Governor commits funding to revive training program for South Dakota inmates

South Dakota Gov. Larry Rhoden is giving new life to a training program for inmates that wasshelvedrecently.

Being Open for Opportunity means investing in people and believing in second chances, Rhoden said in a statement Monday, referencing a slogan he often uses to promote economic development.

The program will bring on-site instruction to the state penitentiary so inmates can earn a certificate to work on diesel heavy equipment.

Last August, the Department of Corrections and Southeast Technical College gotapprovalfrom the state Board of Technical Education to expand the colleges diesel program to the penitentiary.

Officials later decided to shelve the initiative due to a lack of funding and concerns over how it would fit into thestill-developing plansfor construction of a new mens prison at an undetermined site.

Rhoden announced Monday that he will provide $1.5 million for the training program from theFuture Fund, a pot of economic development money under the exclusive control of the governor.

Corrections Secretary Kellie Wasko praised the programs reinstatement.

Education is one of the best ways to support rehabilitation and reduce recidivism, Wasko said in a statement. These programs give people purpose, build skills, and strengthen families and communities across South Dakota.

The diesel training program will fill a void left by Metal Craft Industries, a privately operated prison shop that employed inmates at market wages. The companysaidit was pushed out of the prison system last year by administrators. Wasko has said the company left voluntarily to avoid adhering to newer, stricter security protocols.

The Future Fund, which Rhoden is tapping to provide money for the training program, is supported by a surcharge on employer payroll taxes.State law saysthe fund is for purposes related to research and economic development for the state.

Some of former Gov. Kristi Noems uses of the fund werecontroversial. That included money to build a state-ownedshooting rangethat the Legislature refused to fund, a workforce recruitment ad campaign starring Noem, a Governors Cup rodeo that included Noem carrying in the American flag on horseback, and a fireworks display at Mount Rushmore.