Federal Regulations on School Lunches

Before the 2013-2014 school year, the federal government made new regulations for school lunch programs. Some of these regulations haven't sat well with students in South Dakota schools and all for good reason. Some of the new federal lunch regulations aren't exactly appealing to K-12 grade students.
Here are some of the federal guidelines:

• It must be a whole grain product
• the first ingredient in must be a fruit, vegetable, dairy, or protein food
• Snack items have to be less than or equal to 200 calories
• Entree items have to be less than or equal to 350 calories. 

Why are students having such a negative reaction to the school lunches? Well, just take a look at those guidelines. Instead of having to eat the food, students are starting to pack their own lunches which has definitely been noticed among the lunch room staff in Tea and Baltic South Dakota. In fact, to keep students from bringing their own lunch, the staff have started to get creative by bring changing the titles of lunches to something more enticing or even giving students dressing packets to go with their veggies. 

Child obesity is no doubt a problem among children, but is it really the school's responsibility to see that they don't "gain weight?" Sure, healthy items are great for students and definitely should be available to students. But, if they don't like it, they're not going to eat it. School's are responsible for children eight hours of the day. A child could eat healthy a couple of times during those eight hours but then once their home they're going straight for the good stuff. And by good stuff I mean junk food. 

Healthy options are great for students but these new guidelines are starting to look less "child friendly" and more like a bad diet craze. 

USD's Dakota Days

From September 30th to October 5th, The University of South Dakota held their homecoming week, also known as Dakota Days. The week consisted of events sponsored by Campus Activities Board and the Dakota Days committee.

On Monday September 30th, Campus Activities Board brought in comedian Rob Little who entertained the crowd by literally using them as a part of his act. His comedic strategy of using audience participation worked wonderfully and kept the crowd thoroughly entertained. 

During the week, Seniors from different organizations were nominated for Dakota Days Royalty. Fourteen men and 14 women were then narrowed down to seven men and seven women on Tuesday October 1st. The seven men were Gavin Pochop, Taylor Moore, Erik Muck, Sean McCaan, Seth Lopur, Stephen Bollinger, and Zach Nipp. The seven women were Anna Hyronimus, Cassie Bartlett, Megan Ingebrigtson, Ellen Ingebrigtson, Kate Bauer, Wendy Nelson, and Courtney Krcil. 

On Wednesday, October 2nd, there was Vermtown Bash which was held at Prentis Park. The bash included paintball, a mechanical bull, inflatable jump houses and a dunk tank where you could dunk the members of Dakota Days Royalty. 

On Thursday October 3rd was the first 'Yotes Got Talent which allowed students to show their talents for a chance to win $300. The show featured dancers, musicians, and even a cattle auctioneer. The winner of the $300 prize was a student named Nick Burke who played guitar and a bass drum simultaneously. His rendition of Mumford and Son's song Babe, was a huge hit with the crowd and was absolutely perfect.

Saturday October 5th was the big day for Dakota Days. It started with a parade through downtown at 10 a.m. The parade was a great way for members of the community and members of the University to come together and support the university. Tailgating started for the game at 11 a.m. which was definitely chilly. This years tailgating was different, however, because instead of ending tailgating for the day 30 minutes before the game, they allowed fans to tailgate through halftime. This was an awesome opportunity for fans to go back out to their cars, eat some food, drink, and get prepared to watch the second half of the game.

The football game started off great when we scored in the first quarter, however, got rocky once again through the second and third quarter. The Coyotes managed to pull it together at the fourth quarter by scoring a touchdown and making a field goal. The final score for the game was 17 to 14. This was a huge success for the Coyotes for winning their first game in the Missouri Valley conference.
During half time, the 14 men and women royalty candidates were brought onto the field for two candidates to be crowned. Dakota Days royalty were not only voted on by the students but they also had to perfect an essay and an interview. The Dakota Days King was Gavin Pochop and the queen was Anna Hyronimus. 

All in all, Dakota Days was a week full of awesome activities and school spirit that brought both the Vermillion Community and the University Community together.