On this episode of What's The Frequency, we check in on a few colleges in the area.
Siouxland is blessed with a broad range of both public and private universities, ranging in affiliations in how they were founded, and with different sizes, giving potential students a variety of options.
The area colleges in the tri-state area also have a variety of programs for which they are most known and which draw the most students to get degrees. That breadth is a plus for Siouxland, and in this episode, we will check in on some changes in college leadership and on a high-functioning program in South Dakota.
The Volante is a long-standing student newspaper at the University of South Dakota. The Volante has won many national college journalism awards over the years, and some high-achieving people who attended USD have had notable careers in the news field, including Tom Brokaw, a former NBC News Anchorman.
Near the end of the spring 2024 semester, I went to the University of South Dakota campus to talk in The Volante office with Julianna Oltmanns, The Volante managing editor, Marissa Brunkhorst, The Volante News Editor, and Janet Davison, who is a USD Professor and Adviser for The Volante.
We had a great talk about what the student editors want to provide the USD community, which is to inform and interest students and others.
The professor weighs in on the state of journalism, and how to train USD students for the real world, with a strong sense of ethics and a great grasp of strong writing skills.
Before that portion in this Frequency episode, there was news this week in Sioux City at Briar Cliff University. A new president of BCU was announced, so that makes for a change in the leadership of both private colleges in Sioux City over the past two years.
Morningside University has an enrollment of more than 2,300 students, and John Reynders served as president more than 20 years through 2022. Albert Mosley succeeded Reynders as Morningside president that year.
In the case of Briar Cliff, some changes have led to a third college president in less than four years.
Back in January, university officials announced appointing an interim president after their prior chief executive resigned. Patrick Schulte had resigned to begin a new leadership position with Donnelly College in Kansas City Missouri.
The University’s Board of Trustees announced Matthew Draud as the 13th President on Tuesday. He will relocate to the Siouxland area from Abilene, Texas, where he most recently served as the Vice President of Academic Affairs at McMurry University.
Draud, who was previously an academic in the field of biology, will begin his presidential responsibilities on July 1, 2024. We hear some of his impressions on BCU, and goals moving forward.
Click on the audio link above to hear the entire show.
*What's The Frequency, Episode 21
