The South Dakotan M.D. is the story hub of the USD Sanford School of Medicine. Here you’ll find stories and news highlighting the meaningful contributions of our students, faculty and staff, and alumni.
Service & Advocacy
USD Sanford School of Medicine Students Meet Vermillion by Volunteering
The Latest
Aug 05, 2026
USD Sanford School of Medicine Welcomes Class of 2030 with White Coat Ceremony
The University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine (SSOM) welcomed its newest class during a White Coat ceremony on July 24.
Jul 23, 2026
Health Policy and Physician Leadership Course Provides Advocacy Skillset
Health policy shapes nearly every aspect of clinical practice, from patient access to care to treatment options and affordability.
Jul 21, 2026
The Physician Who Never Stopped Learning
Dr. Marc Dvoracek, associate professor in the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, is no stranger to change.
Jul 20, 2026
Coyote Clinic Celebrates 20 Years of Service and Professional Training
What began in 2006 as a small group of students holding a monthly clinic night has evolved into a well-known Sioux Falls resource that operates entirely with volunteers.
Alumni
Dr. Tom Hermann Takes Nontraditional Route Into Medicine
Here are two pictures to spark your imagination: the first is a college-aged man dressed in stereotypical 1970s garb, passionately debating his classmates on the moral validity of the Vietnam War. The only thing longer than his hair and his discourse is his beard. After a successful debate, he stands and tells his intellectual opponents that he must go; there is a yoga class at 4 p.m. and he has a date with the ski slope to follow.
First Native American USD Medical School Graduate Sophie Two Hawk Deeply Rooted in Healing
Family matriarch Dr. Sophie Two Hawk ’87 was always certain her life’s path would lead her to be a healer, coming from several generations of holistic healers with a firm footing in whole-person health care.
The View of a Lifetime Inspires
Dr. Jacob Weasel, general surgeon at Monument Health in Rapid City, South Dakota, shares what he believes is the common thread between adventurer and healer.
More Headlines
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Charity Starts At Home
Summary: American novelist Thomas Wolfe articulated in the 1940s that “you can never go home again”—implying that after life experiences have changed you, returning to the place where your life started will never feel quite the same as it once did.
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The Mental Game: Building Connection and Confidence in Rapid City Youth
Summary: For many children at Children’s Home Society in Rapid City, days spent playing games with mentors from the Sanford School of Medicine offer more than just fun—they provide consistency, encouragement and trusted relationships with caring adults.
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Sowing Solidarity: How FARM Students Are Giving Back Through Community Projects
Summary: In the town of Parkston, South Dakota—where you’re just as likely to run into a patient in the grocery store as in the clinic—Dr. Jason Wickersham, associate dean of rural medicine at the University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine, splits his time between his family medicine practice and the students of the Frontier And Rural Medicine (FARM) program.
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A Duty to Dignity: An Insider Look at South Dakota’s Midwest Street Medicine Program
Summary: The spring snow and bitter wind blowing across empty downtown streets doesn’t seem to faze the group of physicians, students and volunteers gathering outside Union Gospel Mission.
Guest Column
Guest Column | Lizz & Robbie Nicholas
Elizabeth (Hoffman) Nicholas, a Eureka, South Dakota native, and Robert Nicholas, a Huron, South Dakota native, met at the University of South Dakota when they were both in the Alumni Student Scholars Program, each with the dream of becoming a doctor.
