This weekend, Tiospaye Student Council will host its 50th annual Wacipi, a cultural celebration of tribal traditions for both students and alumni.
Anna Harlem, co-president of Tiospaye Student Council and member of the Omaha tribe, said the student council has taken an interest in extending invitations to the community.
“Everybody is invited. We’ve partnered with the Vermillion Human Relations Commission to bridge the gap between the Vermillion community and campus life, between non-Native and Native people,” Harlem said.
For those interested, Harlem encourages all to see and experience Native culture in ways they haven’t before.
“When you step into the Wacipi, you’ll hear the drums and feel it throughout your body. Music is a healing power for us, we’re not only celebrating, but we’re reunit-
ing and coming together to honor our elders,” Harlem said.
Coyote alumni and their families come together to support this event. Tiospaye Student Council alumnus and current USD graduate student Collette Bowman shared that Wacipi is one of many reasons why she felt supported in college.
“There is such a blend of different cultures [at the Wacipi]. There are over 572 recognized tribes in the United States,” Bowman said. “Even though, at Wacipis, family groups come together with similar dances and regalia.”
Bowman is a member of the Oglala Lakota and Hunkpapa tribes.
“There is always one underlying thing that connects us, no matter where we go,” Bowman said.
Bowman and Harlem both recommend visiting during the Grand Entry.
“Even if you’re not Native
[American], the Wacipi is such a beautiful thing to see,” Bowman said.
“The Grand Entry is when the council and Powwow royalty come, too. You have kids who are three or four, dancing with their parents. You have elders dancing with their regalia,” Bowman said.
“There is nothing like it in Western culture. It is a big celebration of Indigenous culture,” Bowman said.
Tiospaye’s historical roots touch across South Dakota, according to Harlem.
“On the weekend after I was elected, I was at a casino near my home wearing a USD sweatshirt and a woman stopped me and asked if I was a student… it turned out that she was an original member of Tiospaye, it was just so crazy
the way I met her,” Harlem said.
Tiospaye member Laura Red Cloud says the Wacipi is also a celebration of education.
“It’s very important because it brings people together and helps us understand that our education and our achievements are very cool,” Red Cloud said.
Wacipi brings together a variety of tribes and their traditions.
“It’s good that USD is helping us recognize our culture and making sure that we get to represent who we are too, because there’s a lot of different cultures and we want to include everybody, because we’re not all different, we all connect in some way,” Red Cloud said.
USD’s Wacipi is slated to begin with their Grand Entry at 1 and 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 6.
South Dakota’s student leaders are looking to change up how they work with the Board of Regents.
On March 19, South Dakota’s Student Federation voted unanimously to approve a resolution requesting the student regent of the BOR become an ex-officio member of the Student Federation.
The Student Federation is a body of student leaders from each of the six public universities in South Dakota.
Every month, two representatives from each university and three executive members convene on behalf of South Dakota students to work with the Board of Regents.
While the Board of Regents consists of 10 members appointed by the governor, one member is designated as student regent. Since he was appointed in 2020 by Governor Noem, USD law student Brock Brown has served as the student regent.
Making the student regent an ex-officio member means whoever is student regent is automatically a member of the Student Federation, thus adding a sixteenth member to the body.
The three executive members, Michael Garofalo of South Dakota State University, Kayla Jensen of Northern State University and Josh Styskal of the University of South Dakota, sponsored the resolution.
Josh Styskal, Executive Director of the Student Federation hopes the proposed move will improve the working relationship with the BOR.
“Talking amongst ourselves as a student federation, (we asked) what can we do to improve communication overall between the Federation, the Board of Regents and student government?” Styskal said.
While the Student Federation garnered support from other members, there was one key person who didn’t know about the resolution’s passing.
Student Regent Brock Brown told The Volante he was unaware of the resolution until our request for an interview on the matter.
Brown believes the idea has merit but has questions on how it may be implemented.
“I’m not for sure that’s something that we (the BOR) actually have the power to do,” said Brown.
Designating the student
regent as a member of the Student Federation would require changes to bylaws in both institutions.
“There’s nothing in the Board of Regents’ policies that talks about Student Federation because we are two separate entities,” Brown said.
Styskal remains optimistic that the Board of Regents will support their plan.
“I think they will be up for the idea,” Styskal said. “They didn’t really say anything for or against it when we passed it.”
Student leaders and the Board of Regents will have the opportunity to further discuss this idea during the BOR’s meetings later this week on campus.
Regardless of the outcome, it’s unlikely to affect the current student regent: Brown’s term is up in June, when Noem will appoint another student.
