Democratic leader hits Noem on higher-ed critique

New executive director says governor pushing national talking points

It didn’t take Dan Ahlers long to jump into the fray.

Three days after manning the post of executive director of the South Dakota Democratic Party, Ahlers squared off with Gov. Kristi Noem after the Republican governor sent a letter to the Board of Regents.

In that letter, Noem challenged the board to improve graduation rates while keeping tuition affordable. She also lamented the number of graduates – 43 percent – who were underemployed.

That much, Ahlers agreed with.

Noem: liberal ideologies 'poison' higher education