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The South African
25-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The South African
Actress Viola Davis slams 'white genocide': 'I stand with SA brothers and sisters
US actress Viola Davis has joined many South Africans who have countered the 'misinformation' of a 'white genocide' in the country. The hot topic has been a bone of contention between the SA and US presidents, Cyril Ramaphosa and Donald Trump, respectively, who meet this week for diplomatic talks. Viola is a Grammy-winning star who has been filmed in SA on multiple occasions and has also posted several viral clips of South African people. In an Instagram post, Viola Davis shared a clip of CNN reporter Abby Phillips countering claims of 'white genocide'. The News Watch presenter confronted conservative political analyst Scott Jennings, who defended white South Africans who claimed to be 'persecuted'. Abby said: 'The vast majority of people killed on farms are black, where is the concern about that?'. Viola captioned the clip: 'Spent a lot of time in Cape Town, Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Paarl, and Durban. There is no argument. There is no justification. I've seen the ravages of apartheid. I've seen the townships — ALL Black. Full stop' The actress added: 'I stand with my brothers and sisters in South Africa. NGIYAKUTHANDA!'. View this post on Instagram A post shared by VIOLA DAVIS (@violadavis) Like Viola Davis, fellow US actor DL Hughley has also condemned 'white genocide' claims from white South Africans, and in particular Afrikaner 'refugees'. Hughley reposted a video from South African TV and radio presenter Dan Corder, who revealed that one of the 'refugees', Charl Kleinhaus, lived a privileged life in South Africa. 'All this here', Hughley captioned the post. He later reposted a clip of social media commentator Pieter Kriel, who has been outspoken about the 'misinformation' about SA. View this post on Instagram A post shared by realdlhughley (@realdlhughley) Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 . Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp , Facebook , X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
South Dakota schools hit hard by infectious diseases: ‘We cleared out the buildings'
In what is likely to be a record year for influenza cases and hospitalizations in South Dakota, schools have been hit particularly hard by illnesses this winter. When several students fell ill and then a few teachers also became sick in late January, Menno schools superintendent Kory Foss made the decision to shut down the district for a day. During one peak period for flu cases statewide, Foss thought closing schools on a Friday would give the sick students and staff a long weekend to recover. 'We cleared out the buildings to give everybody a chance to go home and get healthy,' said Foss, whose district of 45 employees and about 260 students is located in Hutchinson County, about 30 miles north of Yankton. 'Our whole area around that time, there were a number of schools that were hit hard.' At the two-third mark of the annual nine-month flu season, South Dakota in 2024-25 has seen 19,600 cases, 1,079 hospitalizations and 28 deaths from influenza. The state is on pace to set a record for cases and is already at a historic high in hospitalizations from influenza. South Dakota state epidemiologist Joshua Clayton told News Watch in an interview that the state has seen a somewhat unusual mix of illnesses this year, including COVID-19, influenza, norovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and pertussis, or whooping cough. "I won't say that it's kind of a perfect storm, but I just know there is a lot of respiratory disease happening in South Dakota right now," he said. Schools are often an ideal breeding ground for contagious diseases because hundreds of adults and children congregate together for long periods of time, especially when cold weather prevents them from going outside. The cold snaps in January and February were also marked by extremely dry air, which allows viruses to remain in the air longer and possibly spread more easily, Clayton said. As of Feb. 11, the state had tallied 2,450 cases of COVID and 56 cases of pertussis, which is more dangerous in children. The state does not report numbers of cases of RSV or norovirus on the DOH website. The measles virus has caused infections in nine states this year, led by Texas where one child has died. South Dakota has not had a measles case in 2025, Clayton said. "It appears COVID cases peaked in early January, but I can't say that we've peaked yet for influenza because we're at a very high level right now," he said. The state population might be less prepared to fight viruses than in the past as flu vaccinations have fallen in recent years. In the flu season of 2021-22, about 283,000 doses of influenza vaccine were administered compared to 233,000 this season, an 18% decline during a time the state population rose by 3.2%. The high rates of infectious diseases in South Dakota come at the same time as the appointment of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who has expressed anti-vaccination views in the past. Clayton recommended that people obtain available vaccinations, stay home if they are ill, cough or sneeze into an elbow or shirt sleeve, wash hands frequently and keep hands away from the nose and mouth. Lance Witte, superintendent of the Lower Brule schools, said the district in central South Dakota had so many student illnesses that a scheduled basketball game had to be canceled. 