According to their agenda, the BOR will convene at the Dome Club in the Sanford Coyote Sports Center at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 3 and 9 a.m. and on Thursday, April 4. The Thursday meeting will have a time set aside for public comments.
The Clothesline Project aims to raise awareness for interpersonal violence by displaying their shirts, created by students. From April 5, and 6 in the W. H. Over Museum, the exhibit will be available for viewing. In an interview with Coyote News, project coordinator Alexa Carlson explained “The Clothesline Project is a visual representation of community members who have experienced interpersonal violence.” Carlson explained that the project shows people how prevalent the different forms of interpersonal violence are. If you are a victim of interpersonal violence or a bystander, you can submit an anonymous report to the Title IX office through the silent witness form on usd.edu.
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Senior infielder Gabby Moser leads the Coyotes softball team with six home runs this season as South Dakota enters conference play looking for their first Summit League title. Moser has always had a love for the sport, pushing her to be where she is today.
“I started playing softball when I was a little kid,” Moser said.
Moser is not the only person in her family that holds a fondness towards softball, as it is a big part of her family’s dynamic and history.
“Softball became our thing,” Moser said. “My mom played college softball where she was a pitcher, and my older sister
also pitched in college. I also have two younger sisters that play and my dad helps coach.”
Besides softball, Moser loves to hangout with her dog, friends and teammates when she does not have school work to do.
As a senior, Moser has started thinking about the end of her career more.
“I haven’t thought about ending until recently, because our games are winding down,” Moser said.
Moser has especially loved this year due to the support and friendships she has found within her team.
“The culture has been amazing and the girls are awesome.
It is fun to go to practice and games with them,” Moser said.
“It’s not about the wins or losses, but being with people you love to be with everyday and the sport you love.”
After a difficult non-conference schedule, South Dakota has a record of 16-21, but Moser sees promise in the team.
“I think that we had the most challenging (non-conference) schedule since I have been here,” Moser said. “We’re looking really good, we have a young team with lots of potential.”
With the potential of the team comes some expectations, and Moser has big expectations for herself and her team.
“All the talent is there,” Moser said. “I think we are going to win the whole thing.”
By the whole thing, Moser means winning the Summit League Tournament that will take place May 8-11.
Moser and the rest of the team hit the field again in Grand Forks, North Dakota against the North Dakota Fighting Hawks from April 6 to 7.
Submitted | USD Athletics
This season, senior infielder Gabby Moser has played in all 37 games for the Coyotes while batting a .296 average. Moser also has 6 home runs this season which has her in 5th place in the Summit League.
USD has created a new collective for athletes that allows for them to be paid based on Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).
Since 2021, student-athletes have been able to be paid while staying under the umbrella of amateur athletes.
South Dakota partnered with Student-Athlete Name Image Likeness, or SANIL, to create the Pride of the Western Plain, the official home of the University of South Dakota NIL.
People can either sign up to be a member of the Pride of the Western Plain for $8.99 a month or make a one-time payment.
out there saying that they’re in conjunction and working with us, and that was a problem we had in the past.”
The agreement between USD and SANIL to create Pride of the Western Plain was one of singularity instead of financials.
“The agreement is not a financial one, it is just so that they are the official collective and student-athletes can choose whether or not to participate in it,” Schemmel said.
Student athletes can seek their own deals if they want, but this new collective agreement gives athletes another opportunity to make money.
“It absolutely does not restrict any of them from going out and having
“This is the tip of the iceberg for us.”
Businesses can also become corporate partners by becoming sponsors. Proceeds from the Pride of the Western Plain will be given to the athletes.
In an interview with Coyote News and live reporter Alex Kleinschmit, South Dakota Athletic Director Jon Schemmel spoke about the new collective.
“All of that (Pride of the Western Plain) is to benefit our student athletes, but also to make an official collective that we partner with,” Schemmel said. “That really protects us and the student athletes from other people grandstanding
their own deals so really it’s the best of both worlds for our student athletes,” Schemmel said.
Giving student athletes options makes the NIL more straightforward for athletes, universities and various states. Each state can make rules and regulations for their universities participing in an NIL.
Making this collective is all a part of Schemmel’s and the athletic department’s plan for the student athletes and the university.
“This is the tip of the iceberg for us,” Schemmel said.
The South Dakota Coyotes women’s basketball team finished its regular season March 2 in a 65-54 victory over the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. They were in the postseason until Mar. 29.
Earlier this season, South Dakota competed in the Summit League tournament where South Dakota State beat the Coyotes 76-63 in the semifinals.
The Coyotes then received and accepted an invitation to the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT), a 48-team bracket where teams bid against one another to host games at their home courts.
