South Dakota Board Approves Revised Math Standards, Replacing Common Core Framework
Why It Matters
South Dakota’s adoption of new math standards affects every public school student in the state and sets the instructional framework that teachers, curriculum developers, and districts will follow for years to come. The change moves South Dakota away from the national Common Core math standards and toward a framework the state Department of Education says will be more accessible — though educators have raised concerns about accuracy and academic rigor.
What Happened
The South Dakota Board of Education Standards voted unanimously on Monday, May 4, 2026, to approve revised math standards at a meeting held at the DoubleTree convention center in Rapid City. The vote came despite objections from educators who said the new standards contain errors and prioritize simplified language over mathematical precision.
State Education Secretary Joe Graves told the board that the current standards — copied directly from national Common Core benchmarks — are “unnecessarily complex” in some areas. He said the new standards do not reduce academic expectations but rather change the language so that it is “heard and understood by more people.”
The revised standards draw from math frameworks used by other states and from the Archimedes standards, developed by an assistant professor at Hillsdale College, a private Christian college in Michigan. Hillsdale College was also involved in South Dakota’s revised social studies standards, which were approved in 2023 and implemented during the current school year.
Educators Flag Errors Before the Vote
Crystal McMachen, a middle school math teacher in Rapid City, addressed the board directly before the vote and urged members to delay adoption. She identified three specific problems in the final document: duplicated standards, inconsistent wording, and misalignment between grade levels.
“If I found these errors in an hour on a Saturday — and this was on a Saturday — I can’t believe these have been combed through,” McMachen said, according to remarks reported at the meeting. “So, I’m really urging you not to adopt these standards. They are not ready, and South Dakota is better than this.”
Sharon Vestal, a mathematics professor at South Dakota State University and president of the South Dakota Council of Teachers of Mathematics, said the standards “prioritize procedures over concepts” and make mathematics “less precise.” She attended every public hearing held across the state during the revision process.
“Mathematics is a language. It is universal, structured and exact,” Vestal said. “Like any language, it has vocabulary, grammar and syntax. When that structure is removed, meaning is lost.”
By the Numbers
- 44% of South Dakota students scored proficient or above on the state math assessment annually over the last five years, according to Secretary Graves.
- More than 50 changes to the original proposal were accepted by the Department of Education over the six-month revision process.
- More than 80% of actionable changes recommended by opponents were incorporated into the final standards.
- 20 people served on the revision committee that reviewed the original proposal after it was developed by a statewide advisory group.
- 2023 — the year South Dakota last approved revised academic standards, when the board adopted new social studies frameworks with Hillsdale College involvement.
Zoom Out
South Dakota’s move away from Common Core math reflects a broader national trend. Several Republican-led states have revisited or replaced Common Core standards in recent years, citing concerns about federal overreach in curriculum design and the standards’ perceived complexity. The involvement of Hillsdale College — which has become a notable player in state-level education reform efforts — signals growing interest among conservative policymakers in alternatives developed outside traditional academic networks.
The debate over math performance also mirrors national concerns. Math proficiency scores declined significantly across the country following pandemic-era school closures, prompting state education agencies to revisit instructional frameworks. Shannon Malone, the department’s director of learning and instruction, acknowledged at the meeting that standards alone are not sufficient to raise test scores, calling for stronger classroom instruction, professional development, and parental support. For context on other education-related governance decisions, see the recent reappointment of board members to Broward College in Florida, where oversight continuity was also a key issue.
What’s Next
Board President Steve Perkins acknowledged that the adopted standards will require minor corrections and indicated the board wanted to move forward with implementation rather than delay. Secretary Graves said the Department of Education can bring back errors that do not constitute content changes at a later date, while more substantive issues — such as the grade-level misalignment McMachen flagged — will require separate review.
Vestal said she plans to monitor whether students arriving at South Dakota State University are adequately prepared for college-level coursework under the new framework. Districts across the state will now need to align instructional materials and professional development programs to the revised standards before full implementation takes effect.
South Dakota’s education policy changes come as lawmakers have also been active on other school-related financial issues. Earlier this year, new state laws were enacted to reduce property taxes for homeowners, a development with potential downstream effects on local school district funding levels.