'On one of our teams, we had too many kids that were out sick, and our numbers weren't going to be enough to play the game,' he said. While Lower Brule schools have seen a variety of infectious disease cases this year, the primary cause of illness has been the influenza A virus, Witte said. So far, none of the cases has been severe, he said. The district did extra cleaning during the high point of flu season and has since seen student illnesses subside since the winter cold snap in mid-February eased, Witte said. The Chamberlain School District saw an uptick in student absences due to illness in January but has seen sicknesses taper off since then, said superintendent Justin Zajic. The district saw several cases of influenza and the typical winter colds but had not reported a case of COVID-19 or whooping cough as of late February, he said. 'It caught our attention,' Zajic said. 'But there's a lot of little things we can do to stay ahead of it.' That includes more frequent cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces in classrooms, gymnasiums and in activity rooms where students congregate, he said. The district can also adjust the air intake on its heating system to introduce more outside air into classrooms to keep the air fresh and clean, he said. When a child is out sick for a short or extended time frame, the district has systems in place to ensure learning continues. "We don't ever want to leave a child behind, and we're willing to put in the extra work to help them," Zajic said. This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit organization. Read more stories and donate at and sign up for an email to get stories when they're published. Contact Bart Pfankuch at This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: South Dakota schools hit hard by surge in flu, other illnesses
Yahoo
08-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
South Dakota schools hit hard by infectious diseases
This story is reported by , a non-profit news organization. Find more in-depth reporting at . SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (SDNW) — In what is likely to be a record year for influenza cases and hospitalizations in South Dakota, schools have been hit particularly hard by illnesses this winter. When several students fell ill and then a few teachers also became sick in late January, Menno schools superintendent Kory Foss made the decision to shut down the district for a day. During one peak period for flu cases statewide, Foss thought closing schools on a Friday would give the sick students and staff a long weekend to recover. 'We cleared out the buildings to give everybody a chance to go home and get healthy,' said Foss, whose district of 45 employees and about 260 students is located in Hutchinson County, about 30 miles north of Yankton. 'Our whole area around that time, there was a number of schools that were hit hard.' Data from the state Department of Health confirm that the winter of 2024-25 has seen a higher-than-usual number of infectious diseases cases around the state. At the two-third mark of the annual nine-month flu season, South Dakota in 2024-25 has seen 19,600 cases, 1,079 hospitalizations and 28 deaths from influenza. The state is on pace to set a record for cases and is already at a historic high in hospitalizations from influenza. South Dakota state epidemiologist Joshua Clayton told News Watch in an interview that the state has seen a somewhat unusual mix of illnesses this year, including COVID-19, influenza, norovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and pertussis, or whooping cough. 'I won't say that it's kind of a perfect storm, but I just know there is a lot of respiratory disease happening in South Dakota right now,' he said. Schools are often an ideal breeding ground for contagious diseases because hundreds of adults and children congregate together for long periods of time, especially when cold weather prevents them from going outside. The cold snaps in January and February were also marked by extremely dry air, which allows viruses to remain in the air longer and possibly spread more easily, Clayton said. SDSU runs past North Dakota into Summit title game As of Feb. 11, the state had tallied 2,450 cases of COVID and 56 cases of pertussis, which is more dangerous in children. The state does not report numbers of cases of RSV or norovirus on the DOH website. The measles virus has caused infections in nine states this year, led by Texas where one child has died. South Dakota has not had a measles case in 2025, Clayton said. 'It appears COVID cases peaked in early January, but I can't say that we've peaked yet for influenza because we're at a very high level right now,' he said. 'And then on top of that you have pertussis and a lot of other respiratory viral infections.' The state population might be less prepared to fight viruses than in the past as flu vaccinations have fallen in recent years. In the flu season of 2021-22, about 283,000 doses of influenza vaccine were administered compared to 233,000 this season, an 18% decline during a time the state population rose by 3.2%. Vaccination rates are typically highest among older residents and lowest among those ages 6 months to 4 years, an age range where vaccine rates have slowed the most in the past few years. The high rates of infectious diseases in South Dakota come at the same time as the appointment of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., who has expressed anti-vaccination views in the past. Clayton said the good news for South Dakotans is that the same tactics they can use to battle the flu also work to combat other infectious diseases. Clayton recommended that people obtain available vaccinations, stay home if they are ill, cough or sneeze into an elbow or shirt sleeve, wash hands frequently and keep hands away from the nose and mouth. 