DSU PBL members take bus trip with Senator Johnson

Five Dakota State University Business students from the Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) campus group and PBL faculty co-advisors, Dr. Dan Talley and Orinda Christoph recently took a bus ride with South Dakota Senator Tim Johnson. The group accompanied Senator Johnson from Sioux Falls to Madison to kick off Senator Johnson’s re-election campaign.

The five students who went on the bus trip were: Tracy Steed, DSU PBL Chapter President and South Dakota PBL State Treasurer; Jessica Fritzsche, SD PBL State Reporter; Kevin Deilke, DSU PBL Chapter Secretary; Kerry Terwilliger, DSU PBL Chapter Parliamentarian from Winfred and Barbara Asleson, DSU PBL Member in Good Standing.

“The best part of the trip was getting to talk to Senator Johnson and learn what he’s really like,” said Steed, a senior marketing and management major from Roseville, CA. “I expected to meet him and maybe ask one or two questions, but we actually got into some very detailed conversations about his position on several issues effecting DSU, Madison, and South Dakota.”

“I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to meet Senator Johnson face to face and have an actual conversation with him,” said Asleson, a senior business management and marketing major from De Smet. “He’s a very approachable man, and I walked away from the experience with a greater knowledge and understanding of today’s issues and how they effect me and my future.”

During the bus ride PBL students got a chance to discuss directly, the issues affecting them and other college students in South Dakota.

“Senator Johnson is working to help students through lowering interest rates and increasing the amount of funds available to students through the Pell Grant,” said Steed.

“The trip was really laid back and set on an informal level; we were able to talk about any topic we wanted to,” said Deilke a senior and double major in Information Systems and Office Administration from Aberdeen, SD. “We talked about the job market, student loans, the negative ad campaigns and Napster was even brought up. It was a very good experience, and I hope to have more like that in the future.”

Helping South Dakota’s economy by developing wind power in the state and promoting the use of soy and corn-based products like ethanol nationwide, as well as technology were also discussed with the students during the bus ride.

“It was exciting meeting a US Senator,” added Steed. “I was motivated to meet the Senator because I care about issues statewide and nationwide and was interested in hearing his views on several hot topics.”

“It was certainly a privilege to meet Senator Johnson,” said Fritzsche, a junior from Wessington majoring in Management. “Sitting across from him and talking about real issues and issues that are important to us was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Very few people get such an opportunity.”

During the bus trip Senator Johnson helped students understand politics and how they work.

“He definitely had a lot to say about DSU, ranging from the Tech Center, to jobs, to the future,” said Terwilliger a senior marketing and management major from Winfred. “In all, I was very pleased to be invited and I think it was a wake-up call to pay more attention to political issues.”