Today, Governor Dennis Daugaard announced that the longest-tenured member of his cabinet is retiring next month. Pam Roberts is currently the Secretary of Labor and Regulation, and has served in various cabinet-level roles under five different South Dakota governors.
Kim Olson is a policy advisor for Governor Daugaard and has worked with Roberts for about 10 years.
"We’re losing a lot of institutional knowledge with Pam leaving. And thankfully she’ll still be in Pierre and we’ll still get to talk to her- I’m sure tap her brain occasionally but it is going to be a great loss because you can hire talent but you can’t hire that institutional knowledge," says Olson. "And even in hiring talent Pam’s really in that unique percentage where she just has been so committed and dedicated and so intelligent and intuitive on how she looks at policy that we’re going to miss her quite a bit."?
Olson says Roberts has had the perspective of working with many governors and leaders across the state. She says that experience and knowledge makes Roberts invaluable in terms of being able to guide good policy for South Dakota.
October 10th will mark Robert's last day in the governor's office. A formal replacement has not yet been named.