Thursday , 28 March 2024

Author Archives: Wendy Royston

Collaborative marketing creates local holiday shopping destinations

Shoppers take in the holiday displays at Fiksdal Furniture & Gifts during the Jingle & Mingle event on Nov. 21 in Webster. The eight shops that participated were bustling with activity during the six-hour promotion. (Photo by Heidi Marttila-Losure/Dakotafire Media)

by Anna Jauhola and Wendy Royston, Dakotafire Media Some entrepreneurs in the Dakotafire region are banding together to bring more of the thrill of the holiday shopping experience—and those who seek it—into their shops. “The experience … determines how long a customer stays around and how much shopping they’ll try to do while they’re in the store,” said Becky McCray, ... Read More »

Mothers can bring experience to classrooms through ‘encore careers’

Angie Baszler, 34, has been substitute teaching in DeSmet, S.D., while pursuing a teaching certificate online. Baszler, who has both bachelor's and master's degrees in business and held a prestigious position at Avera McKennan Hospital in Sioux Falls, S.D., before becoming a stay-at-home mom and working in economic development part-time in DeSmet, said she and other moms may be the answer to South Dakota's teacher shortage issue. (submitted photo)

by Anna Jauhola and Wendy Royston, Dakotafire Media Perhaps the answer to South Dakota’s teacher shortage doesn’t lie in recruiting this year’s high school seniors to the profession or retaining next year’s education grads within our borders. Maybe the answer is sitting in homes and in offices throughout our state, already engaging with youth. “Being a teacher was not an ... Read More »

Consolidated celebrations bring new traditions

Editor’s Note: See related story here. by Wendy Royston, Dakotafire Media with additional reporting by Sheila Ring, Onida Watchman; Kim Ehlers, Standard Publishing; and Ken Schmierer, for the Dickey County Leader Consolidations of schools and sports teams are common across both Dakotas, and they often change the way homecoming unfolds in those schools and communities. Corsica and Stickney, S.D., will ... Read More »

Homecoming could have a stronger call to ‘come home,’ expert says

Editor’s Note: See related story here. by Wendy Royston, Dakotafire Media with additional reporting by Sheila Ring, Onida Watchman, and Ken Schmierer, for The Dickey County Leader The word “homecoming” suggests the original intent of the fall celebrations was to bring graduates—and the focus of the community—back to the school. In many towns today, that call to come home is ... Read More »

Is this thing on?

Top 10 quotable moments from National Rural Assembly 2015 In order to be heard, rural advocates must amplify their voices through powerful, impactful statements. At the 2015 National Rural Assembly, held Sept. 8-10 in on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., rural ideas were shared amid peers and top-ranking White House officials alike. A focus on youth in planning the infrastructure, ... Read More »

Effective framing paints clearer picture of rural issues

What is rural? A table of six young leaders from across America hashed out the definition of the word “rural” during Young Leader’s Day at the National Rural Assembly in Washington, D.C. In a framing exercise, we discussed what we most want policymakers to know about the places that, to us, epitomize the institution of “rural,” as well as the ... Read More »

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