Educator Resources & Toolkits

Our Dakota Dreams offers valuable resources and toolkits to help educators support students on their college preparation journey. The topics featured on this page include information about new and upcoming programming as well as access to promotional and advising materials to help you communicate opportunities to students during the 2024-2025 school year.

• Teacher Leadership Academy
• Educator Webinar Series
• Dakota Dreams Overview & Student Flyer
• Free College Application Period
• Supporting FAFSA Completion
• High School Dual Enrollment
• SD Statewide & Institutional Scholarships
• New Math Pathways Resources
• Process for Releasing Transcripts
• Reduced Tuition for Educators

Have a resource request? (Submit ideas on the form at the bottom of this page.)

Spring 2025 Teacher Leadership Academy

The application window is now closed.

Great news! The South Dakota Department of Education has extended funding for one more year of the Dakota Dreams Teacher Leadership Academy!

If you are a South Dakota teacher with three+ years of experience, this FREE academy will help you develop your educational leadership skills and explore administrative roles and responsibilities in schools. Teachers who successfully complete the course will earn three graduate credits, which can be seamlessly applied toward an advanced degree in education.

Learn More

Educator Webinar Series

Our 2024-2025 virtual series helps educators support students in their journey toward college readiness. We record the webinars and provide access to registered participants. Attendees who participate in the live webinar and complete a short survey within a limited timeframe receive continuing education contact hours for each webinar.

  • November 6, 2024 – 10 Things SD Counselors Should Know about FAFSA
  • December 2, 2024 – What’s New: SD Public Universities
  • December 5, 2024 – What’s New: SD Technical Colleges
  • January 21, 2025 – Introducing Math Pathways Advising Tools
  • February 18, 2025 – High School Dual Credit Update
  • March 24, 2025 – Supporting Your Seniors Through Graduation & Beyond
  • April 22, 2025 – South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship Update

Register Now

What is Dakota Dreams?

Our Dakota Dreams is the premier source for college preparation in South Dakota, featuring the state’s four public technical colleges and six public universities. The effort is led by a coalition of stakeholders with the goal of supporting students, parents, and advisors as they navigate their way toward college. Dakota Dreams offers website resources, supports college application efforts, promotes FAFSA completion, and has implemented grant-funded programming to support students in career exploration and preparation for college-level academic work.

Our Dakota Dreams Flyer

COALITION REPRESENTATION:

  • South Dakota Board of Regents
  • Public Universities
  • Public Technical Colleges
  • South Dakota Department of Education
  • South Dakota Department of Labor & Regulation
  • Mapping Your Future
College Prep Checklists

Free College Application Period

South Dakota students may apply to South Dakota’s public technical colleges and universities free of charge between October 1-November 30, 2024. During the free application period, students are encouraged to explore college-going and apply to any of the public technical colleges and universities.

PROMOTIONAL TOOLKIT

Schools are encouraged to use our promotional toolkit to communicate this great opportunity to students. The following assets are included in the toolkit:

  • 15-Second Video
  • Printable Flyer
  • Printable SD College Map Poster
  • Social Media Guide
  • Website Banner
Introduction Letter Promotional Toolkit

GRAB AND GO SCHOOL RESOURCES

Educators are invited to use our grab-and-go resources to support the Free College Application Period. These activities help to build a college-going culture in your school and include:

  • ABCs of College
  • College Awareness Announcements
  • College Decision Map
  • College Trivia
  • Ideas to Engage Students
  • SD Colleges Map Poster
  • Human College Bingo
  • I Applied Activity
  • I Applied, What’s Next
  • College Prep Checklists
  • You Bet I Went to College Poster
Grab & Go Resources

Supporting FAFSA Completion

FAFSA COMPLETION PORTAL

Educators are in the perfect position to support and encourage their students to complete the FAFSA, which is why we developed the FAFSA Completion Portal. The FAFSA Completion Portal provides school representatives in participating school districts information about the FAFSA completion status of their high school seniors. Portal members see a list of their enrolled seniors and the FAFSA completion status of each – either “Complete,” “Not Filed,” or “Incomplete”. Knowing the completion status of your seniors helps you determine who you need to spend additional time with to ensure FAFSA awareness and support the application process.

