Be that 'somebody' who makes a difference

Column by Al Bahe, development director for the College of Nursing

“This (scholarship) allows me to focus on completing my degree and pursue my goal of serving Native communities through the Indian Health Service, where I plan to begin my nursing career after graduation. I am also proud to share that I have been accepted to the Johns Hopkins University graduate program, where I will continue my studies with the Center for Indigenous Health. Your example and the story behind this scholarship remind me of the power of education and service to uplift communities across South Dakota and beyond.”

Sheridan, nursing scholarship recipient 2025/26

“Somebody” chose to make a difference, chose to give back, chose to believe in our students.

Maybe that “somebody” was you. At the moment, there are 172 individuals or entities providing scholarship aid for our nursing students. Several of those scholarships offer multiple awards. The total value of those nursing scholarships is more than $550,000, making the average value of each scholarship about $2,400.

For the 2025-26 academic year, more than 225 students received scholarship support as a direct result of donor generosity. We are grateful for those who made that happen, and as shown by the student quote above, it’s clearly making a difference in their lives. To those currently supporting a scholarship, thank you!

While those numbers are very significant, there’s more to the story. Let’s dig deeper.

During spring semester 2026, there were 744 undergraduate students pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at South Dakota State University. Another 117 students were working on an advanced degree in nursing at SDSU, for a total of 861 nursing students. That means more than 600 individuals, or approximately 74% of those students, did not receive scholarship assistance. There is a definite gap and a clear need for more scholarships.

For a South Dakota resident in the BSN program, tuition cost per semester is about $6,300. Multiplied by the five semesters needed to earn a BSN degree, total tuition is more than $31,000 per student. That figure does not include program fees, student housing, meal plans, etc. It is just the cost of tuition.

An annual scholarship award of $2,500 covers about 20% of the tuition cost for a student in that BSN program. That is significant.

From a donor’s perspective, that $2,500 amount breaks down to about $215 per month. We have donors who make monthly or quarterly contributions through an automated clearing house while others prefer to make a single lump sum gift. Many of the scholarship sponsors in their retirement years prefer to use funds from their required minimum distribution to support a scholarship through an individual retirement account, which may also have tax advantages.

Establishing a scholarship at SDSU is an easy process. Call, text or email me today, and let’s talk about your circumstances to see what we can get started on together.

Imagine what the thank you letter from your first recipient might say. Will you be that “somebody” who chooses to make a difference, chooses to give back, chooses to invest in the future nursing professionals attending the SDSU College of Nursing?