President’s Column: Orientation, Kiwanis, STEM, Auction
Greetings from VCSU!
We have enjoyed an exciting week at Valley City State University! I had the pleasure of visiting with a portion of our incoming freshman class. During the spring and summer months, we provide several opportunities for new students to register for classes, meet faculty and other students, and get to know campus a bit better. Today’s event brought more than 50 new students, along with parents and family members to campus. On the heels of commencement, when we send our students on their way to careers and life, this event has the same sense of anticipation and excitement for what is to come. I sincerely appreciate the participation of all the folks contributing to help make these meaningful and informative experiences for our new students – faculty, staff, student volunteers, community members – thank you for your help!
Earlier this week Larry Robinson and I had the opportunity to host the Valley City Kiwanis Club on campus. We provided a tour of the new Center for the Arts. It’s always a pleasure to help community members and groups see the complexity and inner workings of the facility. The exterior façade is impressive, but the classrooms, learning spaces, rehearsal halls, art gallery, studios, recording wing, faculty offices, and main performance hall combine to make this the most outstanding space in our state and region for students to learn, work, perform, and improve. Our students and community are fortunate to have such a space, and I’m reminded of the outstanding Kiwanis mission statement – A global organization of volunteers dedicated to improving the world one child and one community at a time. 
This past week also included the first cohort (new student participants) in our summer STEM Academy. Led by Dr. Jamie Wirth and Jason Dockter, these camps bring students together to experience learning in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and math. There will be two more groups on campus during the next few weeks.
Additionally, on June 6th and 7th, VCSU was one of six locations across the state to host a two-day “boot camp” for K-12 teachers. The Dakota Digital Academy – which is part of the North Dakota University System – teamed up with the Northern Information Technology Consortium to deliver the professional development opportunity. In addition to VCSU, other sites included Dakota College at Bottineau, Lake Region State College, Minot State University, Turtle Mountain Community College and Williston State College.
As I compose this update, the Viking Scramble Golf Tournament is underway, and we are preparing to host our Foundation Board for their summer meeting next week. We will have several exciting updates to discuss with them, including our spring 2023 recap of enrollment and activities, completed and planned campus improvements, capital campaign progress, and plans for the 2023-24 academic year. While we are still finalizing expenses, we are excited to report that the VCSU annual scholarship auction set another record by raising nearly $127,000 with all proceeds going to student scholarships (V-500 and Century Club)! The success of this event and other initiatives on campus only happens because of the outstanding support of so many friends, alumni, and community members. We sincerely appreciate all who helped make this such a fun and productive evening for our students!
I hope you will have an opportunity to enjoy some travel, lake time, rest, and rejuvenation during the summer months.
Go Vikings!