'The one positive piece here is that a lot of the same actions can help prevent illness for a lot of those different pathogens,' he said. Lance Witte, superintendent of the Lower Brule schools, said the district on the Lower Brule Indian Reservation in central South Dakota had so many student illnesses that a scheduled basketball game had to be cancelled. 'On one of our teams, we had too many kids that were out sick, and our numbers weren't going to be enough to play the game,' he said. While Lower Brule schools have seen a variety of infectious disease cases this year, the primary cause of illness has been the influenza A virus, Witte said. So far, none of the cases has been severe, he said. 'It's kind of like cold symptoms, so the kids stay home or go to the clinic for treatment,' he said. The district did extra cleaning during the high point of flu season and has since seen student illnesses subside since the winter cold snap in mid-February eased, Witte said. The Chamberlain School District saw an uptick in student absences due to illness in January but has seen sicknesses taper off since then, said superintendent Justin Zajic. The district saw several cases of influenza and the typical winter colds but had not reported a case of COVID-19 or whooping cough as of late February, he said. 'It caught our attention,' Zajic said. 'But there's a lot of little things we can do to stay ahead of it.' That includes more frequent cleaning and disinfecting of surfaces in classrooms, gymnasiums and in activity rooms where students congregate, he said. The district can also adjust the air intake on its heating system to introduce more outside air into classrooms to keep the air fresh and clean, he said. Zajic said that many teachers and other staff members have children of their own, so when the flu or other diseases hit, it can force some employees to stay home to care for their own children. When a child is out sick for a short or extended time frame, the district has systems in place to ensure learning continues. Nearly every middle or high school student in the district, he said, has a laptop they can use to review lessons at home. Students can also be tutored in study halls or after school so they don't fall behind, he said. Elementary children who miss class time meet with a specialist to determine if they fell behind and determine how they can quickly catch up, he said. 'We don't ever want to leave a child behind, and we're willing to put in the extra work to help them,' Zajic said. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
South Dakota state prison project draws strong views, harsh criticism
South Dakota's four-year process to address the state's correctional needs evolved into a plan to build a new men's prison on 160 acres of farmland in Lincoln County between Harrisburg and Canton, with a price tag of $825 million. That's when the drama really began. Landowners near the Lincoln County site railed against the Department of Corrections for a lack of transparency during the search process. Some lawmakers questioned the project's rising cost compared to comparable facilities in other states, urging more study for such a significant investment. Supporters of the plan, including Gov. Larry Rhoden and his predecessor, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, insisted that the nearly 150-year-old South Dakota State Penitentiary in Sioux Falls needs to be replaced, and waiting longer will just make the project more costly. It's a volatile issue, as might be expected for the most expensive publicly funded project in state history. Opinions on when, where and how to build a new prison depend on whom you ask. To help sort it all out, News Watch sought different perspectives of some of the key people involved and let their views and experiences. Kellie Wasko knew what she was getting into when Noem appointed her as South Dakota Secretary of Corrections in February 2022. Her predecessor, Mike Leidhol, had retired in August 2020 after being placed on administrative leave as part of an investigation into allegations of sexual abuse and nepotism at the state penitentiary. The Department of Corrections, which operates eight state facilities with about 3,800 inmates, was short on staffing and credibility. It was also running out of prison space, according to a consultant hired to prepare a statewide facility plan. That report from Omaha, Nebraska-based DLR Group was released publicly about a month before Wasko took office, providing a road map to what became a priority for the Noem administration to address the state's correctional capacity needs. Wasko, who began her career as a correctional nurse in Idaho and served as deputy executive director of corrections in Colorado, serves as the point person for the executive branch mission – now under Rhoden – to bring the $825 million prison project to fruition. In a one-on-one interview with News Watch at the South Dakota State Capitol in Pierre on Feb. 6, Wasko acknowledged that her role in the process is a "heavy lift." 'It's an emotional subject,' said Wasko, 53, sitting in the House of Representatives gallery after testifying at a committee hearing. 