South Dakota Focus

It's been a busy fall in the state's Capitol. A special legislative session included a long debate on new voting district boundaries and for the first time in state history, lawmakers voted to impeach a constitutional officer.SDPB's Politics and Public Policy Reporter Lee Strubinger joins Jackie Hendry in our Vermillion studio.

Citizenship is easy to take for granted when you've had it since the moment you were born. But for others, it's the prize at the end of a long and costly process. Earlier this summer, dozens of people took the Oath of Allegiance in Sioux Falls.

South Dakota's population is changing--and growing! The 2020 Census shows the state's overall population grew by more than 70-thousand people in the last decade. That's important because the state needs workers. In fact, there are more open jobs in South Dakota than people available to fill them.

It's unclear when or if South Dakota will see any refugees from these conflicts. Lutheran Social Services, the only refugee resettlement organization in the state, is not offering any specifics as the situation unfolds.

South Dakota Public Broadcasting is one of 88 original partners of the first public radio network: National Public Radio. As NPR celebrates 50 years, In the Moment host Lori Walsh explores what that partnership means to radio listeners across South Dakota.

British journalist Oliver Bullough wrote a book on these practices years before the Post article. He explains why South Dakota and other trust havens should think critically about the impact of this industry.

Last month, the four faces of Mt. Rushmore had some company. A specialized rope team rappelled down the sculpture to track wear-and-tear on the state's most famous attraction.

A lesser-known resource at the Sioux Falls Multicultural Center is the Career Closet. The small room is lined with clothing racks. There are dress clothes for job interviews, scrubs for clinical work, and on a lucky day, steel-toed boots for manual labor jobs. All are available for free.

Each year, voters send lawmakers to Pierre for the state legislative session. Those lawmakers represent 35 districts. And after the census every ten years, lawmakers redraw those districts themselves. The barriers of a district determine exactly which voters a given lawmaker represents.The redistricting process is underway now. But as legislators draw the new maps, there's a push to change the process and make it less political.

As suicide numbers have continued to rise over the past few years in South Dakota, SDPB's Jackie Hendry wanted to dive into a few of the ongoing prevention efforts around the state.