History of Yankton, SD Regional Technical Education Center

The History of Regional Technical Education Center

                           1200 West 21st Street, Yankton, SD 57078
                                         Phone: (605) 668-5700
www.rtecedu.org

What the community and region recognize as the Regional Technical Education Center or RTEC is really culmination of many activities.
In June 2004, a nonprofit South Dakota corporation was formed that could later become an IRS 501(c)3 corporation. The purpose was to create a private technical education program which became approved by the SD Secretary of State as the Regional Technical Education Center, Inc. in August 2004. A 24-member board of directors was formed and funding was received to cover a program coordinator’s position for three years.
In October 2004, RTEC assumed management of the building and programs at the training facility known then as the Technical Education Center. In its early years, RTEC relied on members of its board to volunteer time and expertise to manage the nonprofit organization and it contracted with Southeast Job Link to cover day-to-day activities.
Gov. Rounds announced that RTEC would receive a $50,000 start-up grant from the Future Fund in May 2005 and Labor Secretary Roberts presided at the official ribbon cutting at RTEC’s Open House a month later. By 2006 the board had hired its first general manager and RTEC had received a $60,000 grant from the Alcoa Foundation. It enabled RTEC to lay the groundwork and begin a high school training program with the Bon Homme School District.
Today, RTEC operates under the direction of its second General Manager, Josh Svatos, three full-time employees, one part-time employee and numerous contracted instructors and training providers. RTEC features customized “rapid response” training programs to meet the needs of employees and employers in the region and it has earned the distinction of operating one of the two American Welding Society (AWS) Accredited Test Facilities in South Dakota.
In addition to offering welding and other customized trainings, RTEC also serves as a host for programs offered by our partners – Northeast Community College, Mitchell Technical Institute, Black Hills State University, Avera Education & Staffing Solutions and others. These and other programs will be enhanced by the addition of nearly $90,000 in new training equipment awarded by the SD Department of Labor in the spring of 2009 through federal stimulus funding.
Through it all, RTEC’s goal has remained the same over the years – to offer high quality, accessible, affordable technical education and training opportunities which can enhance the ability of individuals to obtain and retain employment while also finding creative learning experiences which will serve to “homegrow our own workforce.”