Regents set date for public hearing on USD Division I study

The South Dakota Board of Regents will hold a public hearing Dec. 11 in Sioux Falls to take comments on the feasibility of The University of South Dakota moving its NCAA athletic program classification from Division II to Division I-AA in football and Division I in all other sports.

The hearing is scheduled to run from 2 to 6 p.m. in Room 291 of the Health Sciences Center on the Southeast Technical Institute campus. Testimony from representatives of the USD campus community (students, faculty, alumni, and foundation) will be taken for one hour, beginning at 3:30 p.m. Members of the public and others not directly associated with USD may testify between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. The meeting's schedule is: 2 to 2:30 p.m., introductions and overview; 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., USD report/presentation; 3:30 to 4:30 p.m., USD community testimony; 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., public testimony; 5:30 to 6 p.m., summary and closing comments.

"This is a time for the Board of Regents to hear from the public and interested parties on this issue," said Regents' Executive Director Robert T. Tad Perry. "USD officials have been reviewing the existing athletic program and the opportunities and challenges of change for some time."

Input gathered at the public hearing will be helpful to the Board of Regents as it considers this issue, Perry said.

Time will be limited for testimony, so individuals who represent the campus community or the general public are asked to register with the Board of Regents' office if they wish to testify on Dec. 11.

Call the board office at (605) 773-3455 or send an e-mail to barbarac@sdbor.edu.