SOUTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY

Are nanobubbles the solution to dairy wastewater efficiency?

Ariana Schumacher — Wed, 30 Apr 2025 13:00:00 GMT

BROOKINGS, S.D. — Nanobubbles may be the answer to dairy wastewater treatment issues.

These gas bubbles are not visible to the human eye, but they work in a powerful way to improve the quality of the wastewater that is discharged from dairy manufacturing plants. Nanobubbles are tiny pockets of gas, like oxygen or air, suspended in a liquid. They can be formed naturally in crashing waves or waterfalls or can be created through nanobubble generators.

Nanobubbles, which are 2,500 times smaller than a grain of salt, have been utilized in a wide variety of ways in different industries for the past few years.

As dairy manufacturing grows, so does their effluent — or liquid waste discharge — treatment plant issues. A lot of companies don’t have the scale to increase their waste treatment at the same scale that they are increasing production.

Maneesha Mohan, South Dakota State University’s Alfred Chair in Dairy Manufacturing and an associate professor in the Department of Dairy and Food Science, has been researching nanobubbles in different industries for many years. Thanks to funding from the South Dakota Water Resources Institute, Mohan has been able to research the application of nanobubble technology in dairy wastewater treatment.

Nanobubbles are not like normal gas bubbles, Mohan explained. Nanobubbles are so small that they can stay stable within a liquid system for extended periods of time.

“Even days to a few months,” she said. “So basically, we can make them stay there for a while and interact with whatever is there in the liquid system for a longer period of time.”

In dairy effluent treatment, the high levels of organic acid, minerals and other matter makes it hard to be treated.

“There will be a lot of organic solids in your effluent and a lot of the cleaning minerals, acids and alkali that actually makes it very hard to handle the effluent,” Mohan said.

Dairy processing plants are often making multiple products, which means they have huge fluctuations in the amounts of organic matter and wastewater that they have. Sometimes, these processing facilities don’t have time to handle the waste, and they must hire someone to haul it away, which is expensive.

Dairy wastewater, if not properly cleaned, also becomes an environmental problem because it is discharged into bodies of water.

“It will affect whatever aquatic life and any other, you know, plants and animals that are surrounding these water bodies as well,” Mohan said.

Of course, the plants have to meet EPA standards, Mohan said, but it’s better to keep the nitrates, phosphates and all organic matter much below those levels.

By using nanobubbles, they are able to improve the efficacy of water treatment. The nanobubbles interact with the organic matter and minerals.

“They break it down and oxidize it, so basically, the effluent treatment plant can more efficiently handle all the effluent that the dairy processing plant is producing,” Mohan said.

There has been a lot of industry interest in this research, Mohan said. Valley Queen Cheese in Milbank, South Dakota, has been an industry collaborator in Mohan’s research. The company installed a nanobubble generator. They were able to test the efficacy of the nanobubble generator in the company’s effluent plant.

“It actually improves the efficacy quite a bit,” Mohan said.

There has been a 15 to 20% decrease in volume of biology oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand after using the nanobubbles. Using air is a relatively inexpensive way to get this level of improved efficacy. It is also a more sustainable solution rather than hauling the wastewater away.

“Which is significant thinking that nanobubbles are pretty environment friendly because for that project we only used air as nanobubbles,” Mohan said. “We can use a number of gases, but it’s much more cheaper to use air.”

This technology is very new, but Mohan says she anticipates other dairy companies will start utilizing nanobubbles in the effluent plants in the future. She says they need more studies researching nanobubbles as well.

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South Dakota State University researchers lead the charge against new turkey virus threat

Kennedy Tesch — Mon, 23 Dec 2024 13:00:00 GMT

BROOKINGS, S.D. — South Dakota State University’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory is taking a leading role in combating a new strain of avian metapneumovirus, a virus that is causing significant economic loss to the United States poultry industry.

