[ti:How a Small College Became a Top High-tech University]
[al:Education Report]
[ar:VOA]
[dt:2024-08-07]
[by:www.voase.cn]
[00:00.00]A measure begun 40 years ago by South Dakota lawmakers and state higher education leaders has turned a small rural college into one of the top high-tech universities in the United States.
[00:20.34]It began at a time when the future of Dakota State College itself was in question.
[00:30.21]In 1984, the South Dakota Board of Regents, which oversees the school, was under pressure to cut its budget.
[00:42.84]It closed one college and turned it into a prison.
[00:48.66]Soon after, a new law went into effect. 
[00:53.75]The measure put technology at the center of all Dakota State's study programs.
[01:02.50]The decision to reinvent a teacher's college founded in 1881 in a rural city of 6,000 people seemed risky.
[01:16.95]But, at around the same time, Citibank, a major financial services company, decided to headquarter its credit card business in Sioux Falls, a city near the college.
[01:34.40]José-Marie Griffiths is the current president of Dakota State University (DSU).
[01:43.84]The school changed its name from college to university in 1989.
[01:52.17]Griffiths said Citibank was looking for computer programmers, and "somebody came up with the idea that, well, we could turn this college that's fumbling a little bit into a computer school with software development and engineering."
[02:15.53]Griffiths told South Dakota News Watch, "That way, we could supply the needed programmers to the Sioux Falls workforce for Citibank and ultimately for others...."
[02:30.89]Lynette Molstad Gorder was teaching at DSU 40 years ago when the change to a high-tech campus began.
[02:42.52]She said, at first, some members of the college community were unsure about the change, and its effect on people and programs.
[02:55.58]"Later on we looked upon it as a welcome opportunity," she said.
[03:02.35]"It was kind of hazy (at first) and then all of a sudden, it just clicked."
[03:09.19]Suddenly, computers replaced pens, pencils and typewriters in classrooms. 
[03:17.26]And later, the move into computer science and then cyber security, she said.
[03:24.97]The jump into technology at DSU started with a bachelor's degree in computer science using teaching materials from IBM.
[03:37.81]The teaching of computer science and software development along with industry partnership laid the groundwork for what was to come, Griffiths said.
[03:52.23]With a mix of private and public money, the university expanded the school and its offerings.
[04:00.69]In 2004, the National Security Agency named DSU a Center of Academic Excellence in computer security, one of the first in the nation.
[04:16.23]The number of students has also risen steadily, from 867 in 1985 to 3,509 in 2023.
[04:30.82]The university said DSU now offers 44 degrees, including seven master's degrees and four doctoral programs.
[04:43.81]In 2017, DSU started Madison Cyber Labs with money from the state and local businesses.
[04:55.67]It expanded research at the university to include cyber security, machine learning, and artificial intelligence, among others.
[05:08.73]The school is now planning an expansion into Sioux Falls itself. 
[05:14.91]The plan includes partnerships with another research center and a cyber academy program for high school students.
[05:26.67]DSU is also pushing the state for more money to start a new center for quantum computing.
[05:36.34]Jen Easterly is director of the federal Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
[05:46.16]She was the lead speaker at a DSU cybersecurity event last March.
[05:54.19]Easterly said that before she visited Madison, she had been hearing increasing discussion on the national level about the growth and innovation taking place at DSU.
[06:10.67]She said, "The ideas generated at forums like this are just further proof that it doesn't matter the size of the university. ..."
[06:24.02]Alexis Kulm graduated from DSU in December of 2022.
[06:30.75]She studied cyber operations there.
[06:35.02]The 23-year-old said she liked the small-town feel of the college.
[06:42.87]She took classes in web and network design, computer programming and malware analysis. 
[06:51.92]All of them, she said, helped prepare her for the cyber workplace.
[06:58.13]"You get a strong real-world education in your classes," Kulm said.
[07:06.56]Kulm also said she had several job offers after graduating.
[07:12.47]She chose Sanford Health, a company in Sioux Falls.
[07:17.96]It has a partnership with the university to increase employment opportunities for DSU graduates.
[07:27.87]Kulm is not the only DSU graduate to stay in South Dakota.
[07:34.56]Jon Waldman and Chad Knutson were in the class of 2006. 
[07:41.66]Soon after graduating, they set up a business together right in Madison.
[07:49.26]Their 90-employee company SBS CyberSecurity serves the banking industry in 49 states.
[07:59.74]Waldman said DSU has "a commitment to innovation" that makes it easy for students to remain on top of the always-changing cyber technology and security industry.
[08:16.90]I'm Caty Weaver.
[08:20.27]And I'm Mario Ritter Jr.