DOGE cuts impact non-profit that gives books to students
BROOKINGS, S.D. (KELO) – A non-profit that gives free books to students across South Dakota found out Thursday morning that 100% of its federal funding from the National Endowment For The Humanities had been cut. This comes as the Department of Government Efficiency tries to reduce government spending.
Part of the South Dakota Humanities Council's mission is to deliver humanities programming like local history, culture and storytelling to the people of South Dakota.
State to seek possible land sites for prison project
Executive director Christina Oey says there was little warning that funding for the organization was on the chopping block, and now the non-profit needs to make cuts of its own.
'The first one that to me personally is most concerning is our young readers book. Our Young Readers Program provides a free book to every single third grader in the state of South Dakota. And so with these cuts, we don't know if that's going to happen anymore,' Oey said.
Oey says it gets $950,000 from the federal government which is 73% of its operating budget. The rest comes from donations.
'Unfortunately it's impossible to make that up for this fiscal year through private donations. And even if they do come through this year, we don't know what's going to happen next year,' Oey said.Jennifer Widman oversees the South Dakota Center for the Book, which is part of the SD Humanities Council. She says the cut will leave a gap in outreach efforts the organization does like the annual Festival of Books.
'Everybody is for efficient government. But what we do with money here in the state and the way that we deliver it to every corner of the state to as many people as we can from all walks of life, for free or almost free in every case, those projects, those programs just don't exist anywhere else,' Widman said.
Both Oey and Widman say the cut will hit young people the hardest.
'I think that the literary community in South Dakota would feel it very strongly. And what we think of as the future literary community, the young readers, it's an even worse impact for them,' Widman said.'I challenge you to go into a third-grade classroom where you can see their faces light up when they receive that book. And it really does make an impact on literacy rates in South Dakota,' Oey said. 'The other big one that's concerning us is our annual Festival of Books. Every year we have between 5,000 to 7,000 attendees from across the state and out of the state that attend to come together to celebrate literacy,' Oey said.
South Dakota Humanities Council says since the cut, its been in contact with U.S. Representative Dusty Johnson's office. He says he's going to bring up the non-profit's concerns to the White House.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Local legislators back tribe's declaration of emergency
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Two of South Dakota's lawmakers who represent the area have written a formal letter of support for the state of public safety emergency declared by the Rosebud Sioux Tribe president. Mitchell residents against Davison County prison site Democratic Rep. Eric Emery and Republican Rep. Rebecca Reimer signed the letter sent June 2 to RST President Kathleen Wooden Knife. Letter-to-Pres.-Wooden-Knife-for-State-of-Emergency-1Download President Wooden Knife's May 27 proclamation follows previous emergency declarations in August 2019 and August 2024. The current proclamation is featured on the Rosebud Sioux Tribe government website and cites 'pervasive law and order and public health issues related to the epidemic of meth and illicit drug use, drug trafficking, and gun related violence and other violent and unlawful activity creating severe and extreme threats to public safety, the health and welfare of the general public.' In her proclamation, President Wooden Knife calls on the U.S. government, the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of the Interior and the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs 'to honor their legal, statutory, trust and treaty obligations to provide sufficient resources for competent law enforcement patrol, reporting and investigations (of) criminal activity.' The letter from Emery and Reimer thanks Wooden Knife and says they are honored to stand beside her effort. Emery, a member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, represents the southern portion of the legislative district that includes the Rosebud Indian Reservation, while Reimer represents the district's northern part. 'We commend your decisive leadership in addressing this crisis and your administration'swillingness to take action in a time of immense difficulty. It takes courage to confront suchchallenges head-on, and your focus on protecting your people is both necessary anddeeply respected,' their letter states. 