USD hosted its annual Ideafest from April 5-6. For these two days, the university was filled with educational presentations and speakers at the research symposium.
IdeaFest is an opportunity for students to showcase their academic achievements to other students, faculty and community members. Lindsay Hayes, the IdeaFest coordinator, said IdeaFest is a valuable event.
“It is a time where students from all areas of campus come together to present their research, creative scholarship and academic engagement,” Hayes said.
IdeaFest gives students a space to show others what they devote their time to besides classes.
“We get to celebrate student achievement by participating in a variety of educational sessions
highlighting these successes,” Hayes said.
IdeaFest has grown in the number of participants and success of the event compared to its previous years. This year, at their 35th event, they had 375 students presenting over the course of two days.
“All students are welcome to present as part of a class, special programming, traditional research or service learning projects,” Hayes said.
There are many benefits to students who participate. Students gain skills in presenting, talking and collaborating with others. Rachel Spinks, an IdeaFest presenter, said she is thankful for the experience.
“Becoming dedicated to a topic and developing it into something that I was knowledgeable about to teach others was really beneficial,” Spinks said. “I think the skill set of learning how to be dedicated to our research topics is what a lot of other presenters would also agree is where the payoff comes.”
IdeaFest is also an opportunity for students to connect with future employers. Some students’ presentations are specifically related to their field while others use IdeaFest to get the experience of building their confidence.
“IdeaFest is a way that I take my academic development further than the classroom by creating an event that I will be able to speak on with future employers,” Spinks said. “Specifically within my topic of AI use within academics, I can take this knowledge gained and apply it to my future career.”
All students are welcome to present in IdeaFest. If interested, students will need to work with an advisor to submit an abstract and indicate what type of presentation they will create. Once it’s approved by the committee, they will officially be a participant.
If anyone has questions or concerns contact Ideafest@usd.edu.
University housing has changed their housing portal to bar most students who’ve been living on campus for their first two years from living on campus a third year. This has been caused by the housing crisis on campus.
Cody Burggraff, director of housing, said USD is required to house anyone for two years from their high school graduation date, due to the South Dakota Board of Regents policy 3:6 and needs to meet the policy.
“We have done our best in prior years to house students that are outside of that requirement if they wished to remain with us. This upcoming year, the admissions office has done a fantastic job bringing in another large first year class that will be required to
live with us,” Burggraff said. “We need to do our best to meet our policy as well as try to work with students that are outside of the live-on requirement.”
Burggraff said students who will be living on campus for the upcoming school year will not notice a difference in the quality of the spaces USD has.
“We will still have all services available to them at our front desk as well as our student and professional staff members to assist with whatever comes up,” Burggraff said. “We pride ourselves in housing being an extension of the classroom, we are still educators for our students. With just because most of our beds will be filled, it will not affect the quality of their on campus housing experience.”
As for students with disabilities, student athletics or students unable to drive or get a car, Burggraff
said they can accommodate students based on their circumstances.
“As with any decision, there are always exceptions that we can work through on an individual basis,” Burggraff said. “If there are any students with any unique circumstances that wish to speak about housing, they are welcome to come and chat with our office and we can see what we can do for them.”
Burggraff also mentioned that although the school has accepted so many students that housing has changed, various departments across campus will work together and with students to help with solving issues. If anyone has any questions related to housing for the fall, contact housing@usd.edu or at (605) 6775563.
Three USD faculty were selected to present for USD’s third annual Brown Bag Lunch Research Presentations. The Brown Bag Lunch Presentations is to showcase research done by the USD faculty on campus.
The three presenters at the event were Dr. Elizabeth Hanson (associate professor of communication sciences & disorders), Dr. Meghann Jarchow (chair and associate professor in the Department Sustainability & Environment) and Todd Mechling (instructor of media & journalism).
Ginna O’Conner, a grant specialist in the office of Research and Sponsored programs, said the reason behind the presentations was to reach out to community members.
“We call it the Brown Bag Lunch Research Presentations because the intention behind it was to reach out to faculty, staff and community members while eating their lunch and learning something new,” O’Conner said.