Interested in joining?

Interested in joining the FAFSA Completion Portal? Here’s how. If your high school is interested, simply fill out the interest form below. Once your school superintendent signs the data-sharing agreement with the South Dakota Board of Regents, your school representatives will gain access to the Portal. It’s important to note that the Portal does not provide financial information or reveal which school(s) a student has submitted their FAFSA information.

FAFSA Portal Login Join FAFSA Portal

SCHEDULE A FINANCIAL AID EVENT

Schedule a Financial Aid Event for your parents and students to help them prepare to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). You can invite your families to the school to view the presentation in person, or you can host the presentation online.

Here are some steps to set up your event:

  1. Determine possible dates for your financial aid night.
  2. Contact Mapping Your Future (or a college financial aid office directly) to discuss your plans and to gather more information about event support.
  3. Promote the event to parents and students.
  4. Test the technology, especially if you are hosting an online event.
  5. Have a moderator available. In most events, the counselor will serve as the moderator. This ensures that all questions are heard and the event runs smoothly.

FAFSA Completion Dashboard

See the South Dakota FAFSA Completion Dashboard to monitor FAFSA completion rates by school, school district, or statewide

More FAFSA Resources

Click each step to expand and learn more...

Find information and school counselor resources and tools to help you provide even more meaningful services to your students and families, especially as they explore higher education as a means to a better future.

Utilize the U.S. Department of Education Toolkit to access resources to promote financial aid opportunities, completing the FAFSA and more.

Key Messages for first-time applicants getting started:

  • Prepare to complete the 2025–26 FAFSA® form by having your documents ready and creating a StudentAid.gov account. You and your contributor(s) will each need an account to access and fill out the online form. This should be done before entering the FAFSA form.​
  • If you’re a dependent student, determine which parent will need to provide information on your FAFSA form using the Parent Wizard Typically, only one parent needs to be invited to contribute to your form.​
  • First time filling out the FAFSA form? Learn more about each step of the process HERE.

 

Helpful resources for high school seniors and first-time filers:

High School Dual Enrollment

High School Dual Credit Toolkit

Educators can get quick access to the following High School Dual Credit (HSDC) resources in the HSDC Educators Toolkit.

  • HSDC Course Crosswalk
  • Important Dates and Deadlines
  • HSDC Advisory Tools
  • CTE Pathway Dual Credit Courses
  • “Is Dual Credit Right For Me?” (handout)
HSDC Educators Toolkit

NEW! BOR DUAL ENROLLMENT WEBSITE

The South Dakota Board of Regents created a new website and application forms to make the process of applying for dual enrollment easy! Dual enrollment includes SDBOR High School Dual Credit (HSDC), Concurrent Credit, and Non-Degree Seeking Admission courses. Among others, website features include:

  • Applications for first-time and continuing dual enrollment students
  • Forms (Add/Drop/Withdraw, Eligibility Exemption, Academic Suspension Waiver, and Credit Hour Waiver)
  • Help guides for students, parents and high school officials
  • Other resources for dual enrollment
SDBOR Dual Enrollment Website

SDBOR QUICK LINKS:

NEW! Gateway Certificates

Earn an Undergraduate Certificate through High School Dual Credit

Students can take the first steps toward rewarding careers at a fraction of the price. Designed to help high school students explore careers in a meaningful way, Gateway Certificates includes 3-4 courses geared toward career pathways, including discipline-specific and relevant general education courses. Upon completion, the certificate credential appears on the students South Dakota Board of Regents (SDBOR) transcript. (While Gateway Certificates are geared toward High School Dual Credit students, these certificates are available to all students at South Dakota public universities.)

