The Daily Slice, your Black Hills news podcast in under 10 minutes. Delivered every morning Monday-Friday at homesliceaudio.com/dailyslice
Meadowbrook Teacher Named Rapid City Teacher of the Year
RAPID CITY, S.D. — The Rapid City Public School Foundation honored the district’s top educators and staff during the annual Excellence in Education recognition ceremony held at the Performing Arts Center. Katey Swank, a teacher at Meadowbrook Elementary, was named the 2026-2027 Rapid City Teacher of the Year. The ceremony, held Tuesday night at the Performing Arts Center, brought together community leaders and school officials to celebrate nominees from every building in the district. (Full Story)
Homeschooling Numbers Rise Across South Dakota
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Data is showing that homeschooling in South Dakota appears to be on the rise. The South Dakota Department of Education shows the amount of students receiving alternate instruction this year increased by almost 950 kids. It also shows the number of kids enrolled in both public and private schools declined slightly. Parents have said that homeschooling gives people more freedom to travel and live different lifestyles. It also allows families to set curriculums of their own choosing.
Dino to Shine Blue for International Angelman Syndrome Awareness Day
RAPID CITY, S.D. — With red being the color of choice this week leading up to Valentine’s Day, one iconic symbol of Rapid City is preparing to take on a bluish hue Sunday night. Rapid City Mayor Jason Salamun is proclaiming Sunday as International Angelman Syndrome Awareness Day in the community. As part of the observance, Dino the Dinosaur will be lit in blue lights Sunday evening. Angelman Syndrome is a rare genetic disorder primarily affecting the nervous system, causing developmental delays, speech impairments, movement and balance challenges, seizures and unique behavioral characteristics.
Applications Still Open for Rapid City Building Board of Appeals Vacancies
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Rapid City officials say Just a few days remain to submit applications to fill several industry vacancies on the Rapid City’s Building Board of Appeals. There are three vacancies for committee alternates with mechanical, electrical and plumbing expertise. The City is looking to fill the vacancies as soon as possible. Application deadline is next Tuesday, February 17 at 4 p.m. The Building Board of Appeals is a 10-member advisory board comprised of equal representation from each of the following industries: electrical, plumbing, engineering, contracting and mechanical.
Sequitor Edge Plans New Data Center in Rapid City
RAPID CITY, S.D. — Elevate Rapid City announced on Wednesday that Sequitor Edge is planning to build a data center across from the Rapid City landfill along Highway 16. Representatives from the company, the city, and the developer of the Black Hills Industrial Center were on hand for the announcement. Sequitor Edge is a data center and services company headquartered in Bennington, Nebraska. It specializes in what are known as edge data centers, which are smaller, distributed facilities that are placed physically closer to end users or devices generating data.
Two Cannabis Bills Killed in Senate Committee
PIERRE, S.D. — Two cannabis bills were up for consideration by the Senate Health and Human Services committee. Both bills, brought by Republican Sen. John Carley of Piedmont, would significantly change the legal landscape of cannabis laws in South Dakota. Both were sent to the 41st day of the session, killing them. The first bill, SB 181, would cause the repeal of the medical cannabis chapter upon the federal re-scheduling of cannabis. Carley’s second bill, SB 194 would limit the potency of cannabis products sold at medical cannabis dispensaries.
A privacy breach at the IRS: Taxpayer data wrongly shared with DHS, court filing says
WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS has erroneously shared the taxpayer information of thousands of people with the Department of Homeland Security, according to a new court filing. It was part of the agencies’ controversial agreement to share information on immigrants for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S. A declaration filed Wednesday by IRS Chief Risk and Control Officer Dottie Romo stated that the IRS was only able to verify roughly 47,000 of the 1.28 million names requested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. For less than 5% of those individuals, the IRS gave ICE additional address information, potentially violating privacy rules created to protect taxpayer data. (Full Story)
Instagram chief says he does not believe people can get clinically addicted to social media
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Adam Mosseri, the head of Meta’s Instagram, testified during a landmark social media trial in Los Angeles that he disagrees people can be addicted to social media platforms. The question of addiction is a key pillar of the case, where plaintiffs seek to hold social media companies responsible for harms to children who use their platforms. Meta and YouTube are the two remaining defendants in the case, which TikTok and Snap settled. Mosseri said it’s important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use. The plaintiff’s lawyer, however, presented quotes from Mosseri in a podcast interview, where he said the opposite. Mosseri clarified that he was probably using the word too casually. (Full Story)
New revelations from Epstein files take a toll across Europe
GENEVA (AP) — The fallout from the Jeffrey Epstein saga is rippling through Europe. Politicians, diplomats, officials and royals have seen reputations tarnished, investigations launched and jobs lost. It comes after a trove of more than 3 million pages of Epstein-related documents revealed their ties to the U.S. and convicted sex offender who died behind bars in 2019. Some experts note that the reckoning in Europe’s parliamentary democracies has been swifter and more severe for now than in the United States where Epstein built his empire and hobnobbed with many American elites. (Full Story)