This year, the research department wanted to have a different approach to the presentations.
“We invite a different group of faculty members each semester to be presenters
and talk about their research. We typically pick researchers who are doing something interesting. That’s what we’ve done in the past,” O’Conner said, “ This year, we decided to have a theme… we decided to showcase the President’s 2022 Research Award recipients.”
In November of 2022, USD presented four staff members the President’s Research Award in their own field of study. Nearly all recipients presented in the research presentations.
Jarchow said she was happy to be included in the presentations.
“I was delighted to be a part of the [Brown Bag Lunch Research Presentation]. I would like to help educate others about sustainability,” Jarchow said. “My idea is that I need to help get information out to others about different ways you can think about sustainability.”
In the past, they have experimented with different ways to reach out to the community. This year it was over Zoom, although in the past they have tried to have it in person. O’Conner said they will continue to experiment until they can have the most effective way to reach community members.
More information on the recipients of the president’s award can be found at usd.edu/news.
The anthropology department at USD has reintroduced the Museum Techniques course after a five-year hiatus. Dr. Tony Krus teaches the introductory museology course, which is a mixture of both traditional lecture style and internships at local museums.
The course returned due to the high demand from students. Dr. Krus explained that out of all the courses listed in the catalog that weren’t being taught, students most frequently asked about Museum Techniques. This initially led him to develop an independent study in the topic, which was a success with students who completed the course.
“They’ve told me that was one of their favorite things that they had done at the University of South Dakota. One of them went to grad school at the University of Maryland for Anthropology and museum studies, so I felt like ‘oh, that had a big impact,’” Krus said. “Another student in the independent study was hired as an education coordinator at the Montpelier House Museum in Maryland, and then recently, she was hired as a curatorial assistant at the Joslyn Art Museum.”
Dr. Krus used these independent studies to find a new approach to teaching the course. Rather than having the entire course be taught in a classroom or entirely as an internship, he found a way to encompass all aspects of museums.
“I think the students would miss out if it was just in the classroom all semester because then they wouldn’t have done
any work in a museum,” Dr. Krus said. “But if they just worked in a museum all semester, they wouldn’t have gone over the fundamentals of what museums are all about or the discipline of museology.”
The course aims to provide a broad introduction to museums, and Dr. Krus hopes that students will leave the course with an understanding of the role of museums in society.
Students currently enrolled in the class have enjoyed the split nature of it and felt that it was not only a resume booster but also an opportunity to learn things they would not have learned in their traditional courses. Emily Williams, a current student in the class, said that the course has had a significant impact on her.
“It’s especially wonderful to be surrounded by peers who are also interested in specifically the exhibiting side of whatever field they’re representing. Everyone has something in common with the other people in their major, but this class has no specific major making up the roster,” Williams said. “Nonetheless, everyone there is interested in the niche circle of information and activities that make up museum upkeep or data collection. Dr. Krus is also an amazing professor who is obviously passionate about what he does and is determined to make sure every student has every resource they need to succeed in the class. I am a better history major for having taken it.”
While the class will not be offered every year, interested students can look for it in the spring of 2025.
With dietary restrictions during the month of Ramadan, USD’s Muslim students are struggling to adhere to their religious obligations with the current dining options on campus.
Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, is a time of fasting and prayer for Muslims worldwide. Muslims are not permitted to eat or drink from sunrise to sunset.
Talha Khan, a freshman majoring in business/innovation and entrepreneurship from Islamabad, Pakistan, said the lack of Halal beef and chicken make dining difficult.
“We have to go to Sioux Falls to get the chicken for us, which can be quite embarrassing because none of us own cars,” Khan said. “You’d have to go for vegetarian and since I go to the gym, I can’t fulfill my protein requirements.”
Halal, meaning ‘lawful’ in Arabic, defines items or practices that are permissible in Islam. For chicken or beef to be considered Halal, it must be slaughtered from the neck while reciting a prayer. The consumption of pork is strictly forbidden in Islam.