'Building a penitentiary of this magnitude is something that South Dakota has not done in any of our lifetimes. We're building something that's meant to last another hundred years.' Staffing issues and clashes with prison industry employers have marred Wasko's tenure at DOC. Critics such as Doug Weber, the former warden of the state penitentiary appointed by Gov. Bill Janklow in 1996, have questioned her grasp of the state's correctional landscape. But Wasko's background in correctional health services and focus on reducing recidivism has steeled her resolve in seeking change. She noted that the modern efficiencies of a 1,500-bed medium-to-maximum security complex would provide increased safety for staff but also expanded space for classrooms and counseling for inmates. 'It's about building an appropriate facility that eases overcrowding, but it's also about putting that focus on rehabilitation while they're incarcerated,' said Wasko, who previously served as CEO of Denver-based Correctional Health Partners, a for-profit company that provides health care to prison facilities. She pointed to South Dakota's rising incarceration rate and lack of commitment to justice reforms meant to help non-violent offenders receive alcohol and drug counseling and parole rather than prison time. "There's been some give and take," said Wasko, whose department is now using prison capacity models that fit the national standard of the American Correctional Association rather than the previously cited operational capacity of DOC. Critics such as NOPE claim her department has had blinders on since targeting the Lincoln County site, ignoring concerns about the remote location and ballooning costs. Wasko spoke at a meeting of the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners on Jan. 7, citing the authority granted her by House Bill 1017 in 2023 to purchase land and Senate Bill 49 in 2024 to begin site preparation and utility upgrades. Weber's career in the South Dakota correctional industry spanned 32 years, including stints as chief warden and director of adult prison operations. There are few people as knowledgeable about the state penitentiary as Weber, who retired in 2013. He thinks the aging Sioux Falls facility still has some life in it. 'My biggest concern is that they're replacing the wrong prison,' said Weber, 70, who has been publicly critical of the Lincoln County prison project. He told News Watch that the facility he's concerned about is Mike Durfee State Prison on the former University of South Dakota-Springfield campus, 30 miles west of Yankton. That medium-custody prison currently houses 1,200 inmates, compared to 754 at the state penitentiary. The buildings being utilized for housing inmates in Springfield were built as college dormitories and "are not conducive to a prison," according to Weber. 'It's stick-built like our houses, made out of lumber and nails and shingles,' he said of the Springfield prison complex. 'So it's very susceptible to all kinds of things, including natural disasters or deliberate inmate actions. I understand that the state penitentiary is old, but it will never be blown down by a natural disaster. It will never burn down.' DOC officials have said that building a new prison in Lincoln County will help manage the number of inmates in Springfield, where violence flared over two days in July, with several injuries reported before order was restored. Weber sees the design of Mike Durfee as a problem, not just overcrowding. "There's no way to secure inmates in those dormitories," he said. "All the staff could do (during the violence last summer) was pull back to a safe area and allow the inmates to do what they were going to do and reinforce the perimeter to make sure there were no escapes." Weber has called for a "pause" in the Lincoln County prison project to allow for more study on which facilities should stay or go. One of his ideas is to replace Mike Durfee with a new prison on state land in the Yankton area, relying on the Jameson Annex in Sioux Falls to provide maximum-security beds. Asked why he waited until recently to publicly oppose DOC plans, Weber said that he realized the urgency of the 2025 legislative session as a proving ground for the project. 'It became really obvious that this was it,' he said. 'If there was any hope at all of pausing this and doing something much wiser, the time is now.' This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit organization. Read more stories and donate at and sign up for an email every few days to get stories as soon as they're published. Contact Stu Whitney at This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Why is the SD state prison price tag $825M? Critics want answers
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
South Dakota has a teacher shortage; here's how international educators are helping
STEPHAN, S.D. – "Three, two, one. OK, in your seats." Just as she did as a teacher in her native Philippines, Madgelie Camba uses a countdown method to gain the attention of the gaggle of second-graders she now teaches at the Crow Creek Tribal School in central South Dakota. Her diminutive stature and slight Filipino accent create no barriers to effectively managing and teaching the students, who on a recent day were in their seats with pencils ready by the time Camba's countdown reached its end. "I have to be strict with my kids, very consistent, so they get used to a routine," said Camba, who has 24 years of teaching experience. "After that, they will be more motivated to learn." Camba is part of a growing trend in which South Dakota school districts are increasingly hiring international teachers on visa programs to fill open classroom positions. In all, 446 international teachers hold active certificates to teach in South Dakota