDSU campus.

The following students graduated after the summer and fall 2023 semesters at South Dakota State University. Nearly 1,000 students completed all requirements for a degree and/or certificate program, and those requirements have been verified by the appropriate college. Overall, students from 36 states and 25 nations graduated following the summer and fall 2023 semesters. Nearly 40 students received two or more degrees or certificates from a college.

Josh Howard, a senior majoring in music studies, will present his senior recital at 4 p.m. Sunday, March 3, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the South Dakota State University campus.

Los Angeles actor and playwright Deb Hiett is coming to South Dakota State University to celebrate the collegiate premiere of her new play, "The Escape Thingy." Performance dates are Feb. 22-24 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Fishback Studio Theatre. A public dialogue with Hiett will immediately follow the Friday, Feb. 23, performance.

South Dakota State University student Kaitlyn Preszler conducted research on the relationship between cattle and wildflowers in South Dakota.

One of South Dakota State University's most historical cocurricular teams is preparing to make history at its first international tournament in March. Jackrabbits Forensics, SDSU's competitive speech and debate team, will travel to Dublin, Ireland, March 8-14 to compete in the International Forensics Association contest.

South Dakota State University juniors Katelyn Plucker and Brianna Renneker will present a joint recital at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the SDSU campus.

Four South Dakota State University seniors are presenting their Bachelor of Fine Arts thesis exhibition on campus this month. The exhibition, titled "Visual Voyages," is set for Feb. 12-23 and will include paintings, printmaking, ceramics and sculptures, which are the work of students Katelyn Engel, Jake Heunisch, Nicole Strande and Shane Waikel.

At age 7, boys and girls dream about being the next Neil Armstrong, Taylor Swift or Michael Phelps. By middle school, or certainly by high school, those dreams have become faded memories for almost everyone. Liam Murray, an SDSU swimmer and mechanical engineering graduate student, is among the exceptions.

Arianna Rice, a music education major at South Dakota State University, will present her junior recital at 2 p.m. Friday, Feb. 2, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the SDSU campus.

South Dakota State University's Journal of Undergraduate Research returned to publication for the first time since 2019. The journal is one of the avenues in which students can gain experience in the scholarly publication process and features projects from students, or student groups, in physics, food science and mechanical engineering for its 18th volume.

Over the past three seasons, South Dakota State University's softball team has transcended from a solid program into one of the top mid-major programs in the Midwest. Since the 2021 season, SDSU has lost a total of three regular season conference games and has won the last three regular season Summit League conference titles. Consistency has been key to the Jackrabbits' success, and few players have been more consistent than outfielder Lindsey Culver, who has played and started in over 95% of the games during the team's remarkable run. Culver, who is in her final year with the softball program, has applied her consistent approach to her academic career, where she has been equally successful. The only member of the team majoring in mechanical engineering in the Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering, Culver has been named to the Summit League's Commissioner's List of Academic Excellence and the Academic Honor Roll.

The South Dakota State University Rodeo Team ended the fall 2023 season with the women's team ranked second and the men's team ranked fourth among 15 schools and 280 contestants represented in the Great Plains Region of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association. The team, under the direction of SDSU Rodeo Coach Ron Skovly, is made up of 45 traveling members who hit the road for five consecutive weekends this season.

More than 3,400 students were recognized for their outstanding academic performance over the fall 2023 semester at South Dakota State University by being named to the dean's list. To earn dean's list distinctions in SDSU's colleges, students must have completed a minimum of 12 credits and must have earned at least a 3.5 GPA on a 4.0 scale. Students with F, I, U, RI or RU grades are not eligible regardless of system term GPA attained. Note that this report includes courses that were taken at other South Dakota institutions this term. A minimum of 12 credits within the 100-699 course range must be taken. A student who passes pregeneral education courses may still qualify, if the student has 12 other credits that do fall within the 100-699 range. Overall, 3,475 students from 39 states and 24 foreign nations are on the list. Nearly 1,500 students received a 4.0 GPA, and those are indicated with an asterisk. Congratulations to these distinguished scholars on earning this academic achievement.

National Day of Giving can be the nonprofit equivalent of retailer's Black Friday. However, many smaller agencies don't have the manpower to engage in a robust social media campaign. For five area nonprofits, that need was addressed by students in the Fundraising and Resource Development course at South Dakota State University. The efforts helped the nonprofits raise more than $10,000 on National Day of Giving Nov. 28, according to Kim Gustafson, coordinator of the leadership and management of nonprofit organization's major at SDSU.

Students from SDSU's College of Pharmacy and Allied Health Professions presented posters at the 2023 Midyear Clinical Meeting of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP). The 2023 meeting was held from Dec. 2-7. The ASHP Midyear Meeting is an annual gathering of more than 20,000 pharmacy students and professionals. Posters are presented by pharmacy professionals, residents, fellows and students on a variety of pharmacy-related topics.

Students in the South Dakota State University School of Communication and Journalism completed several projects for various businesses in Sioux Falls this semester. Advertising students presented their work at Startup Sioux Falls on Nov. 30. As part of their Advertising Media Strategies course, students created and pitched individualized social media campaigns to real Sioux Falls businesses.

NASA has narrowed the field to six in its lunar soil excavating contest, and a team of students from South Dakota State University is among the group left in the hunt for a $1 million top prize. Conceived in 2020, the Break the Ice Lunar Challenge tasked innovators with creating robotic systems that can navigate the rugged terrain of the Lunar South Pole, dig up its icy soil and transport it to another location, where, in theory, water could be extracted from the soil. There were two earlier design and prototype phases in which SDSU advanced. In the latest stage, SDSU was one of 15 finalists invited to give their prototypes a 15-day test.

When it comes to electrical engineering scholarship, the program at South Dakota State University could be considered the standard of the power grid. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has announced the 2023-24 recipients of the Power and Energy Society Scholarships. For the second year in a row, SDSU dominated. The nine current selections are one better than the mark the program set last year. The list includes four repeat winners and five newcomers.

Ellise Otheim, a first-year nursing student at South Dakota State University, is the recipient of a $5,000 Sanford Health Military and Veteran Scholarship. Otheim, a sophomore from Hartford, was surprised with a scholarship announcement during her Professional Nursing Concepts class on Nov. 13, as representatives from Sanford and SDSU stormed the Wagner Hall classroom with balloons and a giant check.

The South Dakota State University School of Design was selected this past spring to propose a master plan for a new community park in Chamberlain. After months of preparation, the final proposal was presented to and endorsed by community partners and the Chamberlain City Council this fall to begin the next step of development and implementation.

South Dakota State University juniors Joseph Cassady, clarinet, and Avery Retzer, soprano, will present a recital at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 20, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the SDSU campus.

Andrew Ellis, a senior majoring in music education, will present his senior recital at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16, in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center's Founders Recital Hall on the South Dakota State University campus.

The South Dakota State University aviation program hosted students from the Sioux Falls School District's Career and Technical Education Academy on a recent visit to the Brookings Regional Airport.

Professional sports, whether it be playing in or working for, is a goal for many high school and college students across the country. A pair of South Dakota State University students spent this past summer interning for professional sports teams.

The South Dakota State University Concert Choir will present its Scandinavian Northern Lights-themed concert this weekend with a performance celebrating the group's upcoming trip to Sweden and Norway.