Khan uses a takeaway container to
eat food from the cafeteria after sunset. He is only allowed one container for dinner and the following day’s breakfast.
“I usually reheat the mug if I have some left, but if not, I go to the C-Store and I get food from there,” Khan said.
“Because of that, I’ve used all of my Flex. I have about 50 bucks right now. Before Ramadan, I think it was about 400.”
Sodexo’s General Manager, Julia Neer, said she was first made aware of concerns about dining hours and Halal on April 3.
“We immediately worked with OMA (Office of Multicultural Affairs) to provide reusable to-go containers for Muslim students to pick up food in the dining hall to reheat after sundown,” Neer said.
Neer also stated that future Halal dining options were discussed for the fall with a student.
Khan hopes the dining hall will remain open later during Ramadan in the future.
“It would be highly appreciated if the timings go to 8:15, that way the food will be fresh,” Khan said.
Ramadan began March 22 and ends on April 20.
Volume 148, No. 7 April 12, 2023 www.volanteonline.com
Al Neuharth Media Center 555 N. Dakota St. University of South Dakota Vermillion, SD 57069 Adviser Tim Schreiner
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Tavin Carncross Editor-in-ChiefWEDNESDAY, APRIL 12, 2023 THE VOLANTE
Junior Erin Kinney finished out her 2023 indoor track season ranked 22nd nationally in the 60 meter dash, but without a middle school injury, her record breaking season may never have happened.
In elementary school, Kinney began her career as a gymnast. However, in seventh grade, her career was halted due to an injury. Kinney found out she had a pars defect (a stress fracture of the bones of the lower spine) and a broken vertebrae which would ultimately stop her from competing in gymnastics.
Soon after her diagnosis, Kinney decided to pursue track even though she said she wasn’t the most athletic but had developed quick running skills from her time in gymnastics.
“I was really good at the floor and the vault when I was in gymnastics,” Kinney said. “I was really powerful and pretty quick, so that’s when I knew I wanted to be a sprinter.”
As Kinney began high school, she decided to start training for track more intensely with the goal of getting a track scholarship somewhere for college. During her first couple years of high school, Kinney was set on going further away to college, but her family ties to USD were in the back of her mind.
“As I got older, I realized that in the bigger programs you were just a number,” Kinney said. “I felt really valued by the coaches here and I was really impressed with what the program stood for. I just felt like I was at home here.”
Now, only a few years after making the decision to follow in her mom’s footsteps and become a Coyote, Kinney is finding her name at the top of the record books.
In the 2023 indoor track season, Kinney broke the record for the 60 meter
dash with a time of 7.24 and helped her 4x200 meter relay team to a 1:40.69 finish which landed them as the Coyote record holders for the event. Kinney also placed second in the all-time record charts for the 200 meter dash only 0.44 behind junior teammate Sara Reifenrath.
“My goal going into the season was definitely to lower my school record,” Kinney said. “I kind of surprised myself as the year went on and my time slowly started to get faster and faster. My coaches did a really good job of mentally preparing me and telling me ‘You’ve trained for this, and you can do this.’ I just wasn’t expecting the season to go as well as it did.”
Now, as the outdoor season, Kinney said she is focusing on getting faster and securing yet another Coyote record, the 100 meter dash. Kinney currently sits in second with a time of 11.50. She is 0.06 behind the current record holder, Michelle Christie, who set the record in 1994.
Kinney is already on her way to accomplishing this goal during the outdoor track season. Her second-place time of 11.50 came during Aztec Invitational on March 25. During the same meet, she helped her 4x100 meter relay team break the USD school record with a time of 44.95.
While track is often viewed as an individual sport, Kinney said her favorite part about competing is the team comradery. She said after the Coyotes’ successful indoor season, the team hopes to recreate the magical energy they felt inside the DakotaDome.
As Kinney continues her season, she has one goal in mind: qualify for the first rounds of the national meet. As far as what the future holds for Kinney, she has an open mind.
“If I had the opportunity to go
post-collegiate, I would love to,” Kinney said. “If not, I would really like to coach or be involved in track somehow, such as working at meets. I definitely want to keep track as a part of my future.”