'As representatives of our communities, made up of families, elders, first responders,educators, and caregivers, we understand that this crisis reaches far beyond public impacts the well-being of the people in every way and calls for a unified, sustainedresponse rooted in compassion, cultural respect, and community-focused action,' the letter continues. U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, a former governor of South Dakota, has been pushing the federal government for a second tribal law enforcement training center to be placed somewhere in the Great Plains region. Then-Gov. Kristi Noem, a Republican, provided funding last year for some tribal law officers to receive training through a state course conducted under the state Office of Attorney General. She later held a summit on tribal law enforcement and urged then-U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, a Democrat, to take action on tribal public safety. Noem had been temporarily banned from all nine reservations in South Dakota after a speech to the Legislature last year in which she said drug cartels were using reservations as protection and for other remarks that tribal leaders said were offensive. Noem in turn called for law enforcement agreements between tribal and state governments. The Oglala Sioux Tribe, which neighbors the Rosebud reservation, has twice sued the federal government over inadequate law enforcement on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Rounds also recently called for creation of a federal commission on violent crimes committed on tribal reservations. Republican U.S. Rep. Dusty Johnson, who holds South Dakota's lone U.S. House seat, in March urged that 'waste, fraud, and abuse of funds for Indian country' be examined by the federal government. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
GFP wants Purple Heart vets to use state parks for free
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — Members of the U.S. armed forces who suffered wounds and received Purple Heart decorations may soon get into South Dakota state campgrounds and rec areas for free. The South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission on Thursday approved granting lifetime entrance permits to Purple Heart recipients. The commission also decided that Purple Heart recipients can stay at state campsites for half-price. The commission took the actions Thursday during a meeting in Aberdeen. The changes came at the request of Connie Stone, who filed a petition asking for them. She is coordinator for veteran services at South Dakota State University in Brookings. The South Dakota Legislature's Rules Review Committee will have final say on whether the rules take effect. The six lawmakers are scheduled to next meet on Tuesday, June 10 in Pierre. The commission's pending entrance rule states: 'A resident of this state who is a recipient of the Purple Heart is also entitled to a free lifetime park entrance license. The resident shall fill out a form provided by the Division of Parks and Recreation and mail it to the Pierre office with a photocopy of the Purple Heart citation or award certificate.' A companion pending rule would reduce the fee for camping. It states: 'A resident of this state who is a recipient of the Purple Heart is also entitled to purchase a camping permit, campsite electrical service, and camping cabin permit for one-half price upon completion of a form provided by the Division of Parks and Recreation accompanied by a photocopy of the Purple Heart citation or award certificate. These discounts are for the use of the recipient only, and are not transferable.' Al Nedved, deputy director for the state Division of Parks and Recreation, spoke in support of the proposed rules on Thursday. He said approximately 150 to 200 Purple Heart recipients currently live in South Dakota. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Higher cosmetology fees intended to offset costs
PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — One of the purposes of the higher licensing and examination fees that the South Dakota Cosmetology Commission plans to start charging is to deal with a budget that has gone into the red. Judge won't hide officers' names in SF shooting case The cosmetology office is self-supporting, meaning it relies only on funds it collects. A state budget document shows that the office's regulatory expenses totaled $376,037 in fiscal 2023, which was less than the office's $396,227 in revenue that year. But in fiscal 2024, expenses totaled $431,360, while revenues fell to $387,296, requiring the office to tap reserves that had built up in previous years. The office's fiscal 2025 budget, which runs through the end of June, calls for spending $481,958, but only an estimated $439,277 in revenues were expected, putting the office into a potential deficit situation once again. The cosmetology office also is replacing an outdated technology system that its director, Tyler Evins, described as 'old and brittle' during legislative testimony earlier this year. State lawmakers approved Senate Bill 27 that allows the Cosmetology Commission to charge more for licenses and examinations, and the commission earlier this week approved higher fees after a public hearing that drew no opposition. Those fee increases still need final clearance from the Legislature's Rules Review Committee. The increases are expected to generate an estimated $237.385. of additional revenue. Beside paying for new technology, the additional revenue also will pay for converting one of the office's three part-time inspectors to full time, according to Dawn Dovre, a spokesperson for the state Department of Labor and Regulation, which oversees the cosmetology office. A state law calls for inspections, and a series of state administrative rules say that each salon or booth must be inspected 'approximately once per calendar year' and schools shall be inspected 'approximately two times per calendar year.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
