Gov. Dennis Daugaard met with Sen. Deb Soholt and Rep. Jacqueline Sly Nov. 11 to receive the final report from the Blue Ribbon Task Force on Teachers and Students.
“I thank the members of the Blue Ribbon Task Force for all of their hard work. They put in a lot of time over the last few months in studying how we can improve education in our state,” said Gov. Daugaard. “I will take this report seriously and carefully review each of the recommendations.”
Sen. Soholt and Rep. Sly served as co-chairs of the task force that was established by the Governor earlier this year. The task force also included teachers and administrators, legislators, parents, businesspeople, and executive branch members.
“We are pleased to submit this report, on behalf of the task force, to the Governor and the Legislature,” said Sen. Soholt. “Now is the time to be bold and to find additional ongoing dollars to assure the success of South Dakota’s greatest asset: our kids.”
“The task force has identified the needs and recommended solutions for K-12 funding,” said Rep. Sly. “Solutions for funding education in South Dakota will be a step of courage amongst the public, the executive branch and the Legislature.”
Gov. Daugaard tasked the group with focusing on three goals: a quality system of schools focused on student achievement, a workforce of great educators, and an efficient and equitable funding system.
Last summer, the Blue Ribbon Task Force gathered public input from over 1,300 citizens in meetings throughout the state. The group then held five meetings in Pierre to consider public input, analyze data and discuss ideas for reform. The final report includes numerous recommendations to meet the task force’s goals, including a significant increase in teacher salaries.
Gov. Daugaard and legislators will consider this report as they prepare for the 2016 Legislative Session.
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