Trevan Rychlik Trevan.Rychlik@coyotes.usd.edu
USD’s women’s pole vault team ended the 2023 indoor track and field season as the nation’s top team in pole vault. The Coyotes are now onto the outdoor season and look to improve on their rankings and record new personal bests.
The vaulters didn’t seem surprised when finding out that they were ranked first.
“Coach continued to tell us we could get there. We just needed to all get a little bit more,” junior Cassidy Mooneyhan said.
Sophomore vaulter Marleen Mulla has the Coyotes personal best with her jump of 4.55m, followed by redshirt sophomore Gen Hirata with 4.37m and
Mooneyhan with 4.32m. They all hit these jumps in the Summit League Indoor Championships. Their four teammates followed them, all of them jumping over 4.02m.
The athletes thank the coaches for everything they have done this season. The pole vault coach, Derek Miles, doesn’t want to take credit for the women’s performances. He tells the men and women every day that they have the talent to do it and pushes them, but they are the ones that get the results themselves.
The team said how their team chemistry is really high compared to a typical team. They attribute this to always ensuring everyone supports each other. The team take time to cheer on the runners and others while they wait to
vault. They said it really helps as most teams don’t get to be around each other and usually keep to themselves.
“When you have all these different groups in one team, you tend to be distant from each other. But we try to stay close because it helps us as a team,” Mulla said. “Team chemistry is one of the most important things to be a successful team.”
While being proud of themselves and soaking in the year, the vaulters already know that this season means more as a team than just themselves.
The women talk about how being recognized as one of the best teams nationally brings more attention to the university. They hope that the different athletes across the country will want to come vault with them to create the best
team they can make.
“Being one of the best teams means that we will get more attention and hopefully more recruits and create a good team,” Mooneyhan said.
Miles has seen success in the past as he has coached four national champions, 29 Summit League champions and 11 Field Athlete of the Year winners, among other awards and nominations. This is the first time that one of his pole vaulting teams was ranked first for men or women in the nation.
The team looks forward to continuing its success throughout the outdoor season as it continues to march on and improve.
“Now we look forward to the outdoor season where we will try to be the best again,” Mulla said.
Coyote softball is set to return to Nygaard Field this weekend for their series against Western Illinois.
The field has been in an unplayable condition for the first month of the season due to renovations and heavy snowfall.
The renovations, which include a new backstop, sound system, cement pads, storage shed, chain link fencing, and windscreen, were set in motion in the fall and scheduled to be completed before the beginning of the season.
South Dakota’s Athletic Director David Herbster said delays in equipment arrival were the first setback.
“It seems like everything takes longer nowadays,” Herbster said. “They tell you it’s going to be four-to-six weeks or six-to-eight weeks and then
they tell you it’s delayed and delayed and delayed.”
When the equipment arrived, so did the weather. A big temperature swing during the installation of the netted backstop then led to damages to the infield.
“We hit that on a day where it was about 30 degrees in the morning and almost 60 degrees in the afternoon,” Herbster said. “There was still snow and ice on the field, so what happened was you had a melt and some of the equipment that was on the field damaged the infield. Now what we’re doing is grating and leveling that to get it back to a playable condition.”
The third challenge arose in an effort to clear the infield of snow and ice. Herbster said too much dirt got scooped up with the snow and pushed to the edges of the infield, creating
ruts and unlevel areas. The lost dirt has replaced and been evened out, but the field will be laser leveled this week.
Herbster said regardless of the renovations, the field wouldn’t have been ready to host UND or Kansas City after this harsh winter.
“I can’t remember it snowing this much for an extended period of time since probably 2008 or 2009,” Herbster said. “Up until probably a week or a week and a half ago, I wouldn’t have allowed anybody on the infield. The field still hadn’t thawed and we still had snow and ice in certain areas… and when you play on it when it’s still wet, you run the risk of damaging it further.”
The facility was up to NCAA regulations, but Herbster said updates were due.