Avian metapneumovirus, or aMPV, is an upper respiratory tract viral infection that affects all types of poultry but is most harmful to turkeys. The virus is divided into four different subgroups: A, B, C or D. While each subgroup can be found in different parts of the world, the U.S. has previously only experienced outbreaks of subgroup C.

In January 2024, SDSU researchers became the first in the U.S. to identify the first known case of aMPV subgroup B after testing a sample from an outbreak in a North Carolina turkey flock. Since then, the virus has continued to spread throughout the United States, wreaking havoc for poultry breeders across the country.

“A and B, were worldwide in Europe, South America and Asia, but never detected in the U.S.,” said Sunil Mor, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and section lead for virology at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory. “First time introduction of the subgroups A and B in the U.S., it's a huge economic impact, especially on the turkey industry. The breeders are seeing up to 80% to 90% reduction in egg production.”

In Minnesota, which is home to a major portion of U.S. turkey production, the virus has made a significant impact. Ashley Kohls, executive director of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association, said the Association started conducting surveillance on the virus last spring. From April to June, they found that nearly 100% of the turkey flocks in the state of Minnesota were impacted by aMPV.

“It's unfortunate, and it's massive,” Kohls said. “In addition to commercial turkeys or the meat birds, our breeder flocks are negatively impacted as well. For breeder birds, they have a significant reduction in the amount of eggs that they lay. Anytime you have breeder flocks impacted, there's ripple effects, obviously, through the entire industry — less eggs, less poults, less birds, less turkey. It's kind of been a rolling compound effect. There's less baby poults, but then there's also less birds coming out on the back end because of sick flocks.”

While the virus continues to cause issues for poultry producers, researchers at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory are working around the clock. Their quick identification of the virus was a game-changer.

“I remember the first meeting Dr. Mor confirmed that it was subtype B, people were actually not even able to believe that,” said Tamer Sharafeldin, an assistant professor Department of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences at South Dakota State University and veterinary pathologist at SDSU’s Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory. “But, within a week, the USDA confirmed that as well, and that was actually a leading discovery for South Dakota State University."

With the virus confirmed, SDSU researchers pivoted to focus on vaccine development. They are currently working on three types of vaccines: a killed vaccine, a live attenuated vaccine, and a vector vaccine. The killed vaccine is the quickest to develop, as researchers can isolate the virus, inactivate it, and then test its safety and efficacy.

"We have isolated the virus, so we just inactivate it, test the safety potency, and then get the USDA approval to give it to the birds," Mor explained.

The team is also working to improve diagnostic tools, however, vaccine development remains the highest priority.

“The process is not going to happen in a day or two. It's going to take some time. We are actually competing with time to be able to achieve this,” Sharafeldin said. “We have produced the weakened virus — that's number one. Number two, we are starting to establish the baseline needed for vaccine safety and efficacy.”

SDSU’s leadership in identifying the virus and developing solutions is vital not only for South Dakota but for the entire U.S. poultry industry.

"There's a rapid need to develop vaccines for both the breeder flocks but also commercial turkey flocks as well. Developing that vaccine domestically will take some time, but there are a lot of folks working around the clock to make that happen," Kohls said.

“South Dakota State University is not only the university that serves South Dakota citizens, it's a university that leads research that would help the whole U.S. poultry industry in different states as well as it plays a very important role to enhance the U.S. economy,” Sharafeldin added.

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South Dakota ends longstanding college tuition agreement with Minnesota

Joe Sneve / Dakota Scout — Sat, 09 Mar 2024 01:13:47 GMT

SIOUX FALLS — South Dakota students planning to attend Minnesota public schools are facing financial uncertainty after the Board of Regents here quietly ended tuition reciprocity with their eastern-border neighbors late last year.

The Board of Regents (BOR) Academic and Student Affairs Office in Pierre this week alerted high schools that a long-standing shared tuition discount agreement with Minnesota for cross-border students attending their schools is over. The agreement dates back to 1978.

