9P5 Building Relationships with Other Key Organizations and the Community

Relationship building with stakeholders is an STI strength. Administration, faculty, and staff across the institution determine the most critical relationships based on the mission and strategic goals of the institute. These relationships are then developed through various communications and meetings. Table 9.2 shows STI’s key relationships and results of those relationships.

Table 9.2 STI Key Relationships and Results

Organization or Company	Relationship	STI agent	Results
Legislature	Charter & authority to grant degrees, diplomas and certificates, funding	President & Administration	State post-secondary funding
State Technical Institutes	Collaboration, advocacy	President & Administration	Consistent general education across the state, non-duplication of programs
K-12 Systems	Feeder institution	Tech Prep Coordinator STI Recruiters	Over 50 direct course articulations for participating schools
Four Year Colleges and Universities and the South Dakota Board of Regents	Transfer agreements	Administration, Faculty	175 transfer agreements
Regional Hospital systems Financial Institutions Manufacturing Other Employers	Graduate Employment Foundation and Equipment Donations	Administration, Faculty	96% graduate employment, over $840,000 in foundation assets, equipment donations
Clinical Sites	Clinical Site Agreements	Faculty and Administration	288 contracted clinical sites
Internship sites	Internship Site Agreements	Faculty and Administration	Over 90 internship sites each year.
Advisory Committees	Program advice, advocacy	Faculty and Administration	Over 200 advisory members
Foundation Board and contributors	Scholarships	Foundation Director	171 students awarded scholarships (2009-2010) for $136,771
City of Sioux Falls Sioux Falls Chamber Sioux Falls Development Foundation	Advocacy and identifying stakeholder need	President and STI Council	Relevant programs meeting regional needs (Employer Survey )
SD Department of Education, SD Department of Labor, SD Department of State Development and Tourism	Approval of new programs, tuition, bonding for buildings, recruit and develop new businesses to the area	President	Agility: approval of nine new programs in the last five years
Accrediting Agencies: HLC & Program Accreditation	Accountability & quality	Administration, Faculty, AQIP Teams	90% of eligible programs maintain accredited status

STI has built its reputation on its ability to respond quickly and effectively to the needs of its stakeholders. STI has strong ties to business and industry, high schools, other post-secondary institutes, and South Dakota’s state government agencies and sets targets to gain and build those collaborative relationships that will move the institute toward its mission and vision. Building this reputation has only been possible through the strong collaborative culture of the institute. These critical links help ensure that STI responds to community and regional needs with agility and appropriateness.