“We didn’t have to do it, but I would say we needed to do it,” Herbster said. “From a playability standpoint, practice standpoint, durability standpoint and storage standpoint, these things needed to be done…not only for the fans but for the players, for the team, the storage and the maintenance of [the field].”
So far, the Coyotes have held home games at Connie Claussen Field in Omaha and at Dakota Valley High School in North Sioux City, but USD isn’t the only school having issues accessing their home facilities. A snowstorm in Fargo forced last weekend’s series against North Dakota State to be moved to Augustana University in Sioux Falls.
The home opening series against Western Illinois will kickoff with a doubleheader on Saturday at noon.
WEDNESDAY,
Living on-campus is great for students. It allows easy access to classrooms, dining halls, faculty members and a lot of other resources. But next year it’s going to be harder to find a dorm, especially for upperclassmen. The South Dakota Board of Regents (SDBOR) requires that students need to live and dine on campus for the first two years of college after high school graduation. There are some exemptions, but most first and second-year students stay in USD’s dorms. With Brookman and Julian recently demolished and a higher enrollment, it is going to be hard for students to find a place to live on campus. Because freshmen and sophomores are most likely going to be prioritized because of the SDBOR’s requirements, upperclassmen are going to be forced to find a place to
live off campus. Finding an apartment or a house to rent can add a lot of stress to a person’s life. You need to find a place within your price range, tour the building, go over contracts and learn how to budget for apartment living are all new and confusing things. Adding this on top of finishing classes and preparing for next semester creates a lot of unnecessary strain. For some people apartment life is better, it grants more freedom. But people who planned on living on campus
THESTUDENTS’VOICESINCE 1887
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next year but were told it wasn’t possible are going to have a lot to do when looking for somewhere to live.
Living on-campus is one of the best things a student can do. It gives people the opportunity to learn what living away from home is like without dealing with monthly payments for rent, electricity and water. On-campus, residences provide easy access to classrooms, faculty and offices, dining halls and other facilities. There are more opportunities and access to campus activities and clubs
which adds to the sense of community.
The limited number of dorms is creating a lot of stress for new and current students. Overall, it seems there isn’t much the university can do besides admit less incoming students. There simply just aren’t enough open residence halls to accommodate the growing enrollment rate. Students are being left behind to figure it out for themselves.
As students, we are sometimes left in the dark on the university’s plans regarding housing. Will there ever be another dorm constructed to house students? Or will we be left with Coyote Village, North Complex, Burgess/Norton, McFadden and a big parking lot? All we know is that if the enrollment numbers remain this high, USD will be forced to find additional housing options in order to keep retention rates high.
The Volante welcomes letters to the editor in regards to campus, local, state and national issues. Letters will be edited for clarity and length and will be printed as space allows. Please limit letters to 300 words or fewer. The Volante reserves the right to hold letters for publication in a later issue. Submissions must include the author’s name, address, telephone number, year in school and major or job title. Letters must be exclusively for The Volante. We will not publish anonymous letters.
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Here you’ll find the weirdest, funniest and stupidest things we’ve heard during the week. Context is for suckers.
“I almost threw up on you, but I didn’t. So can I have a kiss?”
— Cherry St.
“All men get is stripes.”
— MUC
“Isn’t the Bible recognized as canon?”
— FA
“You’re an English major, name all the wood.”
— Old Main
APRIL 12, 2023 THE VOLANTE VOLANTEONLINE.COM/OPINION
Living on-campus is one of the best things a student can do. It gives people the opportunity to learn what living away from home is like without dealing with montly payments for rent, electricity and water.
With the weather finally (emphasis on finally) starting to warm up, I am once again reminded of how brutal winter actually is. I will never understand the people who say winter is the best season because summer is so much better. Getting off work or going home from school when the sun is already set by 5 p.m. is soul-crushing.