The change eliminates a tuition discount for South Dakota students attending college in Minnesota.

“The reciprocity agreement between South Dakota and Minnesota was not renewed for the academic year 2024 – 2025,” BOR’s System Academic Program Manager Molly Weisgram wrote in an email sent to school guidance counselors Wednesday, March 6. “Our state has excellent higher education institutions and opportunities, and our goal as the public university system is to grow South Dakota's workforce.”

BOR made the move to end reciprocity in December, amid the backdrop of Minnesota’s aggressive tuition subsidization that’s made college free for tens of thousands of North Star State scholars. At the same time, the South Dakota Regents extended in-state tuition to Minnesota residents.

The shift is intended to attract Minnesotans to South Dakota universities, lowering tuition for Minnesota residents attending a South Dakota’s regental institutions by about $1,400 a year, according to BOR.

“By treating new Minnesota students just like students from the other surrounding states, it reduced the annual cost to new Minnesota students, keeping South Dakota competitive when considering overall cost of attendance, even for students who qualify for Minnesota’s new program,” BOR Vice President Jeff Partridge told The Dakota Scout Thursday.

It also means South Dakotans enrolled now or in the future at Minnesota public universities could have to pay full in-state tuition in the fall. And for those who’ve already committed to being Gophers, Beavers, Dragons, or dozens of other Minnesota higher-ed programs, the late warning is not appreciated — particularly for parents and seniors who’ve already cut checks.

“We have already paid admission fees and deposits, selected housing, and even signed a housing contract for next year,” said Erin Pritchett, a Sioux Falls mom whose son is admitted to the University of Minnesota, suggesting the Regents could have considered a delayed-implementation plan or alerted high schools earlier. “If the South Dakota Board of Regents made this decision back in December, I am confused as to why people were not notified back then regarding this change?”

BOR contends the public was notified of reciprocity with Minnesota being terminated, citing a Dec. 14 press release announcing Minnesota, Kansas and Missouri being added to the list of states offered “South Dakota Advantage” rates.

The release, though, did not articulate that reciprocity with Minnesota was terminated, saying only that “the rates will go into effect for new students enrolled in the 2024 summer term and beyond.”

That, coupled with an update to the Regent’s website this week explicitly stating Minnesota reciprocity has ended, and BOR’s first correspondence to high schools casts doubts on BOR’s efforts to publicize the change in December.

“We can only answer the questions from our end, and many of your questions will need to be directed to the specific Minnesota institutions,” read the Wednesday email to school guidance counselors. “We appreciate your support of students as they navigate this change.”

Emails from The Scout to the Minnesota Office of Higher Education were responded to with a link to the agency’s website and a referral to the BOR office in Pierre.

The Regents maintain the decision is what’s best for South Dakota in a highly-competitive enrollment environment among U.S. universities, a motivator for BOR and the Legislature to approve of a fourth consecutive year of tuition freezes at its academic institutions Thursday.

“By ending the reciprocity agreement, we were able to lower the rate for new Minnesota students, increasing South Dakota’s competitive advantage,” BOR’s Communication Director Shuree Mortenson said. “How Minnesota chooses to respond, and the rates it sets for South Dakota students, is not something the South Dakota Board of Regents controls.”

This story was originally published on TheDakotaScout.com.
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Higher education programs striving to recruit, train prospective agriculture education teachers

Ann Bailey — Mon, 20 Mar 2023 10:30:00 GMT

As the number of middle and high school agricultural education programs across the northern Plains grow and expand, so do efforts by post-secondary institutions to recruit and train students who will teach in them.

North Dakota State University in Fargo, for example, is working toward both short- and long-term solutions to increase the number of ag education teachers. The university has worked with NDSU Extension for several years to do outreach with high schools to recruit agricultural education students. The personal contact with NDSU educators at events, such as the North Dakota State FFA Convention held annually in June, allows students to ask questions about their prospective career, said Adam Marx, NDSU associate professor and program evaluation specialist.