In the first round of the tournament, South Dakota faced off against UC Riverside at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center. South Dakota won 72-57 over the Highlanders to ad-
vance to the second round.
UC Riverside’s senior guard Jordan Webster led all scorers with 19 points for the Highlanders. Redshirt senior forward Matehya Bryant also scored 17 points along with eight rebounds.
The Coyotes’ sophomore forward Carly Duffney led the Coyotes during the game with 15 points, making her one of four double-digit scorers in the game. South Dakota’s junior guard Grace Larkins had eight points, 11 rebounds and seven assists.
In the second round, South Dakota won at home against Northern Arizona. The Lumberjacks held a lead of 37-31 at halftime. The Coyotes came back in the second half, winning 79-65.
The Lumberjacks’ junior guard Leia Beattie led the way for the Lumberjacks with 19 points and seven rebounds. Sophomore forward Sophie Glancey had 13 points and four blocks.
Leading the way for South Dakota, Larkins had a career high of 34 points as well as 12 rebounds. Three other Coyotes scored in the double digits as South Dakota went 27 for 28 from the free-throw line in the game.
In the Super 16, the Coyotes traveled to Laramie, Wyoming facing off against Wyoming. South Dakota’s run in the WNIT ended there as they lost 84-52 to the Cowgirls.
The Cowgirls’ junior center Allyson Fertig led the Cowgirls scoring 24 points and 11 rebounds with two blocks. Five Cowgirls scored in double digits during the game against the Coyotes.
Duffney copied Fertig with 24 points and 11 rebounds with two blocks, but it was not enough for South Dakota to overcome Wyoming as their season finally came to an end.
This past weekend was particularly dreary. The last vestiges of winter remain stubborn, like a vampire in a horror movie you can’t quite kill. And it got me thinking, what can I do when the weather is crappy?
My initial list was skimpy. It was mostly a list of bars downtown and the movie theater.
When the weather is nice and warm, there are plenty of outdoor activities: going to Prentiss Park, walking Spirit Mound, going to the Missouri River, and so on.
But what about indoor activities? Vermillion is home to the National Music Museum, one of the largest musical
instrument collections in the entire country.
The NMM also has rare instruments not found anywhere else. For example, the National Music Museum has the world’s oldest playable harpsichord, the predecessor of the piano.
Speaking of museums, there is a museum next to the DakotaDome. The W.H. Over Museum is South Dakota’s oldest museum, displaying artifacts of historical and cultural significance. They also have an Egyptian sarcophagus on display.
Maybe museums aren’t for you. There are two bowling alleys located half an hour away, one in Centerville and one in
Yankton.
In only a 40-minute drive one can head to Sioux City for indoor ax throwing. It’s not as dangerous as it sounds, and it’s a fun activity to do with friends.
Sioux City also hosts an indoor golf simulator, and Sioux Falls has a covere golf range.
If you don’t feel like leaving town and get really bored, the Wellness Center has plenty of indoor activities, and will soon feature an indoor swimming pool.
There’s nothing wrong with exercise, perhaps I’ll even take my own advice.
With the activities listed so far, we’re forgetting one of
the most quintessential things to do: eat. This is one of my favorite activities.
There is no shortage of food in this part of the country, and you can really make the rounds between Sioux City, Sioux Falls, Yankton and some small towns in Nebraska.
Sioux City has some great Mexican food and pizza, while Sioux Falls has a wide variety of different cuisines.
In a perfect world, it would be nice to see more indoor activities located in Vermillion. I suppose that’s the price of going to university in a small town. But for now, we’ll have to do with traveling for entertainment.
Down
1. PBS show about an aardvark
3. Dysfunctional Rhode Island family
5. Started in 1991, and featured babies perspectives of the world
7. Stars four friends who solve crimes with their dog
9. Show about a futuristic family
Across
2. Series inspired by popular Japanese card game with fighting “creatures”
4. Three superhero girls, created accidentally in a lab
6. Lives in a pineapple under the sea
8. Modern Stone Age Family
10. Long running TV series featuring yellow family
The Volante accepts original comic submissions. To submit a comic, email Nathan.DeGreef@coyotes.usd.edu
Here you’ll find the weirdest, funniest and stupidest things we’ve heard during the week. Context is for suckers.
“Hollarr being sold is going to be the root cause of my villian arc, people who think I’m bad now aren’t going to know what hit them.”
- The C-Store
“You ever think about how plungers just give toilets CPR but with water instead of oxygen?”
-MUC
“I’m starting to think that beaver, Punxsutawney Phillip or whatever his name is hates us.”
- Patterson Hall
Romance is a genre I have grown to appreciate more over time as an avenue for stellar emotional acting and stories that have left my heart aching.
