Voting is a privilege that spans generations

I had the pleasure of attending USD’s College Republicans’ meet and greet with many legislative candidates from across southeastern South Dakota.  The CRs’ enthusiasm and commitment to this “high stakes” election is really encouraging.  The previous day I had observed the absentee voting at one of our neighborhood’s nursing homes.  People waited patiently for their turn and carefully and painstakingly considered the ballot.  Our youth’s hopefulness maturing into senior’s perseverance exemplifies the lifetime commitment of this great privilege.

“Quit blaming each other,”

was the impassioned plea from Keith Moore, Director of the Bureau of Indian Education, at the 7th annual Indian Education Summit. He asked the hundreds in attendance to “heal from that history; it doesn’t get us anywhere.” Keith, a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, initiated the Indian Summit when he served as South Dakota’s Director of Indian Education. He began serving as the Director of BIE in June following his appointment by President Obama.

I had the great pleasure of working with Keith during my years in the legislature. His singular focus was always on the kids and their educational success. He was willing to challenge both Natives and non-Natives if it improved opportunities for kids.  South Dakota and the nation are truly fortunate to have him in this position.  He commented that his work will be guided on the 3 principles of: “learning, quality leadership and service to our people,” and as one of his elders advised, “wrapped in spirituality with prayer and thought.”  

Favorite Tailgate Recipes from Phyllis and Friends

Thank you, parents, supporters, and friends of Sioux Falls school students. You are an important ingredient in the recipe for the outstanding educational opportunities in Sioux Falls.

Download Favorite Tailgate Recipes

Hot off the Press…

Check out my 8^th edition of Just Give Me the Facts, my campaign newspaper filled with information that affects us all.  Where does the money come from in our budget and where do we spend it? Why do Sioux Falls and South Dakota consistently rank at the top for entrepreneurs and business development? Where do our property taxes go? What’s a neutrino....and why do we care? Where are the jobs? How is South Dakota reacting to federally imposed ObamaCare? What are the 30 million reasons to keep the Trust Funds solvent?  What’s the status of the education lawsuit against the State? …..and lots more!!

Download Just The Facts

Thanks to the Teen Age Republicans (TARS) who came to Sioux Falls this weekend...

...and help distribute our message to our voters in some of our precincts.  Your energy and commitment inspires and energizes all of us.  We are truly grateful to you, your advisers and sponsors and especially your parents. I hesitate to start mentioning names as there are many that make this possible.  But I want to congratulate and thank Dusty Johnson for leading this great group and for being recognized as the “best” TAR state adviser in the country. His energy is contagious and they have all caught it!!!  Also, Samantha Walder, an advisory board member, who served as my intern during a legislative session a few years ago.  She was great then and I’m sure continues today as a great teacher. Thanks to all!  Dave and Bonnie, the food was wonderful again. You all should be proud of these committed and informed young citizens.  I walked with two “future legislators” from Kimball.  They assured me they had been doing this for “years” and looked forward to the time when they were actually old enough to vote.  I need to have them with me when I visit with people twice their age who “just don’t care to vote.”  We all feel younger, grateful, and hopeful after spending a day with TARS.

The Federal takeover of Federally Insured Student Loans creates questions and complications…

In the last few days I have had three separate voters comment on complications arising from the Federal Government’s takeover of the Federally Insured Student Loan program.  Inserted at the last minute in the Federal government’s takeover of Health care, its impact is being felt by parents, colleges, and private sector employees who had previously managed the program.  These conversations have made me anxious to learn more about the intended and unintended consequences of this legislation.

What great nights for football, friends, and food!

The weather couldn’t have been better and the mood was equally as festive for both the Dakota Bowl and the Presidents Bowl.  It was great to have Kristi Noem greeting fans with us at the Dakota Bowl.

The Bowl games (Dakota and Presidents) are always a great opportunity for those of us running for office to “Meet and Greet” voters.  For the fifth campaign season, we handed out “Favorite Tailgate Recipes from Phyllis Heineman and Friends.” While the card does include some budget facts, my friends’ favorite recipes seem to “score the most points.”  One fan even assured me, “these recipe cards are why I always come to the Bowl games.”

We’ll post the recipes on my BLOG along with the cards from previous years.  There are some great recipes; try them out.  Also if you have children or grandchildren in middle school and beyond, log on to  SDMyLife.com described on the card.

I met a “special” special ed teacher tonight from Hawthorne Elementary.

I congratulated her for Hawthorne achieving AYP (adequate yearly progress) in all 14 student subgroups (i.e., All students, White, Hispanic, Native American, Sp Ed, Ec Dis, LEP) in both Math and Reading in 2010.  She was understandably proud of Hawthorne’s students, teachers, and administrators and noted that there is great collaboration between the special ed and classroom teachers.  In Math 67% of the students were advanced or proficient in 2010 compared to 59% in 2009;in Reading, 66% were advanced or proficient in 2010 compared to 62% in 2009.  Congratulations Hawthorne!!  With some schools having only 4 or 6 subgroups, achieving AYP in 14 is truly an accomplishment.

Sanford Lab - Black Hills, SD

We can only hope that the scientific discoveries thousands of feet below will match the incredible beauty of the Hills surrounding Sanford Lab at Homestake.

Presidents Bowl

Charlotte Shaw had an enthusiastic and energetic campaign crew handing out stickers at the Presidents Bowl.