Professional occupations will account for more than half the total U.S. job growth in the years to come, and talent is the principal resource that underpins this new economy. Creative individuals who can develop new ideas and new applications of existing knowledge are the entrepreneurs who will ensure future economic well-being. Education is the foundation upon which this community of South Dakota's future citizens will be built. The task ahead will fall largely on public education. The public education system is not just K-12 schools but includes as an integral part the public universities. In South Dakota, the Board of Regents is fortunate to have a strong partnership with the state's elementary and secondary education system. South Dakota's residents must continue to work hand in hand--pre-K-12 and with higher education--to develop a highly-educated workforce. One of the most important ways is to make sure young people strengthen their academic preparation, especially in math and science. This is one of the objectives of the South Dakota Opportunity Scholarship. The scholarship's second objective is to retain this talent in state for their postsecondary education. Higher-achieving young people who stay in South Dakota will offer a talent pool to compete with any in the world. Building a research-oriented faculty is a major change for South Dakota. The more than doubling of federal funding support for grants in recent years indicates the quality of the work that can be done in South Dakota. New Ph.D. programs, targeted research centers, graduate assistantships, and individual faculty research grants all work toward building a more robust research infrastructure for South Dakota. This will ensure that Governor Rounds' 2010 Initiative goal of developing the state as a research and technology leader is met. To gauge progress across the public higher education system, this "Fact Book Fiscal Year 2006" provides the single best source of information and data from the South Dakota Board of Regents. (Contains 56 tables and 21 graphs.)