NDSU also hosts an annual agricultural education day in which it invites from 30 to 40 prospective students at the campus for a tour and conversation with agricultural education students.

Meanwhile, NDSU has a collaborative agriculture education program with Dickinson (North Dakota) State University, Marx said. He has two DSU students in his agricultural education class this semester attending via Zoom.

The University of Minnesota encourages high school students who have any level of interest in agriculture to explore agricultural education as a career, Nathan Purrington, agricultural education lead at University of Minnesota Crookston.

“We have students that just have a 4-H background who come into the program and whose great- or their grandparents have a hobby farm, and they thought it was cool to work with animals,” Purrington said.

In Minnesota, the University of Minnesota, University of Minnesota Crookston and Southwest State University in Marshall work collaboratively to recruit prospective agricultural education students.

Purrington is a member of the State Teach Ag Results or STAR committee whose work is to develop strategies to recruit and retain agricultural education teachers. Recruiting strategies include agricultural education leadership development events for FFA members, internship opportunities for agricultural education students and a signing day for agricultural education students. The signing day, similar to a university athlete signing day, celebrates the student’s decision to commit to the program, Purrington said.

The three agricultural education teaching universities also co-host events, such as the “Change Lives, Teach Ag” conference held March 10, 2023, in Staples, Minnesota. Each university had representatives at the conference who talked about their respective programs, he said.

South Dakota State University in Brookings participates in Educators Rising, a national program that works to recruit students for career and technical fields, beginning in high school and then retain them if they choose to pursue a career in the discipline, said Laura Hasselquist, South Dakota State University �� of Education assistant professor.

The university recently hosted an Educators Rising learning event, attended by about 100 high school students, that gave them information on teaching disciplines, including science, mathematics and agriculture. One of the students, who was from an urban high school, told her that she hadn’t known before the event that agriculture education was a career choice and asked her for more information about SDSU's program, Hasselquist said.

Another way NDSU is striving to fill the agriculture education teacher shortage is by providing a pathway for educators who have a bachelor’s degree in an agricultural field, such as animal science to earn a master’s of education in teaching methods. About a half dozen teachers have taken advantage of that option in the past few years, Marx said.

Lakes Country Service Co-op in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, is offering an alternative teaching preparation program under a state statute that allows alternative pathways towards Minnesota teacher licensure for programs, including the Career and Technical Education program, that are outside of traditional means of pursuing a degree.

Eighty-five people have enrolled in the alternative teacher preparation program since July 2022, said Troy Haugen, LCSC career and college readiness director. Students in the program move forward in it at their own pace.

“We’re not bound by an academic year,” Haugen said.

Haugen is administering a $150,000 alternative teacher preparation grant from the Minnesota Office of Higher Education to develop career and technical education licensure programs for existing teachers to obtain CTE licensures or endorsements.

Teaching career and technical courses allows educators to use their professional skills in a hands-on method, Haugen said, noting that math teachers can incorporate that knowledge into teaching courses, such as carpentry, that use it in a practical way.

Once students have graduated from agriculture education programs at universities and teaching programs in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota, the institutions and state agriculture education organizations work to retain them.

“There’s a demand for agriculture education teachers outside of agriculture,” Purrington said. The skills that agricultural education teachers possess besides their knowledge of the industry, include communication and leadership skills that make them attractive to businesses.

The businesses, in turn, might appear attractive to the educators because they may be paid more and have a less demanding schedule.

“The grass is greener on the other side of the fence so the retention part is huge,” Purrington said.

The North Dakota Association of Agricultural Educators, made up of secondary and post-secondary teachers, provides professional development and support to agriculture education teachers in the state, said Nikki Fideldy-Doll, North Dakota agricultural education supervisor and state FFA advisor.

Meanwhile, North Dakota Career and Technical Center Education visits each of the state’s new agriculture education teachers twice during the school year, she said. The visitors to the school make a connection with the teacher and the school, and through that, the teachers are more likely to ask questions when they have them.

