Statement of Marv Albin
Director Sioux Falls Programs and Professor of Information Systems
Dakota State University, Sioux Falls, SD
February 10, 2000

Adapted from oral statement

Thank you, again, for the opportunity to be here today. South Dakota is very similar to Minnesota. We also have low unemployment. We also have a very large, rural state.

It seems to me (INAUDIBLE) South Dakota, as well. Some of the issues I think that we face with (INAUDIBLE) situation that we’re in, that I haven’t heard mentioned yet this morning, because I think the use and adoption of technology throughout our workforce has caused most companies to be overstaffed. (INAUDIBLE) a couple of weeks or so ago, but that most companies now are overstaffed. The problem is that they don’t have staff to write qualifications of jobs that they need. So I think that one of the areas (INAUDIBLE) key for us to look at is what we do with those people who are now overstaffed and how we can get them to have the right quality (INAUDIBLE) to fill the job (INAUDIBLE). The nature of technology itself also lends people to be able to take the opportunity to be more … be more entrepreneurial. And one of the reasons that we continue to (INAUDIBLE) in the technology field is about people … on how to take that opportunity to be entrepreneurial. And maybe the workforce from other companies (INAUDIBLE) and go out on their own. So, those are some of the issues that I think that we’re facing and some of the things that we need to address and do about it. We’re … I think that some programs that people have started in South Dakota, including the institutions I represent – Dakota State University (INAUDIBLE) – was changed in 1984 to be focused on the computer information system, education. Quite a vision from 1984. Begun in 1985. The University of (INAUDIBLE), including the growing … very rapidly growing student enrollment population now as a time in point in the last three or four years. We also have a relatively maverick Governor …

I guess – Bill (INAUDIBLE), who has done a number of things that have (INAUDIBLE). And one of the issues that has related particularly to the field of technology is the wiring in the schools. (INAUDIBLE) program in South Dakota … every school (public and private) in South Dakota has now been wired to the Internet and has access to the Internet. I think probably the first state in the nation which every school, both public and private, (INAUDIBLE) the wires for access to the Internet. In addition to doing the wiring, a program throughout the school (INAUDIBLE) and we’re talking about schools K through the higher education being wired (INAUDIBLE) program. In addition to that, to kind of incorporate that into the education, there have been summer training sessions for teachers that have been held at the [Constantine] University for K-12 teachers. We’ve now been through three years of that summer training for teachers (going into the fourth year this summer) and now have about 1,000 teachers trained in how to use and integrate that technology into the classroom when they go back and hope that the teachers (INAUDIBLE) that this training will (INAUDIBLE) in their schools and then will teach the other teachers how to do that. Not only do they have a very (INAUDIBLE) program in the suburbs, but they need twice (INAUDIBLE) including (INAUDIBLE) made their curriculum plans, what they’re going to be doing here in the school year, incorporating that technology. Come back twice during the school year and sharing that, and then a follow-up session the following summer for that. We’ve also been very fortunate as to having grants from the U.S. West Company that allocated a computer lab van. Students from Dakota State University were fortunate enough to be chosen for that program where the van goes out to the rural areas in South Dakota, providing technology literacy training for the public. So they announce before the arrival of the van. The van will get two (INAUDIBLE) for the public to come in and get some technology training. I guess, in terms of providing the Internet, the van has self-contained laptop computers, so they don’t need to plug in anywhere when they get there. Just open the doors when they get there and they’re ready to get their business training. We also have developed in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (where I live), a recruiting cooperative among the businesses in South Dakota looking for technology workers. They pooled their resources and have representatives to go out throughout the country to look for technology workers and people that can relocate and come to Sioux Falls (INAUDIBLE) for those kinds of opportunities (INAUDIBLE). Thank you again for your time. I’ll look forward to getting some information back from the Commission about other things that we can do in South Dakota to solve our information technology workforce.

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