Regents approve USD-Sioux Falls plan

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VERMILLION – Thursday the South Dakota Board of Regents formally approved the proposal for the University of South Dakota-Sioux Falls. The effort to transform the Community College of Sioux Falls into the University of South Dakota - Sioux Falls has been in development for nearly a year. 

The plan builds upon the University of South Dakota’s strong presence in the Sioux Falls marketplace, where the campus continues to serve as a local option for health sciences, business, and education.

With the approval, USD plans to relocate all nursing classes and a clinical skills lab from the Sanford USD Medical Center campus, creating a health science hub in the state’s largest city. The master of public health and master of social work programs will also be relocated to the new site, along with the Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment and the Center for Rural Health Improvement. USD’s new doctor of nurse anesthesia program will also be based out of the Sioux Falls campus and will begin accepting students in the spring of 2023.

“With this development, the University of South Dakota will assume a strong position in the Sioux Falls marketplace and establish itself as a local option with unmatched strengths in health sciences and business,” said University of South Dakota President Sheila Gestring. “Our programs will provide opportunities for key audiences who strive to better themselves and our state.”

This migration will allow USD to consolidate academic paths for health sciences careers while continuing to focus on additional programs like business, general studies and education. 

The established Teacher Pathway program currently seeks to recruit and place teachers in Sioux Falls schools and will remain as a prominent program on the USD-SF campus. The campus will also continue its mission of providing opportunities for a four-year degree through programs like the associate of arts in general studies.

Through board approval, the USD-SF rollout establishes USD as the primary provider for academic offerings at the site moving forward. The South Dakota State University pharmacy program will continue to operate out of its current space on the USD-SF campus.

For more information on the approved transition, visit usd.edu/Academics/USD-Sioux-Falls.