Accreditation, campus updates, and summer projects
Greetings from VCSU!
I sincerely hope you enjoyed a wonderful and safe Memorial Day weekend, remembering those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to secure and preserve our freedom.
In today’s column I first want to recognize, thank, and congratulate our School of Education and Graduate Studies for securing national accreditation through CAEP (Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation). We were recently notified that Valley City State University successfully gained accreditation through 2030. The seven-year reaffirmation comes with no suggested areas for improvement. The comprehensive process evaluated the School of Education’s knowledge, approach to teacher preparation, teaching practices, quality, and continuous improvement. While no known areas for improvement were identified, our faculty and staff remain dedicated to continuous improvement. Special thanks to Dr. Allen Burgad, dean of the school of education, Dr. Al Olson, assessment coordinator and professor of education, and the many faculty, staff, and external participants who participated in the process.
While most of our students have returned to their home areas for summer, the campus is alive with activities and projects. I will address some of the outstanding summer camps in a future column, but bring your attention to a list of projects that our facilities folks will be focusing on for repairs, updates, and renovation throughout the summer months.
Campus always looks beautiful during the late spring and early summer months, thanks to the efforts of our outstanding grounds crews. I’m grateful for the efforts of these fine folks, along with several others from our campus and Valley City community who helped in beautification efforts by cleaning up and planting flower beds across campus last Wednesday, June 24. The results of these efforts will be visually appealing throughout the season.
Some of the other summer projects on the list include window washing (McFarland Hall has over 200 windows!), various landscaping including tree trimming, Center for the Arts alley repairs, softball complex sidewalk, student center sidewalk and ADA ramp, McFarland Hall clocktower repairs, McFarland alley retaining wall enhancements, parking lot repair and striping, old Foss Hall parking lot lighting, general campus-wide sidewalk repairs, McFarland front door and railing paint, signage updates, campus roof repairs, student senate fire pit (gift), and gazebo staining.
Some of these have already been completed, but you can see there is an extensive list of priorities, and the summer season is the opportune time to complete these.
I invite you to take a stroll by and through our beautiful campus at some point this summer and hope you will agree that the VCSU campus is one of the most scenic in the upper Midwest.
Finally, I’d like to congratulate three of our track and field athletes who competed at the NAIA Track and Field National Championships. Taylor Sargent (100 hurdles), Jaiden Peraza (high jump), and Kendra Odegard (women’s javelin). They join an elite group of athletes earning a spot in the national championships. Special congratulations to Kendra for placing fourth in the women’s javelin and earning All-American honors!
Go Vikings!