Now that summer is near, the sun is setting later than 7 p.m. and there seems to be more time and motivation for activities after
work with actual sunlight. Because there is so much more daylight in the spring and summer months, there is more time in the sun to go for walks, relax outside or get ice cream with friends. The vitamin D people can get from spending outside provides one with many health benefits. It can also help improve mental health and seasonal depression. Sunlight generally helps make people happier because it helps your eyes and brain start creating
more serotonin. For college students, school is out in the summer, the stress from schoolwork is over and there is finally more time to indulge in hobbies that make one happy and have more time for the things you want to do.
One of my favorite qualities of summer is the fruit: blueberries, strawberries, cherries and watermelons are all back in season. During the winter, it feels like most dishes contain lots of processed or canned foods, whereas,
in the summertime, dishes feel fresher. Nothing tastes better than a bowl of delicious, fresh, juicy fruit in the summer.
The vibes in the summer are incomparable to those of the winter. Everyone glows differently as there is more time and motivation to get out of the house, spend time with people who make you happy, and generally have a better atmosphere.
People love to anthropomorphize things. They make cute drawings of objects or animals. For the most part, this is really sweet, except when it’s an octopus. These awful, not-fish things are really creepy and I hope to never see them in person or see another documentary about them.
A group of octopuses is called a consortium. It makes it seem like these octopuses are all getting together and making some sort of deal, probably an agreement to take down the human race. They aren’t fish or mammals because they don’t have vertebrae, therefore they
are cephalopods, a very pretentious-sounding class of marine organisms.
Octopuses are also more liquid than solid. The only hard or solid parts of their bodies are the beaks on their head, everything else is kind of jellylike. They can squeeze into tiny cracks and wait to attack and consume their enemies.
Just imagine if humans had tongues on their hands, that is what an octopus has. They can feel and taste with their tentacles and it is really nasty. They are constantly tasting salt from the ocean around them as well as everything they touch.
If an octopus grabs onto you it’s literally tasting you. Octopuses also use their tentacles to figure out colors and use camouflage to hide. These things are vicious, there really is no need for them to hide. I also don’t like how wriggly but firm their arms look.
These particular cephalopods have a lot of other weird body parts which makes them even more off-putting. They have three hearts which kind of makes them impossible to kill. They have 4 pairs of arms to kill and murder their prey with and octopuses can regrow any of their arms if they lose them.
A female octopus can lay up to 400,000 eggs, that is too many and I am surprised the ocean does not have more of the nasty creatures.
In general, octopuses are awful. It seems like they are plotting and making weird business deals. They have creepy tentacles that can do things they should not and a lot of other weird and disturbing qualities. Octopuses don’t even taste good, they are too rubbery and chewy. There really is no redeeming quality for these creatures.
The Vermillion Community Clinic (VCC) opened its doors in Jan. 2022 and is a student run clinic from the health affair programs at USD. They recently hosted a clinic on April 11.
Assistant professor Matt Dewald said the VCC is hosted at the Sanford Vermillion Clinic as a collaboration between licensed health professionals and the health professional programs at USD.
“The goal of the VCC is to give students an opportunity to help the local community,” Dewald said.
“Not all programs are involved yet but will include students in medicine, nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, dental hygiene, addiction counseling and prevention, social work, medical laboratory, physician assistant and public health.
Dewald said there were many services provided at the clinic which matched the patients’ needs and he hopes community members will find access to health services they deserve and need.
“Services could include management of injuries, hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, mental health, physicals, vaccinations,
mammograms, laboratory testing, x-rays, physical and occupational therapy,” Dewald said. “There are really a lot of opportunities, and I hope students will develop a service minded attitude while picking up critical skills needed for their future professionals.”
Dewald said the VCC started as a way to provide assistance to those in the community without insurance to receive health services they deserve.
“While allowing students an opportunity to practice alongside local health professionals in meeting the community needs, the students at USD are doing some real-
New clubs are established every semester, and this semester, the BIOS Babes club was introduced on the USD campus.
BIOS Babes is a club on campus that focuses on the history of women in STEM, specifically in tech.
Alexis Haier, the president of the club, said the creation of this club is very beneficial for the school in many ways.
“BIOS Babes was started to highlight and celebrate the roles that women fill in tech, as women are largely a minority in this area,” Haier said. “BIOS Babes is also a great community to find friends and get to know people with similar interests.”
