These include four public technical institutions and six public four-year institutions. The state has four tribal postsecondary institutions, three of which are accredited as community colleges. The state enrolled approximately 34,000 students in postsecondary education in 1997. The South Dakota University System Board of Regents governs the state's six public universities as a unified system of higher education and also has constitutional responsibility for the School for the Deaf and the School for the Visually Handicapped. The nine members of the board are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate.
Regents serve six-year terms, with the exception of a student regent who serves for two years.
In addition to governance and systemwide planning responsibilities for public higher education institutions, state-level planning falls within the board's purview. 7 Public tuition at South Dakota's universities also is set by the Board of Regents. The board appoints an executive director to serve as its chief executive officer. In the 1990s, as part of a statewide effort to develop policy-driven change in higher education, the board adopted a governing approach that places greater emphasis on system leadership, largely through the position of the executive director. When George Mickelson served as governor beginning in 1987, he built upon Janklow's strong appointments by providing funding to meet current and future higher education needs.