Governor Kristi Noem’s Weekly Column: South Dakota Sturdy

South Dakota Sturdy
By: Gov. Kristi Noem 
August 23, 2024    

It’s back to school time! My kids are all grown up with their school days behind them, and though my grandkids are still young, Miss Addie is starting preschool! This time of year means so much to me. Everything that I do is about making our state safer and stronger for our kids and grandkids – and making sure they get an excellent education is a huge part of that.

This year, we’re kicking off the school year with a new initiative called South Dakota Sturdy. This is a free resource that we’re offering to each South Dakota school district to teach our students resiliency, work ethic, and that driving pursuit of achievement.

South Dakota Sturdy provides ten free lesson plans for students between fourth and sixth grade. It’s available to school counselors and teachers alike. As an added benefit, these lesson plans are rooted in our state standards – so teachers can use aspects of South Dakota, tribal, and American history, and even science to teach these important lessons.

Let me give you an example: One of the ten lesson plans covers my favorite president, Teddy Roosevelt. As a young man, Teddy refused to let asthma and poor eyesight get in his way. He adopted an outlook that he called “the strenuous life,” exercising and spending time outdoors – and he overcame his asthma .

When Teddy’s mother and wife both died just hours apart, he moved to the Dakota Territory, became a tremendous outdoorsman, and proved himself to the other cowboys as a man full of grit. And when America went to war with Spain, he personally led the Rough Riders into combat, defeating the Spanish in a battle and becoming a war hero.

As president, he strengthened America’s Navy, built the Panama Canal, and set up the national parks system that we know today. Throughout his political career, he took on seemingly insurmountable corrupt political machines – and won.

Teddy was able to overcome challenges because he believed that he was in control of his own life. He made the world around him greater because he took charge of his own destiny. Today, his face is on Mount Rushmore – the greatest symbol of American Freedom – because of his leadership.

That’s the type of lesson that South Dakota Sturdy will teach our kids. No matter what challenges they face, even the most unimaginable difficulties, they can overcome with the lessons that this initiative will teach.

I do want to be clear; these lesson plans are not mandatory. They’re available to give additional flexibility to our teachers who work so hard. Maybe they could be used as an easy option for a substitute teacher who has to drop into a classroom at the last minute.

To our knowledge, South Dakota Sturdy will make us the first state to provide such specific lesson plans in this area of resiliency and student wellness. This is the latest way that South Dakota is raising the bar for our kids, making sure that our students receive the very best education possible.

We appreciate everything that our teachers do for their students. We raised their pay this past legislative session because we respect their work. South Dakota students deserve to learn these important life lessons. With this effort, we will make it easier for teachers to provide an excellent education for our kids.

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