Senate Commemoration 817
Introduced by: Senators Larson, Jensen (Kevin), Perry, and Reed and Representatives Emery, Healy, Kull, Moore,
Muckey, Reisch, Uhre‑Balk, Van Diepen, Walburg, Weisgram, and Wittman
A LEGISLATIVE COMMEMORATION, Honoring the life of former legislator and
educator Jan Nicolay for her service to this state.
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay, an educator and state legislator, died on May 18, 2024, in Sioux
Falls at the age of 82; and
WHEREAS ,Jan Nicolay graduated from what is now Northern State University in Aberdeen
in 1963 and went on to earn a master of science degree in education from South Dakota State
University in 1971; and
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay was the first female high school principal in the city of Sioux Falls
when she took on that role at Washington High School in 1987; and
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay was elected to the South Dakota House of Representatives in 1982,
representing Minnehaha County as a Republican until 1996; and
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay was a trailblazer for women in South Dakota politics in those years,
serving as the first woman co-chair of the Joint Appropriations Committee from 1987 through
1992; and
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay led Southeast Technical Institute on an interim basis, and also
served four years on the South Dakota Board of Education Standards; and
WHEREAS, Jan Nicolay championed other community causes such as the Outdoor Campus
of the Department of Game, Fish and Parks in Sioux Falls;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT COMMEMORATED, by the One Hundredth Legislature of the State
of South Dakota, that the late Jan Nicolay was an outstanding example of an educator and
citizen lawmaker, bringing a lifetime of experience in her chosen field to the South Dakota
Legislature, even as her expertise grew beyond education to include important work helping
to oversee funding for the state's needs.