schools, said Mary Stadick Smith, deputy secretary for the South Dakota Department of Education. The number of certificates issued to international teachers peaked in the 2023-24 school year, when 138 new certificates were issued, she said. More: Immigration crackdown comes to South Dakota as ICE enforcement intensifies About 50 public school districts, roughly 25% of the state total, had foreign teachers on staff in 2024, the DOE said. The top three countries of origin are the Philippines, Columbia and Spain. The DOE said the foreign instructors teach a variety of subjects and grade levels, and all must have valid visas and state certification as required by law. South Dakota, like nearly every other U.S. state, struggles with a shortage of teachers, making international educators a hot prospect for desperate administrators. As of January, the Associated School Boards of South Dakota had 366 openings listed on its statewide education job board, though that included some non-teaching positions. In early February, the Sioux Falls School District listed 37 teacher openings, and the Rapid City Area Schools had 45 openings. An aging workforce and high level of retirements, low pay compared to other states and increased political tension in the classroom are creating the teacher shortage, according to prior reporting by News Watch. South Dakota Education Secretary Joseph Graves said in an email to News Watch that the state supports the use of international teachers. "This has proved to be an effective strategy in remote areas of the state where schools have an especially difficult time finding qualified teachers," Graves wrote. Schools adapt to teacher vacancies in several ways, including doubling class sizes, obtaining a state waiver to employ a long-term substitute or using computers to access virtual teaching. More: South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden signs his first bill, banning sanctuary cities in SD But for Rob Coverdale, superintendent of Crow Creek Tribal School district in Stephan, those options were unacceptable because student learning could be negatively affected. Instead, Coverdale has led an effort to recruit more international teachers to the district, which now employs 22 teachers from the Philippines, making up roughly half its certified teaching staff. "It's hard to get teachers anywhere, but out here in Stephan, it's even harder," he said of the tiny community that is about an hour drive from Pierre or Chamberlain. Hiring international teachers is time-consuming and expensive, costing about $5,000 to $8,000 per employee, Coverdale said. Teachers come to Crow Creek either on a J-1 non-immigrant visa, which is aimed at cultural exchanges, or an H-1B non-immigrant visa that is for individuals working in specialized, high-need fields of employment. J-1 visas are easier to obtain but last only two to five years, while H-1B visas can last up to six years, Coverdale said. More: Native American absenteeism challenges SD educators: 'There's no silver bullet' The teachers who come to South Dakota and other U.S. states tend to have several years of classroom experience and advanced college degrees, Coverdale said. "It's quite a process, but the end result is you get great, experienced teachers," he said. Coverdale said all of his international teachers are bilingual and speak very strong English and they earn salaries well beyond what they could back home. Camba, 45, lives in a rental home on the Crow Creek school campus with her husband, who also teaches at the school, and their teenage daughter, who attends high school in nearby Highmore. Earning two salaries in the U.S. has allowed the couple to build a home and buy a farm in the Philippines, and to help support her parents and nine siblings back home. Ronneil Vergara is a native of the Philippines who has taught in several foreign countries, including at Crow Creek Tribal School, where he now teaches special education. So far, he has been pleased by his decision to teach in South Dakota and feels it has helped him grow as a person and as an educator. "Some of the parents of my students here have treated me like I was part of their family," Vergara said. The Sioux Falls School District employs a few international teachers but only in its Spanish language immersion program, said district spokeswoman DeeAnn Konrad. 'In our schools, it is for a specific skill set that they're coming here with and that's to speak and teach in their native language of Spanish,' Konrad said. George Shipley, superintendent of the Bison School District in remote northwestern South Dakota, first learned of the concept of recruiting foreign teachers when he was an administrator for the McLaughlin School District. When he took the job in Bison, the district already employed teachers from the Philippines, and Shipley has gladly continued the effort. Shipley said the Bison community has embraced the foreign teachers, with one resident making available a three-bedroom home that is rented by a small group of teachers who live together. 'I'm very honored and appreciative of what these folks are doing because it's a huge culture shock for them,' he said. 'You leave a tropical island, you've never seen snow in your life, and now you live in northern South Dakota in December? My goodness.' This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit organization. Read more stories and donate at and sign up for an email to get stories when they're published. Contact Bart Pfankuch at This article originally appeared on Aberdeen News: South Dakota schools get welcome boost from international teachers
