Presenting to the Senate

It was my privilege to represent VCSU during our Senate Appropriations Committee presentation in Bismarck on January 19. This was a tremendous opportunity for us to share some of the successes of the past biennium and our planning efforts for the future. Here are a few highlights from that presentation:

• Continued national recognition from U.S. News and World Report; VCSU has been ranked among the Top 4 “Public Regional Colleges in the Midwest” continuously since 2010 and has been a U.S. News “Best College” for 23 consecutive years!
• Ranked “Most Beautiful Campus in North Dakota” by Buzzfeed.
• Continued enrollment growth to 1,676 for Fall 2020, with almost seventy percent of our student body coming from North Dakota.
• $1.4M raised for VCSU student scholarships through the Higher Education Challenge Grant Fund.
• A record 2020 scholarship allocation of $1,860,000 through the VCSU Foundation!
• Several examples of high-impact educational practices, including faculty-mentored student research, fisheries and wildlife students relocation of mussel bed, hands-on work in our music production and graphic design labs, the substitute teacher program, internships and career readiness initiatives, and responsiveness and adaptability to Covid-19.
• Preparing teachers for North Dakota, with more than 1,438 alumni teachers and administrators serving 336 schools and education units in 157 communities throughout the state.
• VCSU’s tremendous economic impact in the community and region, estimated at $83 million in FY2019.
• Investments in infrastructure, including our new Center for the Arts slated for completion in December 2021, and continued progress toward adding an activated carbon plant.
• The continued need for investment in deferred maintenance to address life safety issues and facility needs.
• Testimony from Angeline Gannon, Student Senate president; and Wesley Wintch, vice president for business affairs.

This year’s presentation format was a bit different than those in the past. The outstanding community support we typically enjoy at these hearings through in-person attendance wasn’t possible this year, but the support from our community was displayed prominently in our presentation. We enjoy many wonderful collaborations with organizations and individuals in our community and are grateful for the continued support.

Finally, our spring semester enrollment numbers will be released in early February. Based upon current registrations I’m pleased to report that we are “on track” to meet or exceed previous record-breaking levels of enrollment! There will be more to report on this, once the spring 2021 enrollments are finalized.

Go Vikings!