Attention College Students – this blog is for you. You know your congresswoman/classmate, Kristi Noem – well, she’s made it pretty clear she not about to step up and help you.
Congresswoman Noem was surprised to learn that South Dakota’s college students rank #1 in student loan debt and went on to tell the Rapid City Journal yesterday,
“I wouldn’t generally think that because our universities … here in South Dakota offer real competitive rates.”
The problem with this statement: according to this same article, South Dakota ranked sixth out of seven surrounding states when it comes to tuition costs. So yes, while Kristi Noem may be able to afford her almost 20 year college-student career – we know, most South Dakotans cannot. Especially when you consider the drastic cuts to higher education made by the Daugaard Administration – cuts that resulted from irresponsible fiscal decisions made under Noem’s leadership while she served in the South Dakota State House of Representatives.
It appears to us that once again Congresswoman Noem didn’t do her homework. That’s why we urge all of you as college students to do yours before the next election – and send Noem home before she does any more damage. South Dakota’s universities and their students have suffered enough. We have the debt to prove it.