Larry J. Robinson Honored
Robinson retires from VCSU with more than 50 years of service to ND
Valley City, ND – Valley City State University (VCSU) celebrated Larry J. Robinson on Monday, June 10, with an official program recognizing the naming of the Larry J. Robinson Center for the Arts.
Speakers during the program included President Alan LaFave, former president of VCSU Dr. Steve Shirley, and Valley City Mayor Dave Carlsrud. Robinson also addressed the crowd and offered thanks to his colleagues and family.
“I firmly believe no one in life accomplishes anything alone,” Robinson said. “It takes a team.”
Larry Robinson graduated from Tappen High School and earned his B.S. degree in education from VCSU in 1971. He also earned his Master of Science degree in Educational Administration from NDSU. He started his career as a teacher in Warwick, N.D. then returned to VCSU as the Director of the Memorial Student Center and Student Activities/Auxiliary Services in 1975. In 1996, Robinson was hired as the first Director of the VCSU Foundation. In 2021, he stepped into the role of directing VCSU’s first-ever capital campaign. He and his wife Mary Lee reside in Valley City and are active community members.
Robinson served as a member of the North Dakota Legislature as a senator for District 24 from 1988 to 2019. He served in several leadership positions including on the Senate Appropriations Committee, Higher Education Committee and Veterans Affairs. His leadership helped facilitate funding for a new Veterans’ Home in Lisbon, flood protection for communities in the Sheyenne River Valley and the for the new VCSU Center for the Arts. The $32 million building officially opened for students in the spring of 2022.
The Robinson Center for the Arts is the creative hub for all art and music on campus. The art facilities include a ceramics lab, printmaking, painting, and drawing studio, a woodshop, a photography studio and digital design lab. Music facilities in the building include a 350-seat performance hall, 100-seat choral room, a band rehearsal room, piano lab, recording studio and numerous practice rooms of various sizes.