Long gone are the days of the mindset that romance movies are cheesy plots filled with cliches. It is instead a genre that houses some of my favorite films.
“All of Us Strangers” is one
such film, as it surprised me with its intensely emotional story.
The film follows a screenwriter named Adam (Andrew Scott) who starts a romantic relationship with fellow tenant Harry (Paul Mescal), as they are the only ones living in an apartment complex and are both very lonely.
Soon after beginning their relationship, Adam begins to have visions of his parents who died when he was little. From there, he begins to question what is real and what isn’t.
The movie does a fantastic job of showing how loving Adam and Harry’s relationship is, but also how unstable it potentially could be as they both have immense emotional baggage.
Some of this baggage comes in the form of Harry finding comfort in his delusions and needing to talk to his parents despite them not being real.
This setup leads to many very powerful moments that highlight Harry’s loneliness in life, his trauma over losing his parents and his
frustration over suppressing his sexuality when he was younger.
The emotional crux of this film is elevated through breathtaking shots and scenes that are almost dreamlike. Each scene does a good job of showing how a character is feeling without directly telling you, which is something I greatly appreciate.
The film also sports one of my favorite soundtracks in recent memory with ambient songs that add to the sense of loneliness and licensed tracks that match the
mood. The film uses the song “The Power of Love” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood so effectively that it was impossible for me not to cry.
There are a few moments that feel a tad cliche in hindsight, but the movie’s soaring highs far outweigh its minor problems.
I highly recommend this film as I feel it is one of the best of the last year and wish it got a wider release sooner. Even if you are not a fan of romance, “All of Us Strangers” is still worth checking out.
Nathan.DeGreef@coyotes.usd.edu
From Old Main to the Wellness Center, many students can be spotted wearing some form of athleisure. Whether they are seen in head-to-toe sportswear or wearing jeans and a casual hoodie, students generally can be found wearing some form of athletic attire.
For over two decades, Lululemon Athletica has remained a popular athletic apparel company, with more than 710 stores globally.
For some, their first interaction with Lululemon was the infamous belt bag, which rose in popularity a few summers ago.
The price of the bag is typically $38 for the 1L size, which is arguably less expensive than their other products.
“I feel like [Lululemon] is definitely more popular now… because of the belt bag,” student Arianna Enriquez said. “Those became really trendy, so like everyone has a Lululemon belt bag now.”
Like most fashion trends, possibly the biggest critique of the company is its price point, as Lu-
lulemon Athletica prices typically are about $68 for a tee shirt, and $98 - $118 for a pair of leggings.
“It’s expensive, but it’s a high quality item,” freshman Maurina Street said. “There’s a markup on their items, like I know they cost a ton less to make than what they sell them for.”
Freshman Billy Hendryx says that owning a couple of items is worth it, in his opinion, but does agree that the prices can be excessive.
His reason for favoring the brand is the comfort and durability of their apparel.
Other students have differing views on Lululemon’s products.
“You can get a lot of similar products for a lot cheaper, even better products for cheaper,” student Gannon Cauwels said.
Other alternative brands have been popping up on campus as well, especially in areas such as the Wellness Center.
“I feel like the people who are getting into working out and lifting, they’re switching to brands like GymShark or YoungLA,” Wellness Center student employee
The consensus from student
opinions of the brand Lululemon Athletica is that while it may be pricey, the quality of the garments make the price worth the product.
SAE
Grilled Cheese with SAEs - 3/26
“The event went pretty well the proceeds went to The Children’s Miracle Network, roughly $1,200” - SAE member, Nolan Thramer
Pi Beta Phi
Pi Phi Bow Tie - 3/27
“The event had a great turnout, right away there was so many people. This year we made about $1,500 after expenses Funds go to our Philanthropy Read Lead Achieve and the Literacy Fund which supports children’s literacy across the nation ” - Pi Beta Phi member, Ava Sevening
SAE
Pattys Pageant - 3/28
“I put my name in the ringer because it’s a good thing to do all the proceeds go to the Children’s Miracle Network and our philanthropy, Be The Match, which is our national sponsor ” - SAE member, Ethan Koehler
Alpha Phi
Alpha Ph-reeze - 4/2
“The turnout was really good and the funds are going to the Domestic Violence Safe Options Services in Vermillion”
- Alphi Phi member, Tia Hildebrandt
AXID x LAMBDA
Watermelon Bash - 4/3
“The proceeds for the Watermelon Bash will go to Feeding South Dakota and the Foster Network, which are our main philanthropic organizations that our two chapters partner with ”External VP, Lambda Chi Alpha, Griffin Petersen