The University of Minnesota hosts two-day conferences focusing on leadership and classroom development and has half-day professional development events for its agricultural education graduates who are teachers, said Lavyne Rada, University of Minnesota Teacher Induction Program for agricultural educators advisor and Minnesota FFA program manager and regional supervisor.

Whatever students’ backgrounds are, SDSU strives to give students a diverse experience while they are studying agriculture education, sending them to schools of all sizes so they have an opportunity to see how different schools conduct agriculture education classes and organizations such as FFA, Hasselquist said. That way students are less likely to get "culture shock," by choosing to teach at a school in a community that is unlike the one in which they grew up.

Retaining agricultural education teachers is important for students, in general, not just those who are going to pursue a career in education or even in agriculture, Rada believes. Besides the practical agricultural skills, students learn about teamwork, how to effectively communicate and problem solving, she said.

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Gophers, South Dakota State playing in Spokane region of NCAA women's tourney

Barry Amundson — Tue, 13 Mar 2018 02:00:10 GMT

MINNEAPOLIS-The University of Minnesota women's basketball team is headed back to the Big Dance for the first time in three years.

The Golden Gophers were awarded the No. 10 seed in the 2018 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament and will face No. 7 seed Green Bay in Eugene, Ore., on Friday, March 16, in the Spokane Region. The game is set for 4 p.m. CT and will be televised on ESPN2.

The other regional team in the tourney, in which the seedings were announced Monday night, is South Dakota State, which was awarded the No. 8 seed in the Spokane Region and will face No. 9-seeded Villanova, also on Friday.

The Jackrabbits and the Wildcats tip off at 6:30 p.m. and the game will be played at the Purcell Pavilion in Notre Dame, Indiana. The game, which will be televised on ESPN2, will be the second meeting between the two schools. Villanova won the first meeting 71-47 Nov. 10, 2012.

Oregon earned the No. 2 seed for the Spokane Region and will play No. 15 seed Seattle following the Gophers' opening round contest. The winners of the two contests will face off in the second round Sunday, March 18.

It will be the 10th NCAA Tournament appearance for the Gopher women and the first appearance since 2015. Minnesota is 11-9 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, which includes a magical run to the Final Four in 2004. The Gophers have advanced to the Sweet 16 three times (2003, 2004, 2005) in program history, while also competing in one Elite Eight (2004). Minnesota made its first NCAA Appearance in 1994.

Minnesota earned the No. 10 seed for the third time in program history after posting a 23-8 overall record, its most wins since 2014-15, which was the last time the team made the NCAA Tournament.

If South Dakota State beats Villanova, they will play the winner of No. 1 seed Notre Dame and No. 16 CSUN Sunday.

South Dakota State (26-6) completed its 12th 20-win season in 14 years and is making its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years. The Jacks are 2-7 in the NCAA Tournament and 2018 is the first time the Jackrabbits earned the No. 8 seed. SDSU's highest seed came as the seventh seed in the 2009 NCAA Tournament. The Jackrabbits have been No. 13 and No. 14 seeds twice and No. 12 and No. 15 seeds.

Villanova went 22-8 overall and 12-6 in the Big East Conference and earned an at-large bid. The Wildcats lost to Georgetown in the Big East Tournament quarterfinals and are 2-3 in their last five games.

Overall, in the women's tourney, the No. 1 seeds besides Notre Dame (29-3), are Mississippi State (32-1), the team that shocked Connecticut and ended the Huskies' record-setting 111-game win streak last year in the Final Four, 11-time national champion Connecticut (32-0) in the Albany Region; and Louisville (32-2) in the Lexington Region. The Cardinals were national championship runners-up in 2009 and 2013. The Fighting Irish, which won the national title in 2001, have played in five of the past seven Final Fours.