Available certificate programs are as follows:

  • Gateway to Teaching
  • Gateway to Agriculture
  • Gateway to Business
  • Gateway to Engineering
If a student is interested in pursuing any of the above certificates, their school counselor should indicate that certificate on the student’s HSDC application so it can be added to their record. Completed certificates will result in a credential on the student’s regental postsecondary transcript.
Gateway Certificates

Statewide & Institutional Scholarships

Scholarship Bulletin Board

The Statewide Scholarship Bulletin Board provides South Dakota students a platform to find numerous scholarship opportunities. Students can search scholarships based on their regional location, academic standing, financial need, and more. Third-party entities are encouraged to post their scholarship opportunities through the request form on the webpage.

Scholarship Bulletin Board

Advising Resources

Build Dakota Scholarship
Freedom Scholarship
Dakota Corps Scholarship
South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship
Critical Teaching Needs Scholarship

Math Pathways Resources

Coming Soon! Math Pathways Advising Tool

Our Dakota Dreams will soon feature a new advising tool called Math Pathways. This resource will show students how to align their math coursework options to career interests and relevant programs of study in college.

Breaking down the middle and high school math course options into pathways, our tools show students how to strategically prepare for success in their likely first-year college math course. By searching occupations and their related minimum college math course, students can narrow down their math course options by following a recommended pathway.

Features Include:

  • Career and Math Search Tool – Search a library of occupations and filter by career cluster, degree type, and hot job designations.

  • Occupation Profiles – Learn more about occupations found in our existing career library, including the minimum first-year college math course required for the related degree program.

  • Math Pathways Advising Documents – Find math course options broken down into year-by-year paths, leading to preparation for various college math courses.

Year-Long College Algebra Course

High school juniors and seniors who are planning on going to college but want to feel more confident in math should consider taking our Year-Long College Algebra course through the Northern State E-Learning Center. This course is taken in two consecutive semesters, and successful completion qualifies as one high school unit and three college algebra credits. A one-page summary of the program and its benefits can be found here.

Year-Long College Algebra Summary (PDF)

Process for Releasing Transcripts

The South Dakota Board of Regents has worked with Infinite Campus to simplify the way high schools release transcripts to its universities. This improved process allows counselors to easily share SDBOR-formatted and coded transcripts, leading to quicker student admissions, more efficient evaluation of South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship required coursework, and better student advising in college.

Transcript Release to SDBOR

Two buttons related to the SDBOR Transcript can be found on the Transcript Tab in Infinite Campus:

  1. Preview SDBOR Release: Displays a PDF copy of the SDBOR transcript.
  2. Release to SDBOR: Sends the transcript to all six SDBOR universities.

REDUCED TUITION FOR EDUCATORS

South Dakota educators who meet eligibility criteria can attend undergraduate or graduate courses at any university managed by the South Dakota Board of Regents at a reduced rate. The discounted rate applies to a maximum of six credits per year and is limited to the space available.

Application Process

  1. Apply using the new application for reduced tuition for teachers

  2. Employer verifies employment

  3. University audits application

  4. University verifies teaching certificate type and status with DOE’s database

  5. University registers teacher for courses (if not registered)

Reduced Tuition Handout

Eligibility Criteria

  • Be a South Dakota Resident

  • Be employed or contracted by a South Dakota Accredited School or Head Start program as a:

      • Teacher
      • Vocational Instructor
      • School Counselors or Psychologists
      • Student Advisor designated as a School Counselor

  • Have one of the following requirements:

      • As a condition of employment

      • To maintain a certificate to teach

      • To maintain certification as a school counselor

See the Reduced Tuition for Teachers Guideline for more information about eligibility and process.

 

How can we help?

Let us know if you have ideas for new resources or advising tools that could help your students. Our Dakota Dreams is uniquely poised to be part of the solution.

Submit Ideas