South Dakota Higher Education Funding Policy - Essay Example

South Dakota Higher Education Funding PolicyThesis: The State of South Dakota should enact a better higher education funding policy to enable more students to enroll in local colleges and Universities. Hook: Did you know, for three years running (2009-2011), the State of South Dakota were fourth from the bottom in graduate school enrollments nationwide? Moreover, out of 26 higher education institutions, only eleven are public schools.IntroductionI. There is a dire need for financial support in most of the public schools in South Dakota due to a shortage in state funding (Pullman, par. 4). II.

The State of South Dakota should enact a better higher education funding policy to enable more students to enroll in local colleges and Universities. BodyTechnical PlotIndictment I. The number of students enrolling into universities in South Dakota has reduced significantly due to the current higher education funding policy. Example A. According to Joy Smolnisky (2013), the State of South Dakota has consistently lagged behind in terms of per-student funding for education compared to the surrounding states’ and national average.

Testimony B. Research on the higher education funding policy in South Dakota highlighted that less than 24% of k-12 students received support funds in 2011, which represented a 5% decrease despite the initial shortage (Bergeron et al., 2014).Example C. Over the past ten years the funds have decreased by 53%. On the other hand, neighboring states spend higher portions of their funding by 5.1% per student (Smolnisky, 2013).Testimony D. Residents now prefer to enroll in out-of-state colleges and other private institutions from other states, reducing the number of professionals in the State.

Indictment II. Lack of enough university graduates reduces the economic productivity of South Dakota. Example A. Local research indicated that residents below 30 years have mostly postsecondary certification therefore unable to secure well-paying employment (Hillman et al., 2015). Testimony B. Increasing higher education funding will prompt more students to enroll in local universities, increasing the number of local professionals and boosting the economy in the long run (Goodchild et al., 2014).ConclusionI.

The South Dakota Higher Education two-year post-secondary funding policy has negatively impacted the local education sector because few students enroll in local universities. II. The State of South Dakota should enact a better higher education funding policy to enable more students to enroll in local colleges and Universities. Reference ListBergeron, D., Flores, A., & Baylor, E. (2014, October 1). A Great Recession, a Great Retreat. Retrieved March 27, 2015, from https://cdn.americanprogress.

org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/PublicCollege-report.pdf Gailmard, S. & Patty, J. W. (2012). Formal Models of Bureaucracy. Annual Review of Political Science, 15. Retrieved March 26, 2015, from DOI: 10.1146/annurev-polisci-031710-103314Goodchild, L. F., Jonsen, R. W., Limerick P., & Longanecker, D. A (2014). Public policy challenges facing higher education in the American West. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.Hillman, N.W., Tandberg, D. A., & Fryar, A. H. (2015). Evaluating the Impacts of “New” Performance Funding in Higher Education.

Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 36 (4). Retrieved March 26, 2015, from DOI: 10.3102/0162373714560224Martinez, M.C. (1999). Higher Education in South Dakota. The National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education. Retrieved March 26, 2015, from http://www.highereducation.org/reports/dakota/dakota4.shtml.Pullmann, J. (2011, September 20). Research & Commentary: South Dakota School Funding. Retrieved March 27, 2015, from https://www.heartland.org/policy-documents/research- commentary-south-dakota-school-funding Skocpol, T. (2013). Diminished Democracy: From Membership to Management in American Civic Life.

New York: University of Oklahoma Press.Smolnisky, J. (2013, June 18). Per-student k-12 funding in South Dakota. South Dakota Budget & Policy Institute. Retrieved March 26, 2015, from http://www.sdbudgetandpolicyproject.org/per-student-k-12-funding-in-south-dakota.South Dakota. (n.d.). Retrieved March 29, 2015, from http://febp.newamerica.net/higher ed/SD