In addition to Texas, the other No. 2 seeds are Baylor (31-1) in Lexington; Oregon (30-4) in Spokane; and South Carolina (26-6) in Albany.

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Students in the News for Jan. 7

Pioneer Staff Report — Sun, 07 Jan 2018 11:15:41 GMT

McRae named to SDSU dean's list

BROOKINGS, S.D.-Elizabeth Estelle McRae of Bemidji was one of the more than 3,000 South Dakota State University students who was recently named to the school's dean's list. To earn dean's list distinctions in SDSU's colleges, students must have completed a minimum of 12 credits and must have earned at least a 3.5 GPA on a 4.0 scale.

Gish accepted for admission to Luther College

DECORAH, Iowa-Matthew Gish of Bemidj has been accepted for admission for the 2018-19 academic year at Luther College. Gish has been awarded the Founders Scholarship.

Huewe and Steffes named to the President's List

FERGUS FALLS, Minn.-Kyle Huewe and Andrew Steffes of Bemidji were among the 690 Minnesota State Community and Technical College students listed to the President's List for the 2017 fall semester. To earn the recognition for scholastic achievement, a student must complete 12 or more college-level credits for the semester and earn a grade point average of 3.5 or higher.

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Camp Ripley ceremony honors new commander Kruse

Frank Lee — Mon, 20 Nov 2017 01:05:31 GMT

CAMP RIPLEY, Minn.-Brig. Gen. Lowell E. Kruse always wanted to do two things in life: be a soldier and a farmer.

The 50-year-old fulfilled both of his lifelong ambitions. From 1989 to 2006, the husband and father of two operated a 70-cow dairy farm in South Dakota before relocating to Camp Ripley.

"I tell people that the (National) Guard allowed me to do two things that I've always wanted to do: I've always wanted to be a soldier and I've always wanted to be a farmer. And I got to do both of those things," Kruse said to the crowd at his promotion ceremony Saturday, Nov. 18, at the camp near Little Falls.

The new position, as Camp Ripley senior commander, places Kruse in the role as the full-time administrator to the entire installation including the Camp Ripley garrison personnel.

"I came to Camp Ripley in 2006, and it didn't take long for me to learn and appreciate what an amazing family the whole installation is," Kruse said after the ceremony.

Senior commander

Kruse assumed the duties as the Camp Ripley senior commander in October, working in conjunction with Col. Brian Melton, who took command as the Camp Ripley garrison

commander, a position which had been held by Col. Scott St. Sauver since 2010.

"I am very happy for Brig. Gen. Kruse and his family. He is a 'soldier's soldier,' the type of officer that will place the mission and the needs of his soldiers first," said Battalion Officer-in-Charge Maj. Kristen Augé of Division Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 34th Infantry Division.

The Dawson native from Lac qui Parle County earned his commission from South Dakota State University, Reserve Officers' Training Corps, in 1989 and joined the Minnesota Army National Guard as a field artillery officer the same year.

"All I ever wanted to be was a soldier ... and I got the chance when I joined the Minnesota Army National Guard. Throughout that time, I've tried to work hard like my mother taught me, to treat people like my father did," Kruse said from the podium.

Kruse received a Bachelor of Science degree in dairy science from SDSU and graduated from the U.S. Army War College with a master's in strategic studies in 2014.

"And all the time it was the smart people around me-that worked with and for me-that made me and my unit successful, so for those of you standing at the back of the room, you're why I'm here and I thank you for that," Kruse told the capacity crowd that turned out for him at the event.

Kruse, who was raised on his family's dairy farm, was promoted from colonel to brigadier general during Saturday's 30-minute ceremony, which was followed by a reception in an adjoining room at the Hangar Conference Center on Camp Ripley, which is about 25 miles south of Brainerd, in Morrison County.

Camp Ripley

The role of garrison commander, under the command of Melton, will now become a traditional duty as a drilling guardsman and will continue to care for the service members, employees and families of Camp Ripley.

