South Dakota Board of Regents implements tuition freeze for fiscal year 2025

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - Classes at South Dakota’s six public universities will be wrapping up in less than a month from now. Students at each institution have had their tuition frozen for the past few years, and the South Dakota Board of Regents is making sure that’s the case for the next year as well.

The Board got their request fulfilled this year by the state legislature, securing funding to put in yet another tuition freeze for students at state institutions.

Board of Regents Executive Director and CEO Nathan Lukkes said the last few years have been vital for South Dakota’s public universities, as tuition has remained steady and enrollment numbers are slightly up, bucking a national downward trend.

“When we talk tuition freeze, we’re saving students money. We’ve got a great story to tell here in South Dakota, great quality education products to offer. In the end, we all want to keep, retain, and attract as many young kids to South Dakota as we can,” Lukkes said.

The freeze is the third in a row to effectively keep prices where they are for students, as the Board of Regents says they need it to stay competitive.

Other states have also been given reciprocity for in-state tuition in South Dakota, with Minnesota students now also qualifying for in-state tuition after the launch of Minnesota’s North Star Promise Scholarship.

“The reason we did that was to save Minnesota students coming to South Dakota an average of $1,400 a year. Again, we’re really trying to keep affordability and a price point at the forefront,” Lukkes said.

The freezes require the state legislature to appropriate funds to help offset costs that would otherwise fall on to students. Representative Tony Venhuizen (R-Sioux Falls) said that the relationship between lawmakers and the Board of Regents is key to helping fulfill these requests every year.

“We have a great relationship. Legislators are talking to the members of the Board of Regents and the tech school leaders all year. We have a good idea what their priorities are, and we really try to work together to move the state forward,” Venhuizen said.

Lukkes said there isn’t another viable option currently to keep tuition low other than getting special appropriations from the state legislature, but he says that also allows them to be flexible in the future should the situation around higher education change.

“You know, nobody knows what the future has in store, We’re going to continue to do our part to try and keep our price point as low as possible, maintain the competitive advantage that we’ve gained the last four or five years,” Lukkes said.

Lukkes said the Board of Regents will be in talks later this year to see if they need another tuition freeze from the state legislature.

Copyright 2024 KSFY. All rights reserved.