Three to receive honorary doctorates at SDSU commencement

Three individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to South Dakota and beyond will receive honorary doctorates from South Dakota State University and the South Dakota Board of Regents at the university’s 140th commencement May 9 at First Bank & Trust Arena.

The highest honor bestowed by the regents and university, an honorary doctorate is meant to pay tribute to worthy individuals. The doctorate recognizes the efforts of talented, selfless and energetic individuals who have performed beyond the call of duty in service to humankind.

An honorary doctorate may be granted to an individual who has done at least one of the following:

Achieved distinction in his or her profession.

Rendered outstanding contribution or service to the people of South Dakota.

Made a recognized scholarly or service contribution as a regional, national or international figure.

“Our university community is delighted to have three remarkable people joining a prestigious group having received an honorary degree from South Dakota State University for outstanding and impactful contributions,” said Dennis Hedge, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “We look forward to celebrating these extraordinary individuals during SDSU Commencement 2026.”

The recipients of the honorary degrees to be recognized at all three commencement ceremonies on May 9 include:

10 a.m. ceremony
Gov. Dennis Daugaard
Doctor of Public Service

Dennis Daugaard grew up on his family’s South Dakota dairy farm. After graduating from the University of South Dakota and Northwestern University School of Law, he spent 10 years as a trust officer at what is now U.S. Bank, and nearly 20 years at Children’s Home Society of South Dakota, a century-old nonprofit assisting abused and neglected children.

Daugaard served six years in the state Senate, eight years as lieutenant governor and retired in 2019 after serving two terms as governor of South Dakota.

As governor, Daugaard emphasized job creation, economic development, sound fiscal management, efficiency and pragmatic problem-solving. Elected in 2010, he was re-elected in 2014 by the largest voter margin in state history. With a $4.7 billion (FY 2019) annual state budget and 14,000 employees, he eliminated a $127 million structural deficit without raising taxes amidst the recovery from the Great Recession. He achieved budget surpluses in each of the next seven years, all while increasing the state’s bond rating from AA to AA+ (2011) to AAA (2016, 2017 and 2018).

Daugaard and his wife, Linda, live on the family farm near Dell Rapids.

2 p.m. ceremony
Faith Spotted Eagle
Doctor of Humane Letters

Faith Spotted Eagle is an Ihanktonwan Dakota culture carrier who has dedicated her life to the empowerment of the Native American communities of the Oceti Sakowin.

As a young woman, Spotted Eagle earned her master's degree in guidance and counseling from the University of South Dakota, which led her to positions such as high school principal, counselor, teacher, basketball coach and Dakota language instructor at Sinte Gleska University, Brave Heart and USD Upward Bound.

Her work as manager of Human Services and of the Indian Child Welfare office brought awareness of traditional approaches to counseling and family preservation in the Department of Veterans Affairs, Sacred Heart Child Psychiatric Unit (Washington), private practice, Casey Family Services Rosebud, Spokane Mental Health, the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and Sinte Gleska Human Services. She is an elder adviser to the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and the Oceti Sakowin Power Authority. She is chair of the Yankton Treaty Committee.

In 2016, Spotted Eagle received one electoral vote for the U.S. presidency. She also ran for South Dakota House of Representatives in 2006 and 2018.

Spotted Eagle is well known as a founding member of the Brave Heart Society, which was formed to restore traditional knowledge and ceremonies that had been forced underground until passage of the 1978 American Indian Religious Freedom Act. She also is the founding president of the White Buffalo Calf Women’s Society in Rosebud, the first Native women’s shelter in the nation.

Through Spotted Eagle's dedication and recognition of the importance of cultural teachings, ceremonies such as the Isnati Awica Dowanpi (Becoming of Age), for young girls to learn their roles in society from the seven sacred rites of the Oceti Sakowin, were again supported in communities. Through this society, she and others were instrumental in the resurgence of the vital ceremony of “Calling Back the Spirit," which was prepared to bring healing from trauma, abuse and addiction. As a PTSD counselor and consultant, Spotted Eagle also provides healing contributions to veterans in three VA centers. She offers her model, "Healing from Red Rage," which has been widely used across the United States and Canada. She has two children, Kip and Brook, and two grandchildren.

6 p.m. ceremony
Mike Headley
Doctor of Science

Mike Headley is the executive director of the South Dakota Science and Technology Authority and the laboratory director of the Sanford Underground Research Facility in Lead, South Dakota.

Over the past 17 years, his leadership established SURF as America’s underground lab, hosting world-class science, engineering and education. SURF is home to the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, the largest experiment ever undertaken on American soil.

Headley grew up in Brookings and enrolled at SDSU in 1988. He joined the Air Force ROTC and rose to the rank of cadet brigadier general, the highest-ranking cadet in the nation. After completing a computer science degree in 1992, he served six years in the Air Force and was awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal for directing a 200-member team at the National Reconnaissance Office that oversaw satellite intelligence systems.

He completed an MBA from Loyola Marymount University and joined the Earth Resources Observation and Science Center near Garretson. At EROS, he managed a $280 million budget and led a 120-member team to build the next-generation Landsat satellite mission.

The SDSU Jerome J. Lohr College of Engineering named him a Distinguished Engineer in 2024. He lives in Spearfish with his wife, Elizabeth Freer, and daughter Alexandra.

For more information on spring 2026 graduation ceremonies and activities, go to the graduation webpage.