"We got 680 people that come here every day and the 680 folks are doing their best to provide the best training environment they can for soldiers and for first-responders, and it gets in your blood, and you truly-the installation is a living, breathing entity," Kruse said after the event.

The duties of Kruse, the Camp Ripley senior commander, include the coordination of several departments operating on the 53,000-acre, state-owned training facility in order to meet customer training requirement needs.

"I think part of the challenge is educating the public on just what the Guard is trying to do by putting me-a general-here full time as a senior commander, compared to what we had before with Col. Scott St. Sauver as the garrison commander," Kruse said after the ceremony.

Additionally, the senior commander will work with interagency, community and state partners to ensure Camp Ripley remains in compliance environmentally, while maintaining federal, state and community mission readiness standards.

"Other challenges going forward is obviously fighting for money in Washington, D.C. ... as we go forward here to try to continue to expand the installation and do those things that we need to put in place for the training of the future," Kruse said during a break from his well-wishers.

"Right now, we meet every training need of the current Army, but we've got to look forward and try to figure out the training needs of the future."

Kruse also served as the full-time deputy chief of staff - logistics for the Minnesota National Guard; implementing several maintenance, logistical and administrative policies used by one of the premier organizations within the National Guard.

"Col. St. Sauver was my best friend and what I learned from him was the value of relationships. He cultivated relationships across probably the whole center region, and his ability to make friends and talk to anybody is one of the keys to success in this job," Kruse said of his new role.

Camp Ripley's command team will also continue to support the Minnesota National Guard's international partners while collaborating through several exchange and Partners for Peace Programs.

"He is extremely approachable and even with this promotion to general, troops will still feel comfortable in sharing their successes or concerns with him," Augé said during the reception.

Kruse commanded the Montevideo-based 1-151 Field Artillery Battalion from August 2010 to March 2012, leaving command to be promoted to colonel as the Minnesota Army National Guard, Joint Force Headquarters G4.

"The National Guard in Minnesota is the only military presence in Minnesota; we don't have an active duty base, so Camp Ripley plays that role for Minnesota and becomes our visible element of the Department of Defense in Minnesota," Kruse said of Camp Ripley.

"I think that's important because as we continue to have less people serve, we have this continued gulf that's widening between civilians and the military. Camp Ripley stands in the middle of that gulf, trying to become the place that allows them to understand and know their military and what they are doing for them."

Family man

Kruse commanded the 347th Regional Support Group from September 2015 to September 2017, but it was the brigadier general who was the one expressing at Saturday's ceremony his appreciation for the support of his friends, family, mentors and extended military family.

"We're so proud of him and we love the Minnesota National Guard so much. We feel like we have so many brothers and sisters beyond our actual family," said Amy Kruse, his wife, after the emotional remarks her husband made during his promotion ceremony.

They have two sons-1st Lt. Jacob Kruse, a 25-year-old Army engineer assigned to the 588th Engineer Battalion, Fort Carson, Colo.; and Pierz High �� seventh-grader Connor Kruse, who stood on a chair to pin his father, who towered over most that stood near him.

The brigadier general's in-laws as well as his mother, wife and children sat in the front row of the brightly-lit conference center as he became emotional during the ceremony, and as his eldest son wiped away a few tears.

"I stand before you today as one of the luckiest people in the world," Kruse told the crowd. "I grew up in a wonderful family with parents that taught me respect and the value of hard work and the joy of a completed project and the resourcefulness to find the solution."

Kruse's late father was a World War II veteran who would have appreciated the promotion ceremony, which included posting of colors, the national anthem, an invocation and benediction, and presentation to Kruse of a general officer flag, belt and pistol before concluding in song.

"My final thank-you is to the Minnesota Army National Guard-those men and women that make up our ranks and to their families that continue to sacrifice for all of us," Kruse said.

"The Minnesota National Guard has nurtured and mentored me. Today, I get the chance to return that favor."

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