PIERRE—Designing and developing computer software is a career goal of Nathan Leemkuil, a junior at the University of South Dakota. A 2000 summer internship will take him one step further down that road to achieving his goal.

The South Dakota Board of Regents announced today that Leemkuil has been selected by Datatel, Inc. from a national pool of candidates to spend the summer at its Fairfax, Virginia, facility, experiencing the day-to-day business of commercial software development. "This is a great break for Nathan," said Regents Executive Director Robert T. Tad Perry. "For the last several years, Datatel has provided opportunities for college juniors interested in software development or technical writing. The students get to work with the latest technologies and methods. Each intern is assigned to a work team and given a mentor. The students will work on real projects for Datatel’s clients."

Leemkuil plans majors in business finance and computer science. He is a graduate of Adrian High School, Adrian, MN. Leemkuil said, "Software design and development has been an emphasis of my coursework here at the University of South Dakota for the past two years. I have acquired knowledge in the use of several programming languages, along with the practical hands-on experiences of designing different systems in teams and on my own." Leemkuil added that his education at USD helped him win the internship.

"Last year Datatel awarded only eighteen of these internships. The fact that Nathan won an internship this year shows that a company leader in a high tech field recognizes the quality of education provided at a South Dakota institution," said Perry.

Datatel offers the internships to students in partnership with its client institutions. The Board of Regents selected Datatel’s software for its student information systems in 1996. Datatel has provided information management systems only for higher education since 1968. Over 500 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada use Datatel software.

Leemkuil is the first intern from a South Dakota public university. He will continue his internship in the fall with the Regents Information Systems, based in Vermillion.