The second week of the 2016 legislative session saw committees beginning to pass bills and some floor action on bills. The Joint Appropriations Committee heard bills giving bonding authority for new buildings on our college campuses, including giving the Board of Regents authority to purchase land from the Dakota State University Foundation for the construction of the Beacom building.
Meetings were held this week between the state and representatives from the federal government regarding the plan to expand Medicaid in the state. An additional 55,000 South Dakota citizens will have health insurance if an agreement can be reached between the state and the Center for Medicaid and Medicare (CMM) regarding the reimbursement for Tribal members receiving medical services outside of Indian Health Services. I am hopeful the state and CMM can find an agreement and we can expand Medicaid and provide 55,000 South Dakotans health insurance.
The discussions continue on increased funding for education. As you know, South Dakota’s teachers are last in the nation in teacher pay, and the Governor has proposed a half cent sales tax to increase teacher’s pay. Within the proposal, a portion of the current capital outlay would go to supporting the general fund of the schools and schools would need to cap their reserves. These are not new dollars to the school system but are rather a change in current law regarding how schools can use local tax dollars. There is also concern by some lawmakers that schools won’t pass the additional money on to teachers.
I believe that we must make sure that the new money goes to teachers, but the state does walk a fine line between putting conditions on state funds and local control of our schools. While the state can set where revenue is derived, it is still the local school board that sets its budget and determines its own spending priorities. My goal is that we are able to get a meaningful increase in new revenue for schools and not just move revenue around and say we helped schools.
For my part, I will continue to work with the Governor and my fellow legislators to find a long-range plan that will benefit education for years to come.
As always, if you wish to reach me, my email is svpar@hotmail.com.

A few weeks ago I asked Eunice Pearson Olson whether she remembered Miss Marian Koehn who, some 70 years ago, was commercial teacher at Forestburg High School. Her only remark, obviously reinforced with a bit-memory, was only slightly exaggerated when she said, “All you boys were crazy about her.”
Eunice probably didn’t know any of the details, being involved in a romantic fandango of her own in the study hall with her future husband, Art. As I wrote previously, after the bus arrived around 8:30 a.m., a small gaggle of guys headed for the typing room for our morning visit with the typing teacher. She was always pleasant and gracious. If she had before-class preparations to do, we twerps didn’t seem to notice. What I know now is that she should have kicked the whole lot of us back into the study hall. The fact was, she didn’t. The fact became obvious, she liked our company.
The only junior I remember with certainty who joined me in our forays to the typing room was Bill Irving, who had transferred to FHS from Letcher. The leader of our morning banter and goofing around was the incomparable clown, Bill. I had not seen such an array of antics germinating from one teenage head. He had a repertoire of facial expressions, squeaky voice changes and endless jokes. He would flirt with Miss Koehn, wise-cracking about anything that entered his head. The rest of us more stodgy types could not compete in getting Miss Koehn’s interest or attention, but she seemed to love us all.
Actually, we were learning typing. In class, I was just one of the bunch and we were well behaved. We guys were able to transpose from being the teacher’s buddies before school to being just ordinary students in class, so what could go wrong? Life was good. It remained that way until one day one of our numbers, you guessed him, Bill, got a bit too big for his britches, as the saying was. We were all typing a class assignment when clown Bill rose from his typewriter and, with typing book in hand, approached Miss Koehn’s desk. He had violated a class rule in that we were all requested to raise our hands and get permission to leave our seats and approach the teacher’s desk. Most typing stopped, and most eyes followed Bill. With elaborated arm movement, he plopped his book in front of the teacher, and with squeaky voice addressed her, “Marian…” By that time, he had accomplished what was probably his prime goal, which was everyone’s attention. Then, as he proceeded to ask his ludicrous question, he dropped one elbow to the desktop and with the other arm around her neck, he bear-hugged her to himself in one swift motion.
Startled, the teacher jerked away, but Bill had anticipated her movement and pulled her closer. Equally startled, we watching students didn’t know whether to tackle Bill, yell for help, or simply do nothing. Mesmerized, we did nothing but watch as Miss Koehn attempted to fight him off. I don’t recall whether she grabbed him by the hair, but she finally broke his grips and pushed him away. He grinned on his way to his typewriter while she re-arranged hair and clothing.
I was appalled. I was open for good fun and was a bit of a flirt myself, but Bill was beyond the pale. No others in our class would have embarrassed Miss Koehn for the world. She was our teacher and our friend. It was only years later that I reminisced about the fool Bill had made of himself but, in particular, I realized that the friendly, likable teacher had set herself up when she freely socialized with some of her students. Some kids will take advantage of any leeway given them and do not have the experience to see where undue familiarity may lead.

How do you grow a South Dakotan? We all want the children in our lives to grow up with a sense of place and pride. But nobody has ever published a “how to” guide on accomplishing such a goal.
Our magazine staff began the task by recalling our own childhood experiences. Then we asked experts (anglers, cowboys, artists, rock hounds and a rattlesnake professor) to help. The result is a guide for parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers and all adults who play important roles in young South Dakotans’ lives.
Much of the guide involves ways to involve children with nature. We offer advice on best hikes, rock hunting, rattlesnake etiquette and guides on how to identify South Dakota fish, trees and the most common cattle breeds.
Joel Vasek, a popular fishing guide from Geddes, tells how he engages children on a fishing trip. “Get them involved in some of the decisions,” he suggests. “We can catch fish on anything, so let them look through the tackle box and pick out a few lures. I also make sure the live well is accessible to them, and then I’ll ask them to check on the fish now and then.”
Are you familiar with our state song, “Hail South Dakota”? That’s one of several cultural pieces we suggest are important to raising a South Dakotan. The song was written by DeeCort Hammitt of Alcester and adopted in 1947. He was the first director of the Alcester town band that performed for President Calvin Coolidge during his Black Hills vacation in 1927.
We also recommend a reading list for all ages of young readers, and a compilation of art museums where they’ll find some of the most important works South Dakotans have created. And of course, we suggest that kids learn about Badger Clark, our state’s first poet laureate who wrote the beloved poem, “A Cowboy’s Prayer.”
We also solicited suggestions from the Reinhold family of Sturgis, operators of Rainbow Bible Ranch; Suzanne Hegg, the first executive director of the Children’s Museum in Brookings; and Steve Van Bockern, an education professor at Augustana University in Sioux Falls.
And we visited with Marla Bull Bear, director of the Native American Advocacy Program that hosts summer camps for youth at Milk’s Camp in Gregory County. Marla uses stories about nature to teach life lessons. At a recent camp, she and camp participants spooked a blue heron while taking a walk. That prompted her to tell the group a story of a heron that forgot it was a migratory bird.
“It didn’t know its own history and forgot who it was,” she said. “It thought it could be a winter bird, but when the cold weather came it nearly froze to death because it was too proud and refused help.”
Like blue herons, it’s important for our youngsters to know their place. Our guide is a good start.
Katie Hunhoff is the editor of South Dakota Magazine, a print magazine that features the people and places of our great state. To subscribe or to order the current issue discussed above, visit www.SouthDakotaMagazine.com