Where do Sioux Falls candidates stand on schools and education?

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U.S. Senate. Mike Rounds (Republican, incumbent): Rounds says he supports local control of education and opposes a one-size-fits-all federal directive. His campaign also says he is working to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education. Brian L Bengs (Independent): No public statement found in our sources. Commissioner of School and Public Lands. Brock Greenfield (Republican, incumbent): He lists returning maximum investment dollars to K–12 and higher education among his priorities. Raeann Mettler (Democratic): No public statement found in our sources. State Senate, District 10. Michael Dupic (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Liz Larson (Democratic, incumbent): She opposes using public money to subsidize private schools or homeschooling, saying that would be inequitable and that public funds should support the public education system. State Senate, District 11. Chris Karr (Republican, incumbent): No public statement found in our sources. Aaron Matson (Democratic): He said he does not support using public money for private education, while recognizing that people may choose private education for themselves. State Senate, District 12. Kari Shanard-Koenders (Republican, incumbent): She said she would not support subsidizing private schooling at this time, because public schools are not yet funded to the level she believes they need. Joe Zweifel (Democratic): No public statement found in our sources. State Senate, District 15. Brenda Lawrence (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Erik Muckey (Democratic): He described public education as a high priority and said education funding is among the top issues he hears from constituents. State Senate, District 16. Kevin Jensen (Republican, incumbent): He says he voted to support education choice and teacher pay. He says he supports protecting unborn children and children in school. State Senate, District 17. Sydney Davis (Republican, incumbent): She supports teacher-pay funding requirements, improving school safety, and helping districts offer signing bonuses to recruit teachers. State Senate, District 18. Lauren Nelson (Republican, incumbent): Nelson identifies juvenile incarceration, K–12 education, taxes, and government spending as major issues. Her campaign lists protecting property rights, respecting taxpayer dollars, providing educational opportunities, and supporting life and family among her priorities. Kay Swihart (Democratic): She says public schools need support to retain future workers and provide students a strong education, and that teachers and paraprofessionals should receive competitive pay and benefits. House of Representatives, District 9 (two seats). Tesa Schwans (Republican, incumbent): She says she supports safe communities, educational freedom, personal responsibility, and family-focused values. She said she would like an audit of how school funding is allocated and expenditures are divided, and identified inflation and responsible use of tax dollars as concerns. Megan Tschetter (Republican): She says parents should have input on schooling and that school funding formulas should provide schools what they need to avoid suffering or cutting programs. Amanda Potter (Democratic): She says the state should fund education at 3% or inflation, arguing that inadequate state funding shifts costs to local taxpayers and school districts. House of Representatives, District 10 (two seats). Kimberly Petterson (Republican): She supports providing taxpayer assistance for parents who choose private schools, saying that it could benefit taxpayers and increase competition among schools. John Pohlman (Republican): He supports public schools and says he would not advocate private-school vouchers if they might harm public-school funding; any subsidy should be designed to avoid that harm. He says he would want to review changes to the teacher-pay funding system and ensure state school funding reaches teachers rather than being held in reserves or administration. Adam Bair (Democratic): No public statement found in our sources. Kathleen Brudvig (Democratic): She supports making education funding a top budget priority, at minimum meeting the state’s funding requirements and seeking ways to increase funding. House of Representatives, District 11 (two seats). Brian Mulder (Republican, incumbent): He supports fully funding the statutory 3% increase for public education and says existing obligations should be met before new projects are funded. Keri Weems (Republican, incumbent): She supports a strong public education system and wants to examine whether the special-education funding formula is appropriate and how special education can be improved. Sonja Mentzer (Democratic): She supports meeting statutory funding requirements for public education and making education the first budget priority. She opposes using public tax dollars for private schools and says public tax dollars should go to public schools. Tracey Quint (Libertarian): She considers education extremely important and supports examining the state budget and reallocating funds where possible to support children’s education. House of Representatives, District 12 (two seats). Amber Arlint (Republican, incumbent): No public statement found in our sources. Kerry Loudenslager (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Stephanie Arne (Democratic): She supports strong public schools and better teacher pay. House of Representatives, District 13 (two seats). John Hughes (Republican, incumbent): No public statement found in our sources. Jack Kolbeck (Republican, incumbent): For this 2026 legislative session, he said he wants to extend higher-education benefits to federal veterans who are 100% disabled. He also favors services that let people with disabilities remain at home with family rather than be required to live in an institution to receive care. He says he supports education opportunities for children in public, private, and alternative settings. Ali Horsted (Democratic): She supports investment in public schools, educators, students, and resources from early learning through higher education and workforce training. For the 2026 legislative session, she named balance in the legislature, public education, and affordable housing as priorities. House of Representatives, District 14 (two seats). Taylor Rae Rehfeldt (Republican, incumbent): No public statement found in our sources. Tyler Tordsen (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Erinn Williams (Democratic): She said South Dakota teacher pay is embarrassing and described fundraising by her children’s school to help bring in student teachers. House of Representatives, District 15 (two seats). Kadyn Wittman (Democratic, incumbent): Her campaign says she supports expanding school-meal access; it cites her work on 2026 House Bill 1082, which expanded access to free and reduced-price meals. Joni Tschetter (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Andre Zachariahs (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. June CopperStad (Democratic): She said public dollars should not be used for private schooling, while noting she may have a gray area regarding homeschooling. House of Representatives, District 16 (two seats). John Shubeck (Republican, incumbent): No public statement found in our sources. Lisa Bogue (Republican): Bogue identified education as a major District 16 issue, citing concerns about student math and reading levels and teacher recruitment and retention. She said she wants to promote practical solutions and pointed to Reading Recovery as a program she has seen help students. Tim Rhead (Democratic): Rhead said education is among the state's most important issues and called for investing in students and attracting and retaining high-quality teachers, with resources supporting varied paths after high school. House of Representatives, District 17 (two seats). Chris Kassin (Republican, incumbent): Kassin's campaign identifies lowering taxes and reducing regulatory barriers for job creation, supporting education and teachers, and maintaining balanced state budgets as priorities. Troy Redler (Republican): No public statement found in our sources. Austin Brunick (Democratic): No public statement found in our sources. Leslie Gerrish (Democratic): She says public schools need adequate funding, including resources for students with special-education needs, and that South Dakota should protect its water and other natural resources. House of Representatives, District 18 (two seats). Mike Stevens (Republican, incumbent): His campaign says he supports stable school funding and local control to help schools recruit teachers and prepare students for the workforce. John Marquardt (Republican): He lists property-tax reform and public-education stability among the issues for the next legislative session. Jarod Holcomb (Democratic): He supports fully funding public schools rather than pushing school costs onto local property taxes. Karen Springer (Democratic): Supports increased public-education funding, including pay for certified and support staff, and programs to feed schoolchildren.