Speakers
South Dakota Lt. Governor Dennis Daugaard
Lt. Gov. Dennis Daugaard was raised on a family farm near Garretson, S.D., where he attended a
one-room country school and graduated from Dell Rapids High School in 1971. Mr. Daugaard's political career began in 1996 when he was elected to the South Dakota State Senate. He was re-elected in 1998 and 2000. In 2002, Mr. Daugaard was nominated as the Republican candidate for Lt. Governor and, in November, he and Gov. Mike Rounds were elected to a four-year term. They were
re-elected in 2006.
With their own hands, Lt. Governor Daugaard and his wife, Linda, built their family's home in 1985. It is super-insulated with triple glazed windows. Roof overhangs are sized and located to admit winter sunlight but exclude it in the summer. During warm months, the Daugaards operate a heat pump water heater to cool and dehumidify the home, while reducing use of electricity for hot water heating. Interior air quality is maintained in this low-infiltration home by a heat-recovery ventilation system.
Mr. Daugaard received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of South Dakota and a law degree from Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago, Ill. After practicing law for a short time in Illinois, Mr. Daugaard returned to South Dakota. In 1981, he joined the National Bank of South Dakota in trust banking and served in later years as vice president in charge of trust administration for eastern South Dakota. Daugaard left the bank to accept the development director position at Children's Home Foundation and worked for 12 years in this position, where he built annual funds from $38,000 to $650,000 and successfully raised and doubled a $3.5 million endowment challenge. Currently, he serves as executive director of the Children's Home Society of South Dakota.
Learn more about the State of South Dakota.