By Maren Ewertz & Dreya Roberts – It’s not every day a private school offers full-tuition to 100 new students.
Morningside prides themselves on their strong community connections and support within the Siouxland area. Siouxland Proud, Mside Bound, is a new initiative that offers full-tuition aid packages made up of federal, state, and Morningside grants and scholarships to 100 Siouxland area students.
Covering forty four surrounding counties in Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota, Morningside pledges to give grants to two students per county, with Woodbury, Dakota, and Union counties instead receiving four each.
There are many steps to qualify. In order to qualify, prospective students must:
- Apply & be accepted to Morningside University
- Schedule an Individual Campus Visit or attend a Senior Visit Day
- Submit the 2025-26 FAFSA
- Be Pell-eligible
- Plan to live on campus for the upcoming school year
- Live within the Siouxland area (44 listed counties)
- Submit a Siouxland Proud, Mside Bound interest form
According to the press release, “a selection committee will assess applications based on academic and financial criteria, with announcements made to successful candidates by mid-February.”
The new program has current Morningside students conflicted, many are excited for the possibility of free-tuition but are upset that the funding didn’t go elsewhere. We interviewed five Morningside students.
All student sources for this article will remain anonymous, as we wanted to get their true opinions without fear of repercussion.
One student said, “I guess I’m just frustrated that [Siouxland Proud, Mside Bound] is coming as I’m about to graduate.” She continued, “I’m happy students are getting this opportunity, just a little upset.”
Another student mentioned how he was confused why Minnehaha, the county Sioux Falls belongs to, wasn’t included in the accepted list. He explained that many Mustangs are from Sioux Falls and that they are a staple to many Morningside programs.
When asked her thoughts, a sophomore said, “Would I be able to apply for this next year? How will seniority affect who gets the package and who doesn’t? Will we get more information about how it works soon?” She was happy to hear Morningside now has a page that gives all the information on the website.
A senior said she is happy Morningside will be providing this assistance as her younger sister plans on attending Morningside University after she graduates high school this spring.
When asked about the program, another student said, “I wish the school would do more for the students that are already at Morningside. They [Morningside] complain about falling retention rates, and wonder why.” The student then goes on to say, “I wonder, why am I still here? Why don’t I go somewhere else that will give me more money?”
While this program is a great thing for future Morningside students from the Siouxland area, current students are frustrated. Not only do they feel cheated, there is a question of where this money is coming from and how it was not available to them when they started at Morningside. If the school is now able to offer free tuition to a hundred students, where has the money current students have been paying for tuition been going?
This could also deter interested students from outside the Siouxland area, like those from Sioux Falls, SD; Lincoln, NE; or any part of Minnesota or North Dakota. Seeing that this program is only offered to people near Morningside, they might decide to go somewhere else that at least gives them the chance at receiving some more financial aid.
Morningside University encourages anyone with questions about the new program to reach out to the Admissions Department. For any general questions about the program, you can find more information at the Siouxland Bound, Mside Proud page.
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