Black Hills State University is the largest teacher preparation program in the state recognized for its legacy of preparing teachers. BHSU honors teachers for their positive influence.
“Military men and women, business people, dentists, communications professionals, educators – we were all inspired by teachers,” said BHSU President Tom Jackson, Jr. “Teachers take the time to invest in us and inspire us to achieve. At BHSU we’re investing in the future by ensuring we continue to prepare exceptional teachers.”
The BHSU College of Education and Behavioral Sciences has strong programs that prepare teachers for all grade levels and in many content areas, with results that show high job placement rates and award-winning alumni performance.
Teachers inspire students on a daily basis and open their eyes and minds to the myriad of possibilities. Successful people, no matter their career field, have one thing in common – they were all inspired by teachers.
Alex Hanson
I'm Alex Hanson. I'm the chief budget analyst in the South Dakota Bureau of Finance and Management.
Jesse Dana
My name is Jesse Dana. I am an orthodontist.
Julieanne Morse
My major is mass communications with with emphasis in photography and graphic communications.
David Mickelson
David Mickelson, business administration.
Anya Mueller
Anya Mueller, my major was mass communications
Rylan Sprague
My name's Rylan Sprague, bachelor of science with an emphasis in botany.
Alex Hanson
The opportunity to go to work in the governor's budget office is really unique for somebody who's right out of school.
Julieanne Morse
So I've been in the National Guard nearly 10 years now. I can honestly say I had a dream. I was a photojournalist overseas. I just kind of photographed myself as I was getting ready to deploy. Just the emotional roller coaster that comes with realizing you're going to another country that's war-torn and, you never know what you're going to come out of there like.
Anya Mueller
I really loved my time at Black Hills State. I just felt like I found my niche in life when I was there. It was a lot of the same people who had a lot of the same interests, you know. I got really involved in the television and the radio aspect.
Rylan Sprague
I was hired through a partnership between the Forest Service and BH. BH said they would provide me with the education and Forest Service would provide me with the job.
Jesse Dana
Honestly, when I come back to it, it's my chemistry teacher at BH. He just really made a big impact on me.
David Mickelson
I spent 15 years in banking. There was never a time when I felt that other people were more prepared than I was, and I owe that to Black Hills State.
Alex Hanson
We get to make South Dakota a better place to live, and I really care about that.
Rylan Sprague
And now I'm finishing up the Master's of Science and Sustainability program.
David Mickelson
I really do feel, you know, the education that I got and the experiences that I had prepared me for, you know, for any workplace.
Julieanne Morse
The next big goal would probably be serving at the national level in military.
2nd Lieutenant South Dakota National Guard
Class of '14
Julieanne Morse, 2nd Lieutenant in the South Dakota National Guard, deployed to Afghanistan during her third year of college at BHSU. That experience, combined with her education, opened her eyes to many possible career paths. She’s now focused on serving at the national level – perhaps even at the Pentagon.
At age 26, Alex Hanson knows the opportunity to shape decisions in the South Dakota Governor’s Budget Office is really unique for someone so young but says that his educational experience at BHSU prepared him well to meet the challenges and demands. “We get to make South Dakota a better place to live,” says Alex.
Orthodontist at Meyer & Dana Orthodontics
Class of '97
Dr. Jesse Dana and his team at Meyer & Dana Orthodontics in Spearfish ensure dental patients receive the highest-quality care. Jesse makes sure to be "positive and encouraging to our team and our patients, to always make sure we treat our patients like family here."
David Mickelson is the first to admit that his decision to leave a successful career in banking to work in automobile services was a surprise and a risk. His decision to attend Black Hills State University was also surprising and perhaps a bit risky since he was breaking family tradition, but it was also essential to his success. BHSU was a great fit for him.
Anya (Olverson) Mueller greets the Black Hills each weekday morning as a reporter and social media director for KNBN, Rapid City’s NBC affiliate. A job shadowing experience at the BHSU campus radio station convinced her to pursue a broadcasting career. That was an excellent decision for Anya who loves her job and continues to dream big.