BIOS Babes was brainstormed in Oct. 2022 but officially created in Jan. 2023. Haier said they’re still trying to build up the club, but they are proud of how it has gone so far.
“We haven’t had the chance to do anything too cool yet as we are so new, but we are looking forward to building our organization and encouraging more people, especially women, to learn more about computer science,” Haier said.
The club has meetings on the third Thursday of every month and the structure of the meeting is casual. They usually hang out and go through a brief presentation and video focusing on a woman with significance in computer science.
“This month, we talked about Margaret Hamilton who coined the term “software engineering” during her work with NASA’s Apollo missions,” Haier said.
Haier said they have many ideas they hope to implement in the future once the club is bigger and has the resources to do so.
“In the future, we would like to potentially bring in guest speakers and promote opportunities for our members,” Haier said.
The club has six members and one advisor. They are always looking for new people to join. Students can join by looking up BIOS Babes on the USD Involved Page or by emailing alexis.o.haier@coyotes.usd.edu.
ly extraordinary thingsThe VCC is just one example of how they are trying to have a positive impact on the community,” Dewald said.
Edie’s bookshop is located in the basement of the Vermillion Public Library. This bookshop is honoring the legacy of Edith (Edie) B. Siegrist who donated more than a million dollars to the library when she died in July 2011.
Siegrist went to school at Huron College where she got her Master of Library Science. After a few jobs throughout South Dakota and Michigan, she spent 24 years as a Library Science Professor at USD.
Co-President of Friends of the Library, Anne Dunham, said that during Siegrist’s life, she donated close to a million dollars which allowed the library to almost double in size.
Over the years, the Vermillion library hosted a yearly book sale, but eventually collected so many books that it made sense to host a monthly one instead.
“We’ve had people donate more
bookcases, we’ve gotten things from the library itself and it really set up like a bookstore with a whole children’s section and mystery section and regional and literature and Chiclet and large print books, and videos, all sorts of things but it is set up like a bookstore and it’s a wonderful space,” Dunham said.
The bookshop is open once a month and is run by volunteers. Dunham said the event brings in hundreds of dollars that are used for the library, especially the Friends of the Library summer reading program.
Dunham said there are a lot of books that are three for $1 and the rest tend to be less than $2 each. Because of the low prices, Dunham said it’s good to see the books go back to the community as many people can afford the low prices.
“Lots of times I’ve had new teachers or student teachers come down and you can get a lot of inexpensive children’s books to build up a classroom library,” Dunham said. “We have a lot of old vintage
books, lots of classics and so it’s a real asset to the community and Edith’s endowment has made that possible.”
The legacy of Siegrist lives on
in the library and the bookshop’s name. Dunham said she hopes the community members embrace reading and understand everything Siegrist did for the library.
Edie’s bookshop is open once a month on Friday and Saturday. It will be open this month on April 14 and 15 from 10-4 p.m.
This year Spectrum is hosting a Lavender Graduation event for graduating students who are members of the LGBTQ+ community and their guests. Spectrum is hosting the event for the second time after a 20 year hiatus of the celebration.
The Lavender Graduation intends to celebrate the achievements of the LGBTQ+ community and honor graduates with a rainbow stole to wear at USD’s graduation.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, the Lavender Graduation Ceremony was created in 1995 by Dr. Ronni Sanlo after being unable to attend the graduations of her children because
of her sexual orientation. The first ceremony was held at the University of Michigan with three graduates and by 2001 there were over 45 ceremonies at colleges and universities nationwide. President of Spectrum, Zadya Abbott, said this is not a replacement graduation necessarily, but it is an additional space for students to be recognized specifically for who they are and what they have accomplished.
“What we do is recognize the struggles and celebrate the success of the students in an environment that is very much so supportive of who they are,” Abbott said.
The event will be held April 29 at noon in the MUC Ballroom with special guest speakers. Students can sign up for the Lavender Graduation by reaching out to zadya.abbott@coyotes.usd.edu.
