Ernest Cottier
Reporter
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Ernest graduated from St Cloud State with a degree in broadcast journalism in December of 2020.
While Dakota News now is his first job after graduating college, Ernest worked on a variety of different programs throughout his time in school.
Ernest has spent time as a sportscaster for his school's radio station and worked as a news anchor, reporter, and producer before graduating in late December.
Ernest also loves sports having done freelance work with Fox Sports as well as doing play-by-play for St Cloud state for sports such as volleyball, basketball, and hockey. His favorite teams include the Packers and the Bucks.
Ernest was born and raised in Janesville Wisconsin and says he loves the Midwest and cannot wait to explore Sioux Falls and South Dakota.
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the 2021 traditional pheasant hunting season where hunters can bag a daily limit of three birds runs from Oct. 16 through Jan. 31.
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The Sioux Falls Jaycees have been putting on their annual haunted house for nearly 50 years. The group used to be just a haunted house but recently moved to the W. H. Lyon Fairgrounds turning it into what they call the Feargrounds.
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The Exploration of Cultures event is the inaugural fundraiser for the Sioux Falls Chamber Music Collective.
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The Heartland Country corn maze located in southeastern Harrisburg is now celebrating its 22nd year. Owners say they are excited to get to continue bringing the maze to the community
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Owning your own ice cream shop is something many kids dream about when they’re young but for Tasia Guericke that dream is now a reality.
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For the first time ever the Toughest Monster Truck Tour is coming to Sioux falls Friday, October 1st.
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This year marks the 14th year of the annual radiothon. The event is being put on by Sanford staff, but they say they couldn’t do it without the help of volunteers in the community.
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The annual showcase of Remodeled Homes and the Outdoor Living Showcase is October 2nd-3rd in the Sioux Empire. Both showcases are from 12:00-5:00 p.m. and will show off some of the latest trends in remodeled homes in the Sioux Empire.
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The National Music Museum in Vermillion reopened after a 3-year renovation Friday.
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Businesses across South Dakota are having to restrict hours or even close their doors due to a lack of employees but officials at the Empire Mall say they hope that won’t be the case thanks to this week's job fair.
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The sidewalk arts festival is a free outdoor event with over 240 vendor booths featuring some of the area’s best artists. With so many vendors there will be several unique stands at the festival.
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The Fall Parade of Homes is set to kick off this weekend in the Sioux Empire.
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The step up for heroes challenge is a 110 story stair climb to honor the brave men and women who lost their lives in the world trade center attack on 9/11.
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Jack’s Bash 2 is scheduled for September 8th in Brookings it will feature performances from Zac brown band, Fall Out Boy, Gabby Barrett, and many others.
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Two University of South Dakota students saw the need to bring a food pantry to the college campus to combat food insecurity so in 2020 they started Charlie’s Cupboard.
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Health officials with Sanford, Avera, and the city of Sioux Falls talked about not only higher infection rates due to the new variant but also the rise of covid-19 cases in children.
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Augustana university began having a marching band in 1936 but the school dropped it in 1974 and the school has not had a marching band ever since.The decision to bring back the school’s marching band was part of Augustana’s 2030 vision and the launch of the university’s school of music.
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Erik built close relationships with many of the afghans he fought alongside with and she says he along with many other soldiers would hate to see them left behind as the U.S. leaves the country.
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A Sioux Falls team won their first game at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania Friday.
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St. Francis has been helping the Sioux Falls community for almost 35 years both as a homeless and transitional facility.
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Voters in the Tri-Valley school district have approved a 52-million dollar bond aimed at adding buildings to their campus.
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Wednesday’s city planning meeting featured plenty of discussions and public input almost all of which was based around the medical marijuana dispensary zoning map that was recently published by the city.
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The eviction moratorium was originally planned to end in July of 2020 but as the pandemic continued on it was extended.
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The South Dakota Department of Education released a full report on the impact of covid-19 on the state’s k-12 education system on Thursday.
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The Minnesota Department of Health is following the CDC updated guidelines recommending students wear masks to begin the upcoming school year.
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Parker Hanson’s story has been filled with ups and downs, and Friday he traveled back to his childhood hospital to get fitted with his new prosthetic arm.
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As the delta variant continues to spread Sanford is requiring all employees to get vaccinated by November 1st. that includes employees at all of its good samaritan society locations.
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Today South Dakota voices for peace worked with South Dakota Urban Indian health and the SDSU Dairy Extension to host a pop-up COVID-19 vaccine clinic at the Empire Mall parking lot.
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Rico Lamoureux is a u.s. born citizen who lived in the Philippines for the last 18 years but as of Thursday he and his two-year-old son now call South Dakota home for the first time in their lives.
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One of the biggest archery tournaments in the country is in South Dakota this year.
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Earlier this year, the department of education distributed 2/3 of the American Rescue Plan funds, totaling $81 billion, across 50 states. The remaining third of the funding to states is made available once state plans are approved. South Dakota is receiving more than $381 million total in funds, and today’s approval of their plan will result in the release of the final $127 million.
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Authorities say a man driving a pickup truck stopped in the southbound lane of I-229 Thursday night and got out of his vehicle.
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The National Guardsmen flew in on the New England Patriots team plane Thursday morning before going to Augustana and being greeted by some very emotional family and friends.
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IM 26 passed in November of 2020 making South Dakota the 36th state to legalize medical marijuana but while many are happy that the law will become official, others are wondering what it will look like.
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“The community is really rallying around us I’ve seen regulars at the grocery store who are asking where I’ll be then they come to see me, I just feel very blessed that I have this opportunity,” says Reichert.
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Brandon South Dakota has had to create restrictions on watering lawns due to excessive water usage throughout the city.
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South Dakota’s Ellsworth Air Force Base will officially be the first home of the B-21 stealth bomber, officials announced Wednesday.
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Governor Kristi Noem announced Friday that 18 new grants have been awarded to fund broadband projects that will better connect underserved areas across South Dakota.
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It has been over a year and a half since the initial groundbreaking happened at the veteran’s cemetery, but the path to today’s ribbon-cutting has been several years in the making.
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Gamers from near and far came to Nrdvana Consignment and Collectables on Friday night to try to win the title of “last nerd standing” and the play station 5 that comes along with it.
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Thursday was the last day of vaccinations at the Sanford Imaginetics building as they move to solely vaccinating at their primary care and acute care clinics.
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Throughout the pandemic, people have had to continuously cancel vacation and travel plans. but as vaccination rates increase, many are hitting the road for overdue family vacations.
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Due to recommendations from the CDC on public gatherings, the South Dakota Department of Transportation and the City of Sioux Falls has posted the information to a project website rather than presenting documents at an in-person public meeting.
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program, also known as the Summer Meals Program is now drawing attention from several non-profit organizations in Sioux Falls such as the boys and girls club and EmBe.
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Many citizens of Worthing are trying to keep a cattle processing plant from being built just outside of their town.
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Major chains and smaller restaurants are all paying steep prices for chicken as suppliers are having trouble keeping up demand because of difficulties attracting workers,
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Today governor Noem announced that the department of labor will be terminating extra unemployment benefits that came during the pandemic.
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According to the United States census bureau, the number of school students being homeschooled in 2019-2020 was 5.4% that number more than doubled to over 11% in 2020-2021.
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On Thursday Minnesota governor Tim Walz announced the state’s three-phase plan to loosen covid restrictions throughout Minnesota.
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Former Brandon mayor Paul Lundberg resigned on March first of this year, but his position is still yet to be filled, as the city council remains in a deadlock.