Noem declares Juneteenth holiday; most SDSU offices closed today

Governor Kristi Noem has announced a holiday for state workers on Friday in honor of Juneteenth.

This is in response to the “Juneteenth National Independence Day Act”, which was signed Thursday by President Joseph R. Biden.

It marks the anniversary of June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers brought the news of freedom to enslaved Black people in Galveston, Texas. That was about 2 1/2 years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation freed slaves in the Southern states. Thousands of slaves were still being held in Texas up until the arrival of the Union.

The day off includes employees of South Dakota State University and it will be mostly closed Friday. The admissions office, testing center and the Miller Wellness Center will be open. Events that will go on as planned include Prairie Repertory Theatre’s Presentation of Quilters and the Lyle Olson Retirement Program.

 

June 18, 2021